|
The Government has recognized the potential of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for rapid and all round development in general and transforming governance in particular. For citizen-centric governance it is imperative that benefits of ICT should be leveraged to reach the citizens within shortest possible time, in a reliable and cost effective manner. People want a government that meets their needs, that is available when and where they need it and which delivers services to them in a transparent way. By deploying ICT based solutions it is now possible to provide a government and other citizen-centric services to a much broader segment of population at optimal quality, time, place and cost.
This can be achieved by deploying appropriate ICT based service delivery infrastructure nationwide. Three important elements would form the core of this effective service delivery paradigm, namely Data Centres, Wide Area Networks (SWANs) and Common Services Centres (CSCs) the Front-end outlet for the service delivery.
Current service delivery infrastructure of the government, both at Central and State level, is inadequate to meet the implementation of ICT based e-Governance solutions which are required to create lasting and wide ranging impact on governance to make it more citizen-centric. For universal service delivery requirements, data may be required to flow to and fro, seamlessly between a service delivery point or a local State Government office located at Block level and a Data Centre located at a Departmental office in the State or Central Government headquarters. This situation would require a seamless, highly reliable, wide band communication network with reasonable capacity within the State and also across the States. Such Wide Area Network should have inter-operability with adequate standardization and security so that the governance goals for government-to-government and government-to-citizen needs are met. The Department of Information Technology has prioritized establishment of State Wide Area Network (SWAN) as an element of the core infrastructure for supporting e-Governance initiatives.
The State Wide Area Networks (SWANs) would be established linking the State headquarters right upto the Block headquarters. These networks would be connected to the NICNET through appropriate interfaces in the form of Gateways to enable inter-State connectivity. The Departments and other government agencies would be able to carry out G2G services and later Government to Citizen (G2C) services through SWAN.
For the States, there are 10 Mission Mode Projects, under NEGAP which are at various stages of implementation (either Pilot or Statewide roll-out) in the States. All these e-Governance projects are expected to use SWANs to carry government to government traffic in the first stage. The Department of Information Technology(IT) is considering various options for facilitating support to establish Integrated Service Delivery Centres (ICDS) with a focus to rural areas. The outcome of the SWAN scheme will be a “seamless secured intranet” deployed throughout major administrative units of the States /Union Territories (UTs). The States / UTs would be using this dedicated intra-State / UT and inter-State / UT network for various G2G and G2C services. There would be indirect economic gains through higher efficiency, optimal utilization and better planning of resources. Using the last mile wireless connectivity at the Block headquarters, Community Services Centres would be established at Village level for remotely delivering various services to the rural citizen. This would increase the credibility of governance at remote locations.
Proliferation of information and communications technologies has made it possible to deliver information and information-related services, both government and private, much more ubiquitously, conveniently, efficiently and cheaply. The low level of Personal Computer (PC) and Internet penetration and the modest telecommunication spread in the country necessitate special measures to ensure that these benefits reach the common man. One of the key elements identified in this context is widespread establishment of Community Citizen Service Centers in all parts of the country, including particularly, its hinterland, to deliver an entire range of services to citizens using modern ICTs.
Many non-government efforts to establish ICT-based Common Services Centres(CSCs) have been initiated on a pilot scale in the country. Large scale roll-out of these initiatives, however, has not been possible across the States due to inadequate managerial and financial resources for scaling up such centres for delivery of government and private services, and lack of business opportunities in rural areas to enable such centres commercially viable in the absence of a significant volume of government services for delivery through such outlets.
The National e-Governance Action Plan (NEGAP) has a clear focus on improving delivery of government services to citizens. The NEGAP has recognized that creation of dedicated service delivery outlets by each department is neither cost-effective for the government nor convenient for the citizen. Common access points combining Central and State government services with private services are, therefore, envisaged. Considering the need for creating a network of access points throughout the country as outlets for services such as, Integrated Citizen Service Centres has been identified as one of the Mission Mode Project under the NEGAP.
The Department of Information Technology, keeping in view the rural thrust in the Common Minimum Programme (CMP), intends to create enabling environment for establishing at least 100, 000 Common Services Centres in the rural areas by the year 2007 to provide government and private services. This would be carried out by providing policy interventions and financial support.
The State governments through their district administration and local self government bodies, would have to play a major role in creating an appropriate institutional mechanism for implementation and also in taking the necessary legal and policy measures to enable the CSCs to come into being, attain sustainability and deliver the services as contemplated in these Guidelines.
While some of the State governments have launched government - sponsored pilot projects to establish CSCs in urban and semi-urban areas, many non-government and not-for-profit organizations, and some private business entities have also implemented projects, to build and operate ICT-enabled CSCs, especially in rural areas, which provide various services to the rural community through electronic means. Some of these pilot initiatives have been rolled out in a limited way in rural areas across the States and have met with limited to significant success.(PIB Features)
**Secretary, Department of Information Technology
|
