E-Governance is a tool to empower citizens by transforming governance and increasing people’s participation in the democratic process. Discuss in context of India.

E-governance refers to the use of ICT in ensuring better public service/goods delivery to the masses at large.

Advantages:

• Civil servants made accountable.
• Continuous review and feedback.
• Two-way interaction & responsibility.
• Prevents leakage, pilferage & ensures high quality.
• Reduction in paper work leads to increase in transparency and decrease in red-tapism.

Government initiatives:

• NIC has developed ‘e-office’ portal for files, leave, decision, fund approval, resource management, planning, feedback, etc.
• Cloud-computing & storage via Meghdoot app has revolutionized the office management.
• Digital India, e-Kranti, e-Dhara (land reforms), M-Kisan (USSD Crop Data), etc are proving to be a boon for farmers.
• All information, application, etc are broadcasted online; customer feedback, reviews and grievances are also possible.
• Zoom calls, social media tools are enabling the sharing of best practices among government officials.

Way Forward:

Using these avenues; Enterprise-resource planning, information-management systems, GIS, MIS, etc; ease of living for general public is ensured.

Topics: GS-II: Important Aspects of Governance Transparency and Accountability Citizen Charters • GS-II: E Governance Applications Models Successes Limitations Potential