Sakshi Education
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the Digital India initiative on 1st July.
The programme aims to make all citizens digitally literate and bring internet and e-governance to all sections of the society. Modi added that Digital India has drawn investments worth Rs 4.5 lakh crore and will create 18 lakh jobs. The government announced that people of 31 gram panchayats across 14 states watched the Digital India event through web conferencing, powered by NOFN's Bharat Net network.
It also said that BSNL already has 55 Next Generation Network in place to replace 30-year-old exchanges; their number will grow to 683 by year end. BSNL also has 53 active Wi-Fi hotspots, and aims to have 2500 Wi-Fi hotspots by the end of 2015.
With the launch of Digital Locker, citizens will be able to store digital copies of all their documents, which can be used for easy download as well as to submit the same for verification with the click of a button
National Scholarship Portal, offering all details and performing all key procedures from a single platform. Government is also launching an app that will make it possible for citizens to take appointments and pay fees for government hospitals using their smartphones. Similarly, Indian citizens can now connect their phone number with their Aadhar authentication number for streamlined data verification.
Additionally, the government is launching apps for Swachh Bharat Mission, PayGov and MyGov, and setting up National Centre for Flexible Electronics and National Institute for IoT (Internet of Things).
Following are the key areas of Digital programme
Easy access to a Common Service Centre
Governance and services on demand
Digital empowerment of citizens
Nine pillars of Digital India
Digital Locker system launched
The government launched a Digital Locker system within its Digital India programme which will help citizens to digitally store their necessary documents
These documents will be treated as legal and can be produced electronically through internet at any given time.
The government also launched an e-Signature service with Digi-Locker. While only certain kind of digital signatures have acceptance at the moment, this move could provide a nationwide push for digital authentication of documents.
This initiative of the Centre will help in reducing the burden of physically carrying one's official documents for verification during any official appointment. These digitally stored important documents can be a passport, PAN card, driving licence and degree certificates.
To sign up for a digital locker, one has to have an Aadhaar number and a mobile number registered with Aadhaar.
Other important points
It also said that BSNL already has 55 Next Generation Network in place to replace 30-year-old exchanges; their number will grow to 683 by year end. BSNL also has 53 active Wi-Fi hotspots, and aims to have 2500 Wi-Fi hotspots by the end of 2015.
With the launch of Digital Locker, citizens will be able to store digital copies of all their documents, which can be used for easy download as well as to submit the same for verification with the click of a button
National Scholarship Portal, offering all details and performing all key procedures from a single platform. Government is also launching an app that will make it possible for citizens to take appointments and pay fees for government hospitals using their smartphones. Similarly, Indian citizens can now connect their phone number with their Aadhar authentication number for streamlined data verification.
Additionally, the government is launching apps for Swachh Bharat Mission, PayGov and MyGov, and setting up National Centre for Flexible Electronics and National Institute for IoT (Internet of Things).
Following are the key areas of Digital programme
- Digital infrastructure as a utility to every citizen
- High-speed internet as a core utility
- Cradle-to-grave digital identity -- unique, lifelong, online, and authenticable
- Mobile phone & bank account -- enabling participation in digital & financial space
Easy access to a Common Service Centre
- Shareable private space on a public cloud Safe and secure cyberspace
Governance and services on demand
- Services available in real time from online &mobile platform and seamlessly integrated across departments or jurisdictions
- All citizen entitlements to be available on the cloud
- Services digitally transformed for improving ease of doing business Making financial transactions electronic & cashless
- Leveraging GIS (Geographic Information System) for decision support systems & development
Digital empowerment of citizens
- Universal digital literacy
- Universally accessible digital resources
- All documents/certificates to be available on the cloud
- Availability of digital resources/services in Indian (regional) languages
- Collaborative digital platforms for participative governance
- Portability of all entitlements through cloud
Nine pillars of Digital India
- Broadband highways
- Universal Access to Phones
- Public Internet Access Programme
- E-Governance-Reforming Government through Technology
- eKranti-Electronic delivery of services
- information for all
- Electronics Manufacturing-Target NET Zero imports
- IT for Jobs
- Early harvest programmes
Digital Locker system launched
The government launched a Digital Locker system within its Digital India programme which will help citizens to digitally store their necessary documents
These documents will be treated as legal and can be produced electronically through internet at any given time.
The government also launched an e-Signature service with Digi-Locker. While only certain kind of digital signatures have acceptance at the moment, this move could provide a nationwide push for digital authentication of documents.
This initiative of the Centre will help in reducing the burden of physically carrying one's official documents for verification during any official appointment. These digitally stored important documents can be a passport, PAN card, driving licence and degree certificates.
To sign up for a digital locker, one has to have an Aadhaar number and a mobile number registered with Aadhaar.
Other important points
- India's average internet speed was ranked 115th globally in the first quarter of the year, among countries studied by services provider Akamai Technologies.
- India had just a little over 100 million broadband subscribers at the end of April, out of a population of close to 1.3 billion, according to the sector regulator, which considers internet connections with minimum download speeds of 512kbps.
- A telecom ministry panel, by comparison, said in March it wants the digital push to establish affordable broadband connectivity of 2Mbps to 20Mbps "for all households" by 2017
- Reliance Industries Ltd plans to invest about 2.5 lakh crore ($39.3 billion) in digital initiatives, Chairman Mukesh Amabani said
- The government plan aims to stop net imports of technology and electronics by 2020, while creating over 100 million jobs.
- Cyrus Mistry said the Tata Group would hire 60,000 IT professionals this year, and Kumaramangalam Birla said his Aditya Birla Group will invest Rs. 44,500 crore ($7 billion) in the next five years in the infra and digital space.
Published date : 02 Jul 2015 03:45PM
