Centre for Electronic Governance: a step in the right direction

Independence day this year was an inspiring occasion as usual marked by the Prime Minister?s impassioned speech from the Red Fort and celebrations all over the country honouring the national flag and the memory of those who sacrificed everything for the country?s freedom. One particularly heartening event on this day was the inauguration of the Centre for Electronic Governance established by the Ministry of Information Technology. While the corporate sector, academia, and those who see the benefits of the current information technology revolution would, perhaps, on their own take initiatives to harness developments as they occur, in the case of the government, there is need to overcome organizational inertia and routine through purposeful action. To that extent, the initiative of the Ministry of Information Technology is particularly praiseworthy. Several questions have been asked on the role of the ministry, which was set up recently. Given the rapid pace of development in this entire sector, perhaps the ministry can do little to influence the course of progress in the private sector, but it can do a great deal by showcasing government systems based on electronic communication and interaction. Not only would electronic governance cut down delays and the time for processing various requisitions, applications, and decisions that are part of the government?s functioning but it would also help to minimize, if not eliminate, corruption at various levels. The beginning made by the ministry in setting up the Centre for Electronic Governance in fact helps to define the role of the ministry, which must ensure that governments both at the centre and the states hook up early to the revolutionary changes taking place in the field of information technology. Perhaps, a blueprint could be prepared on revolutionizing government processes and decision-making with the help of information technology developments in the future. This could then become the subject of extensive debate and discussion, to be followed by implementation of a forward-looking strategy.