One of the nine pillars of Digital India programme is Broadband Highway

“Cloud computing model can play a major role in providing governance and services on demand to the citizens,” says Ram Sewak Sharma, Secretary, Department of Electronics & Information Technology, Government of India

In his Independence Day speech, the Prime Minister of India spoke about Digital India, where every citizen has access to Internet connectivity and there is good governance through eGovernance. Could you please provide us an overview of the Digital India programme?

Digital India programme is an umbrella programme to prepare India for a knowledge based transformation. It aims to provide much needed thrust to the nine pillars of growth, namely – broadband highways; universal access to mobile connectivity; public internet access programme; eGovernance: reforming government through technology; eKranti – electronic delivery of services; information for all; electronics manufacturing; information technology for jobs; early harvest programmes.

The vision of Digital India is centred on three key areas – infrastructure as utility to every citizen, governance and services on demand, and digital empowerment of citizens. Cloud computing model can play a major role in providing governance and services on demand to the citizens. As per the objectives, all shall be provided access to a shareable private space on a public cloud. All citizen entitlements shall be made available on the cloud to ensure easy access. All Government documents and certificates shall become available on the cloud platform. Individuals will not be required to produce these documents for obtaining various services. Also, portability of all entitlements for individuals would be ensured through the cloud platform.

What steps can DeitY take to ensure that the vision of Digital India becomes a reality?
The programme will be coordinated by DeitY and implemented by the entire government. DeitY has started taking the necessary steps to ensure the success of Digital India project. DeitY will lay down standards and policy guidelines, provide technical, advisory and handholding support, so that various wings of the government can fully leverage the ICT Infrastructure established by the government of India. The existing eGovernance initiatives will be suitably revamped to align them with the principles of Digital India. Scope enhancement, process re-engineering, use of integrated and interoperable systems and deployment of emerging technologies like cloud and mobile will be undertaken to enhance the delivery of government services to citizens.

Government cloud shall be the default cloud for government departments. States will be given flexibility to identify for inclusion any additional state-specific projects, which are relevant for their socio-economic needs. We also plan to restructure NIC and strengthen IT support to all government departments at centre and state levels. Position of CIOs will be created in at least 10 key ministries so that various eGovernance projects can be designed, developed and implemented faster.

The Prime Minister spoke about providing health related facilities and education to people living in the remote areas of the country through Internet. But the broadband connectivity is quite poor in most parts of the country. So how do we move forward in the direction of having e-education & telemedicine?
One of the nine pillars of Digital India programme is broadband highways. Broadband connectivity will be provided to all the 2.5 lakh Gram Panchayats. The nodal department for this will be DoT. In urban areas, virtual network operators will provide service delivery. The plan is to mandate communication infrastructure in new urban developments and buildings. Also, the National Information Infrastructure (NII) will have nationwide coverage to provide on-demand network connectivity to government departments. SWAN, NOFN and NKN will be integrated under the NII project.

You have played an important role in the development of the Aadhaar initiative, which is being used by government departments to weed out illegal beneficiaries in government schemes and also for promoting financial inclusion. In your view what can be done to ensure that the full benefits of Aadhaar become available to the citizens?
Aadhaar has been conceptualised not only as an identity authentication mechanism, but also as an aid inclusion in various developmental schemes such as rural employment, health, PDS, etc. Aadhaar is also a key driver for financial inclusion. It may be utilised in opening a bank account which will be quite useful in case of a migrant worker. Aadhaar may be utilised for better management of public schemes like Direct Cash Transfers, Food Security and guaranteed employment etc. It can solve the issues of portability of entitlement of a person from one location to another in PDS schemes.

What is your view of the IT-ITES sector in the country?
India is regarded as the premier destination for the global sourcing of IT/ITES and accounts for 55% of the global market in offshore IT/ITES services. During the past decade, the total exports by this sector have grown from US$ 9.5 billion in 2002-03 to US$ 40.4 billion in 2007-08 and is estimated at US$ 86 billion in the year 2013-14. The IT-ITES Industry has also created large employment opportunities, with 3.1 million professionals directly employed by the industry and indirect job creation estimated at 10 million.

The phenomenal success of the IT-ITES industry has been possible through the pivotal role played by the Software Technology Park (STP) Scheme and provision of fiscal benefits under Section 10A of the Income Tax Act as well as the concerted efforts of the Indian IT-ITES industry. STP Scheme is a special scheme designed to promote the software industry including innovations and growth of Start-Ups and SMEs without any locational and other constraints.

Department of Commerce (DOC) has notified 235 IT-ITES specific Special Economic Zones (SEZs). Currently, the SEZs units are eligible for tax benefits as per Section 10AA of the Income Tax Act for a period of 15 years in a phased manner. Further, the SEZ rules were also modified to meet some of the specific sectoral characteristic of the IT sector. Recently, the Government has removed the minimum land requirement for setting up SEZ for IT/ITES, and the minimum processing area requirement is applicable as per category of the cities.

The National Policy on Information Technology (NPIT) had been formulated to bring growth to the IT-ITES sectors. In your opinion what kind of impact did NPIT have on the industry?
Department of Information Technology and Electronics with the approval of the Union Cabinet, notified NPIT in September 2012. The above Policy lays down a vision to strengthen India’s position as the Global Information Technology hub. One of the key objectives of the NPIT 2012 is to increase revenues of IT and ITES Industry from 100 Billion USD at present to 300 Billion USD by 2020 including export revenue of 200 billion USD. One of the strategies of NPIT 2012 includes creating ecosystem for a globally competitive IT/ITES Industry and to formulate fiscal and other policies to attract investment in IT Industry in Tier II & Tier III cities and rural areas for expanding the base of IT and for creating employment opportunities across the country.

The demand for electronic products in the country is rising, but bulk of the electronics that Indians use has to be imported. What is DeitY doing to promote electronic manufacturing in the country?
The initiatives taken have resulted in revival of interest in electronic sector. Nearly 45 new proposals for investments have been received involving investment of approximately 18000 crore. While this is small compared to the larger target, clearly reflects a change in trend over the past decade also. We find significant level of interest in some verticals like automotive electronics, consumer electronics, LED manufacturing and industrial electronics. However much more needs to be done.

What are the key challenges in setting up of semi-conductor wafer FAB in the country?
Setting up of semiconductor wafer FAB is complex project. The successful functioning of FAB involves expertise in operating the equipments so as to give high yield. Second challenge is lack of ecosystem for supply of equipments, its warranty and maintenance, supply of chemicals and gasses. It has to be sourced from abroad and in due course domestic capabilities can be developed. Thirdly, lack of human resources who have training. IIT Bombay and IISc Bangalore have LAB level facilities but commercial FAB manufacturing requires a different level of skill set. People may have to be trained in a working FAB abroad. Another challenge is raising finance for this highly capital intensive project.

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