Q7. e-Governance projects have a built-in bias towards technology and back-end integration than user-centric designs. Examine.
Possible Introductions
Definition-based:
e-Governance refers to the application of ICT for delivering government services, ensuring efficiency, transparency, and accountability. However, many Indian e-governance initiatives emphasise technological sophistication rather than citizen-centric usability.
Fact-based:
India’s flagship National e-Governance Plan (2006) and Digital India Mission (2015) focus heavily on digital infrastructure and integration. Yet, reports like the NCAER e-Governance Index show gaps in last-mile citizen experience.
Philosophical:
Good governance is not about the sophistication of tools but about how inclusively and effectively citizens can access public services.
Main Body
1. Bias Towards Technology & Back-end Integration
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- Platform-building Priority: Large-scale back-end systems like Aadhaar, GSTN, and DigiLocker prioritised before citizen-interface simplification.
- Inter-operability Goals: Heavy investments in integration of databases (UIDAI, NPCI, CoWIN) without equal investment in citizen training.
- Tech-centric KPIs: Success measured in “portals created” or “transactions digitised” rather than ease of use.
- Uniform Portals: One-size-fits-all interfaces ignore regional, linguistic, and literacy diversity.
- Example: GST portal faced usability issues among small traders despite strong back-end integration.
2. Neglect of User-Centric Design
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- Digital Divide: Rural, poor, and elderly citizens excluded due to lack of digital literacy, devices, or connectivity.
- Accessibility Issues: Interfaces often not disabled-friendly or language-diverse.
- Complex Procedures: Long online forms, multiple authentication layers frustrate users.
- Low Trust: Cybersecurity risks and data breaches reduce confidence.
- Example: CoWIN platform during COVID-19 vaccination rollout struggled with inclusivity for rural and elderly citizens.
3. Why This Happens (Structural Reasons)
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- Governance model driven by technology providers, NIC, private IT firms rather than social scientists and UX experts.
- Top-down design: Bureaucrats prioritise efficiency and monitoring over usability.
- Lack of feedback loops from end-users before scaling projects.
4. Way Forward – Towards User-Centric e-Governance
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- Co-design with Citizens: Participatory design, community testing before rollouts.
- Last-Mile Support: Common Service Centres (CSCs), digital volunteers, mobile helpdesks.
- Inclusive Design: Regional languages, voice-based access, offline modes.
- Outcome-focused Evaluation: Metrics based on satisfaction, grievance redressal, accessibility — not just backend numbers.
- Global Best Practices: UK’s GOV.UK portal designed around user journeys; Estonia’s citizen-first e-Gov model.
Sweet Spot – Table
| Focus Area | Current Bias | Citizen-Centric Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Measurement of success | Number of transactions, tech-integration | User satisfaction, accessibility, grievance redressal |
| Design approach | Top-down, tech-driven | Bottom-up, citizen co-created |
| Infrastructure | Databases, platforms | Last-mile literacy & access |
| Language & accessibility | Predominantly English/Hindi, text-heavy | Multilingual, voice-based, disabled-friendly |
Possible Conclusions
Balanced:
India’s e-governance has achieved scale and integration, but real success depends on aligning technology with citizen-centric usability.
Policy-linked:
As the Digital India Act, 2023 (proposed) takes shape, embedding user-experience, inclusivity, and accessibility is as vital as data integration.
Philosophical:
Mere digitisation of governance is not transformation; it becomes true e-governance only when the citizen experience improves meaningfully.
Forward-looking:
For India@2047, e-governance must evolve from being technology-driven to people-driven, ensuring digital justice alongside digital growth.
