Dear students & faculty members

 I am very delighted to be here to address my young friends on the topic of ‘’India as a digital democracy- need of the hour’’

The time has come to make India a digital power using Information Technology and digital technology to provide services to the common man through various digital platforms. Use of digital technology is the best medium to communicate ideas in the democracy.

India has the largest youth population in the world and this population is much advanced in the terms of Information Technology and digital technology. To fulfill aspirations of this large youth population, there is a need to encourage technology-based services delivery system.

Digital democracy will empower the underprivileged of the country to use technology to get government services and utilize them for their uplift and overall development.

Use of Information Technology and digital technology will ensure timely services to the citizens of the country along with ensuring transparency in functioning of the government departments. It will simplify the governance and services providing mechanism. The digital technology will help in creating a communication system between the government and the people besides encouraging participation of the citizens in democracy and decision making process.

Our Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a dream to convert India into ‘’Digital India’’ and the ‘’Digital India Programme’’, an e-governance initiative of the BJP-led NDA Government, will help in achieving this goal. The Digital India campaign will ensure that government services are available to citizens electronically. It will also help the people to gain benefits from the latest information and communication technology.

‘Digital India’ programme will ensure people’s participation in democracy and decision making process; providing services including welfare schemes on time; and tackle the menace of corruption.

 ‘Digital India’  initiative is an ambitious  programme which will bridge the gap between the ‘’digital have’s and digital have-nots’’ in the country. ‘Digital India’ campaign will integrate the government departments and citizens of the country. Providing welfare schemes and other government services using digital technology will help in ensuring benefits directly to the people and will check pilferage of public money.

 ‘Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana’ and ‘Pahal’, the ‘Direct Benefit Transfer’ scheme for LPG subsidy, are two important measures in this regard to curb corruption and provide benefits directly into the pockets of the common man. These schemes are also useful in checking middlemen, which were the biggest hurdle in providing benefits of the services to the poor people. The NDA government from day one has taken steps to remove middlemen and power brokers.

Under ‘Pradhan Mantri   Jan Dhan Yojana’, more than 12 crores bank accounts have already been opened across the country. This has resulted into inclusion of the poor people into the country’s banking system. This has also instilled a sense of confidence and economic security among the under privileged. Money meant for benefit of the common man is going directly into the bank accounts of the people thus helping in controlling corruption.

 ‘Pahal’ has benefited crores of people. Under the scheme, LPG cylinder consumers are getting the subsidy directly into their bank accounts. This is also helping the government in tackling corruption, and reducing diversion and eliminating duplication. This scheme along with ‘Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana’ will significantly benefit the country’s economy.

 Focus has also been given on digital technology in the Rail Budget 2015-16 to provide better services to the passengers.

The Central Government’s ‘Digital India’ programme will ensure that the government services are made available to citizens electronically by reducing paperwork. Under the programme, the government aims to connect every corner of the country with internet, mobile phone network and other digital facilities such as Wi-Fi. The ‘Digital India’ campaign includes connecting rural areas of the country with high-speed internet networks.

 The ‘Digital India’ programme has three main sectors- setting up of digital infrastructure, delivering services using digital technology and digital empowerment of the people. 

 Under the ‘Digital India’ campaign, there are also plans to set up a national optical fibre network, which includes setting up about 7.5 lakhs kilometres of optical fibre networks connecting more than 2.3 lakhs gram panchayats. In the near future, the Digital India programme will change the way of delivering government’s services.

 Wi-Fi facilities will be provided to schools and this will lead to IT empowerment of the students. This will be a revolutionary step in transforming the education system of the country.

 ‘Digital India’ programme will also lead to more and easy access to information in rural India.

 Providing services using digital technology also ensures accountability in government’s decision making process. E-governance accelerates routine administrative works. Use of digital technology facilitates the government and its various departments in disseminating information in public interest with a high speed.

The NDA government has stressed on e-auctioning of natural resources such as coal. According to reports, e-auctioning of coal mines have resulted into revenue of more than 2 lakh crores into the government exchequer.

 In my opinion, the youth have a greater role to play in making India a ‘’Digital India. The youth should come forward and contribute to the government’s efforts in achieving this goal.

IT manpower of the country is already doing well in the US and other Western countries. The ‘Digital India’ programme will provide an opportunity to this manpower in the country itself. Besides traditional IT hubs at Bengaluru and Hyderabad, the campaign will develop the entire country into an IT hub.

Thank you