National Awards for e-Governance and Vikshit Bharat

The National Awards for e-Governance (NAeG) recognize initiatives that contribute to the goal of Vikshit Bharat, focusing on the evolution of e-governance in India and Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI).

2026 National Awards for e-Governance

• Awarded to 17 projects from Central, state, and local governments.
• Categories include 10 Gold Awards, 6 Silver Awards, and 1 Jury Award.
• The theme: “Viksit Bharat 2047: AI-Enabled, Data-Driven and Secure Digital Governance.”
• Awards recognize excellence in e-Governance by DAR&PG since 2003.
• Gold awardees receive Rs 10 lakh; Silver awardees receive Rs 5 lakh, used for project implementation.

Highlighted Initiatives

• Agri Stack: A platform consolidating agricultural data from state/UT governments.
• e-Jagriti: Strengthens consumer dispute redressal through online complaint filing and case tracking.
• Panchayat Advancement Index (PAI): Evaluates rural bodies on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Evolution of E-Governance in India

• E-Governance: Utilizes ICT to enhance public service delivery, transparency, accountability.
• Aims to bridge the gap between the state and society.
• Premised on SMART governance: Simple, Moral, Accountable, Responsive, Transparent.
• Four pillars: people, process, technology, resources.

Key Milestones

• 1970s: Computerisation of government offices begins.
• 1976: Establishment of the National Informatics Centre (NIC).
• 2006: Launch of the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP); Common Service Centers (CSCs) enhance access.
• Digital India Mission enhances digital infrastructure for governance.
• Aadhaar streamlines welfare delivery; UMANG offers single-window government services.
• Government e-Marketplace (GeM) improves procurement transparency.

Challenges and Solutions

• Challenges include digital literacy and data protection concerns.
• India ranks 28th globally in per capita digitalization.
• Solutions require bridging the digital divide and ensuring affordable internet access.

Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)

• DPI forms the backbone of modern societies, enabling interactions between people, businesses, and governments.
• The JAM trinity (Jan Dhan, Aadhaar, Mobile) underpins India's DPI.
• India Stack expands DPI into payments, health, education, and governance platforms.

International Collaboration

• India has signed agreements with 24 countries to share digital infrastructure knowledge.