e-readiness of selected central ministries/departments · 2016-09-05 · e-readiness of selected...

e-Readiness of Selected Central Ministries/Departments

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e-Readiness of Selected CentralMinistries/Departments

5.1 Introduction

The performance of Central Government Ministries isrelevant since one of the major purposes of e-Readinessis to strengthen e-Governance. The Government of Indiaaccords high priority to the area of e-Governance.Accordingly, a National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) hasbeen drawn which seeks to implement a number ofMission Mode Projects at the centre, state and integratedservice levels so as to create a citizen-centric andbusiness-centric environment for governance, create theright governance and institutional mechanisms, set upcore infrastructure, formulate key policies and channeliseprivate sector technical and financial resources intonational e-Governance efforts.

e-Governance is crucial to promote public accountabilityand delivery of responsive services. The terme-Governance often has different connotations:

• e-Administration–the use of ICTs to modernizethe state; the creation of data repositories forinformation services, computerisation of records.

• e-Services–the emphasis here is to bring thestate closer to the citizens. Examples includeprovision of online services. e-Administrationand e-Services together constitute what isgenerally termed e-Government.

• e-Democracy–the use of IT to facilitate theability of all sections of society to participate inthe governance of the state. The canvas is muchbroader here with a stated emphasis ontransparency, accountability and participation.Examples could include onl ine disclosure

policies, online grievance redress forums ande-Referendums.

5.2 e-Governance in India

e-Governance originated in India during the seventieswith a focus on in-house government applications in theareas of defense, economic monitoring, planning and thedeployment of ICT to manage data intensive functionsrelated to elections, census, tax administration etc. Theefforts of the National Informatics Center (NIC) toconnect all the district headquarters during the eightieswas a significant milestone in this respect. From the earlynineties, e-Governance has seen the use of IT for widersectoral applications with policy emphasis on reachingout to rural areas and taking greater inputs from NGOsand the private sector. There has been an increasinginvolvement of international donor agencies such as DFID,G-8, UNDP, and the World Bank under the frameworkof e-Governance for development.

While the emphasis has been primarily on automationand computerization, state endeavours to use IT includeforays into connectivity, networking, setting up systemsfor processing information and delivering services. At amicro level, this has ranged from IT automation inindividual departments, electronic file handling, accessto entitlements, public grievance systems, service deliveryfor high volume routine transactions such as payment ofbills, tax dues to meeting poverty alleviation goals throughthe promotion of entrepreneurial models and provisionof market information. The thrust has varied acrossinitiatives, with some focusing on enabling the citizen-state interface for various government services, and othersfocusing on bettering livelihoods.

CHAPTER 5

India: e-Readiness Assessment Report 2006

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5.3 Focus, Data-base and Framework ofAnalysis

After evaluating and ranking states according to their e-Readiness, this chapter intends to take the report onestep further by analysing the e-Readiness performanceof certain central ministries or sub-ministries. Theobjective of this chapter is to evaluate nine selectedministries in terms of their performance in the sub-components of e-Readiness. Ministries with directinteractions with the public have been chosen in orderto analyse the extent to which the central government isapplying ICT techniques to improve the quality andquantity of its services. The framework through whichstates were evaluated has been applied to the differentministries as well. This includes an analysis of theenvironment, readiness and usage of ICT in theministries. Unlike states however, ministries are notcomparable since each ministry has a different raisond’être. The extent to which the ministries/departmentscan go in promoting ICT depends on the nature of theirresponsibilities and services. There is therefore nocommon threshold by which we can compare theministries. This incomparability means that ministriescannot be ranked in order of e-Readiness, they can onlybe judged according to the applicability of ICT to theirwork and the efforts they invest to achieve it.

The database for this analysis is a structured questionnairecanvassed in the selected ministries. However, the dataprovided by the respective ministries, unlike that of thestates, cannot be quantified for two reasons. First, thesample of ministries is too small to do any meaningfulstatistical analysis. Second, although the questionnaireused was common to all ministries, the responses are notcomparable because of their patchy nature. Theseconstraints mean that the assessment of the e-Readinessof the ministries considered will be purely qualitative.

The Ministries/Departments selected for our analyses are:

Ø Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA)

Ø Ministry of External Affairs (MEA)

Ø Council of Passports and Visas, Ministry ofExternal Affairs (CPV)

Ø Central Board of Excise and Customs,Ministry of Finance (CBEC)

Ø Central Board of Direct Tax, Ministry ofFinance (CBDT)

Ø Directorate General of Foreign Trade,Ministry of Commerce and Industry (DGFT)

Ø Directorate General of Supply Division,Department of Commerce, Ministry ofCommerce and Industry (DGSD)

Ø Department of Pension & Pensioners Welfare,Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievance &Pensions (DPPW)

Ø e-Committee, Department of Law and Justice,Ministry of Law and Justice (DLJ)

5.4 Limitations

1. Since only nine ministries have been taken, noquantitative analysis can be done.

2. The response to the questionnaires were notcomplete, thus a lot of the aspects that we plannedto cover at the initial stages was not possible.

3. Strictly speaking, the performances of differentMinistries are not comparable, as their functionsand applicability of ICT in their functions aredifferent. Thus we have not worked out a relativeranking of the Ministries and have done aqualitative analysis of different aspects ofe-Readiness.

4. Lastly, since we are looking specifically at deliveryof services, a better framework would have beento survey users of the e-Services underconsideration. This is something that can betaken up in subsequent years.

5.5 Profile of Selected Ministries/Departments

Despite the differences in applicability of IT to eachministry/department, there are some levels of ITapplication that is common to all. These include the useof ICT for internal communications and administrationas well as having a website that displays the principalpurpose of the ministry/department. Once this level isachieved, some ministries can go further than others inusing ICT to improve and facilitate the level of servicesprovided. The following section attempts to shed lighton the applicability of ICT to the ministry/departmentand to analyse the efforts conducted in this respect.


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5.5.1 Ministry of Corporate Affairs

This ministry’s main responsibility is to ensure the smoothapplication of legislative Acts, in particular the 1956Companies Act. This involves providing a legalframework in which the Acts can be implemented andenforced. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs also ensuresthat the legislative initiatives are responsive to thechanging business environment. In all aspects, besidesthose that involve the study, application and creation ofthe law itself, ICT can be applied to make processesfaster and more transparent. Where applicable, theministry has made efforts at increasing ICT applicationsto the extent that in 2005-2006, the ministry went fromusing IT only for some office applications to automatingmost processes and integrating some into a centralisedsystem. This is evident from the Ministry’s website, whichnot only provides all necessary information regarding thelegal framework for businesses, but has also madeavailable several administrative forms for downloading.The ministry has furthermore initiated the MCA21 e-Governance project whereby registration of companiescan be done entirely through the official website.

5.5.2 Ministry of External Affairs

The responsibilities of the ministry of external affairsare much broader. This ministry manages all relationsbetween India and the rest of the world. The benefits ofapplying greater ICT applications to its daily functioninginclude all advantages gained from the availability of thelatest information in terms of decision and policy making;effectively processing, recording and retrievinginformation by installing an information managementsystem; the reduction of duplications in efforts bystreamlining all administrative processes; and keepingall departments well informed about each other’s activitiesso as to improve efficiency. Even though efforts havebeen made to apply IT for all these purposes notably inthe 10th and 11th Plan documents, the ministry admittedto only using IT for some office applications. The currentministry website is limited to providing information,which is not up to date. There is, therefore, a large scopefor improvement as the information provided can be moreregularly updated and more processes can be automatedto the benefit of both the ministry and the public. Certaindepartments of this ministry, however, have used IT to agreater degree such as the consular, passport & visadivision.

5.5.3 Consular, Passport and Visa division,Ministry of External Affairs

This sub division of the Ministry of external affairsmanages all passport-related issues and therefore has aparticularly intense interaction with the public. Its aimregarding ICT is to design a model passport office, whichwould issue passports expeditiously by using the latesttechnology. It also aims to issue passports that can beread by machines in all Indian Missions/Posts abroadand eventually, introduce the e-Passport. The divisionhas already automated most processes and integrated afew into a centralised system. ICT has been specificallytargeted in the 10th Plan document and no budgetaryrestriction is given in the 11th Plan. Its website providesall relevant information and forms and allows for onlineregistration for passports. This has greatly facilitated theapplication process for a passport/visa.

5.5.4 Directorate of Systems and DataManagement, Central Board of Excise andCustoms, Department of Revenue, Ministryof Finance

The Directorate of Systems and Data Management(DSDM) of the Central Board of Excise and Customs(CBEC) is involved in the management of all centrallydeployed CBEC computer facilities and designs, develops,tests, implements and maintains the CBEC’s automatedsystems and IT related projects. The aim of thissubdivision is to enable the CBEC and its clients tobenefit from all possible advantages that increased use ofICT can bring. It seeks to provide an e-Interface fortaxpayers and to promote transparency, accountability andoptimal service delivery standards. According to theDSDM, most processes in CBEC are automated andsome are integrated into a central system. No provisionfor ICT was included in the 10th or 11th Plan documentsbut despite that, improvements in IT have beenconsiderable. All planned IT applications such as thestrengthening of IT capability for e-Governance ordeveloping a workflow based automated process forserving business needs were completed satisfactorilyexcept for one. The aim of providing an e-Interface for taxpayers and a platform for taxpayer serviceswas not applied as originally planned. The websitehowever does make available all relevant informationon customs, service tax and excise and even administerse-Payments.


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5.5.5 Central Board of Direct Tax, Ministry ofFinance

The Central Board of Direct Tax (CBDT) manages thelevy and collection of direct taxes. ICT, if put to full usecould enable taxpayers to meet their tax obligationswithout visiting the Income tax office. It is currently usedto make revenue collection and tax administration moreefficient, to improve the quality of services to taxpayers,and to increase compliance. Between 2003 and 2006, theCBDT has gone from using IT only for a few officeapplications to automating most processes andincorporating them in a centralised system. Thisdevelopment though laudable still leaves room forimprovement if enabling taxpayers to fill forms and settletax issues over Internet is to be achieved.

5.5.6 Directorate General of Foreign Trade,Ministry of Commerce and Industry

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT)administers all trade related issues. Since 2003, the DGFTclaims to have automated most of its processes andintegrated them into a central system. Currently, IT isbeing applied in the management of trade in gems andjewelry, special economic zones, import authorisationsand export oriented units. e-Trade and e-Procurementprojects have also been initiated. These applicationshowever, are linked more to the internal functioning ofthe department rather than its interface with the public.

5.5.7 Directorate General of Supply Division,Department of Commerce, Ministry ofCommerce and Industry

The Directorate General of Supply Division (DGSD)of the Department of Commerce is responsible forproviding supply and inspection services to CentralGovernment Departments. ICT in this departmentenables increased transparency and efficiency inprocurement, availability of infrastructure and accessibilityto information in all states. It will also facilitate theredressal of grievances and lead to minimum interactionbetween suppliers, officials and the authorities. TheDGSD has currently applied IT to some advancedoperations and automated most processes. It has alsosuccessfully implemented the planned IT developmentinitiatives to those fields that were most likely to benefitfrom them. These fields include the pre-dispatch

inspection of stores, the policy and procedure onprocurement, the conclusion of contracts etc. Thedepartment’s website is furthermore very elaborate in theinformation provided.

5.5.8 Department of Pension & PensionersWelfare, Ministry of Personnel, PublicGrievance & Pensions

The Department of Pension and Pensioners Welfare(DPPF) is responsible for formulating all policiesregarding the Pension of Central (civil) pensioners andthe framing of rules there under. It also providesinformation on retirement-related matters and guidanceto pensioners. Besides improved transparency andefficiency, by implementing IT, the DPPF hopes toaddress certain problems such as the redressal ofgrievances by forwarding them to the respectiveMinistries/Departments concerned and following themup. IT will also enable coordination with the Ministryof Health and Family Welfare (Department of Health)for medical assistance to pensioners on the basis ofschemes administered by the Department of Health.Despite being applicable to all thrust areas, IT has onlybeen implemented to disseminate information about theretirement schemes and to provide guidance to pensioners.Plans are in place to extend IT application but they havenot been implemented as yet. No provision for ITdevelopment was included in the 10th or 11th Plandocuments As of now, IT is only used for some officefunctions and the website is merely informative. There istherefore, a large scope for further improvement.

5.5.9 e-Committee, Department of Law andJustice, Ministry of Law and Justice

The purpose of the e-Committee of the Department ofLaw and Justice is to implement ICT in the IndianJudiciary system with the objective of providing speedy,cost effective, transparent and accountable justice. Similarto the DSDM of the Central Board of Excise andCustoms, studying the applicability of IT to this sub-department is not relevant since it’s objective is thepromotion of IT in the Judicial system – evaluating theefforts of this committee is a more pertinent exercise.Although a provision for IT promotion was included inthe 10th and 11th Plan documents, the Department ofLaw and Justice is less advanced in terms of IT utilisationthan most other ministries or departments studied here.


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It currently uses IT for only some office functions andreached this level of IT dissemination only in 2005-2006.In the past, IT was only used in certain locations. Thewebsite of the Ministry was constructed in July 2007.The website will soon be made available in 11 languages,which is significantly more advanced than any of theabove ministries/departments who provide all informationin just English and Hindi. Laptops have recently beengiven to 12500 judges and training sessions for the judgesand other employees is being carried out. Though late tostart, if the e-Committee continues its current efforts,the Department of Law and Justice might soon becomeone of the best IT equipped departments.

5.6 e-Readiness in Ministries

5.6.1 Environment

Planning is an important part of creating an enablingenvironment for e-Readiness. It has already beenmentioned that the Ministries are not comparable in termsof either the functions that they have to perform, or inthe degree of applicability of ICT to those functions.However, we have attempted a comparison in terms ofhow much ICT application has been implemented asper the plan of the respective Ministry/ Department.

Notes: ICT_P Proportion of ICT applicable thrust areas where ICT is applied as plannedICT_LP Proportion of ICT applicable thrust areas where ICT is applied as less than plannedICT_NAP Proportion of ICT applicable thrust areas where no application of ICT through plannedICT_NP Proportion of ICT applicable thrust areas where no plan of ICT application

Except for DPPW, there is no other selected Ministry/ Department where application plans have not been implemented.DPPW in fact has performed particularly badly among the selected Ministries, since 60 per cent of its functions arein this category. DLJ is second from the bottom in terms of performance in this regard as for 80 per cent of itsfunctions, the ICT implementation is less than planned; DLJ is followed by CBEC, where in 26 per cent ofactivities, ICT has been applied less than planned. However, majority of the selected Ministries have attempted toapply ICT in most of the functions as planned.

Figure 5.1: Pattern of application of ICT in ICT applicable thrust areas


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Table 5.1: Selected Parameter of Regulatory Environment in Ministries/ Departments

Ministry/ Whether Action Whether Action Whether cyber Whether digitalDepartment plan regarding plan regarding laws meet signature and

e-Readiness was e-Readiness was requirements encryption lawsincluded in 10th included in 11th of the Ministry meet requirementsPlan document Plan document of the Ministry

DPPW 0 0 0 0CBEC 0 0 1 1DGSD 1 1 1 1MEA 1 1 0 0CPV 1 1 1 1MCA 0 0 1 1CBDT NA NA NA NADGFT 0 0 1 1DLJ 1 1 NA NA

Note: NA: No response; (yes=1, no=0).

It can be observed from Table 5.1 that there is nodifference in the 10th and 11th Plans regarding theinclusion of an e-Readiness action plan. In other words,the ministries/departments, which did not have an actionplan for e-Readiness, did not plan to have one in the 11th

Plan either. These ministries are DPPW, CBEC, MCAand DGFT. Out of these MCA and DGFT had appliedICT as planned in all its functions. Without propere-Readiness action plan, there may have been adhocismin terms if ICT application within these ministries.Finally, There was no response from any Ministryregarding use of ICT in their fiscal environment.

5.6.2 Readiness and Usage

Here, readiness includes two components -infrastructurereadiness and human resource readiness - within theMinistry/ Department.

5.6.2.1 Infrastructure Readiness

As can be observed from the profile of the ministries,this is thought to be an important component ofe-Readiness within several ministries/departments.

Figure 5.2: Accessibility of Computers in the Different Ministries/Departments

Notes :PropC_E: Proportion ofcomputers to total employees

PropEAC_E: Proportion ofemployees who have access tocomputers

PropPAC_TME: Proportionof top and middle levelemployees who have personalaccess to computers


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Fig. 5.2 makes an important revelation. Though of theministries that have responded to this question, there arethree (CBDT, MCA and CBEC) where the number ofcomputers is equal to the number of employees, none ofthem have responded to the question of whether generalemployees have access to computers. Though in DGFTand DGSD, the coverage of computer per employee isless than 45 per cent, in these departments these aredistributed efficiently, in the sense that there is hardlyany difference in the availability and access figures. Inthese departments, however, all the middle and top levelemployees have access to computers, which isunderstandable. Thus, access to computers to all employeesis an issue that needs to be sorted out. If e-Governance

has to be effective, particularly the G2E component,access to computers for all employees is essential.

The non-response regarding internet facility among theselected ministries is high. Among the ones that haveresponded, CPV has reported 100 per cent for all threevariables (Fig. 5.3). For MCA, though access is not aproblem, internet availability is restricted to less than 40per cent of the computers. In DGFT and DGSD, internetaccess follows access to computers. This could mean thatsharing of computers in say, a computer laboratory, givenrestricted infrastructure is not probably practiced for betteraccess.

Figure 5.3: Availability and Accessibility of Internet Facility

Notes : PropC_Int proportion of computers with internet facilityPropE_Int proportion of employees who have access to internet facilityPropTME_Int proportion of top and middle level employees who have personal access to internet facility


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As far as some of the IT related infrastructure andinstitutions are concerned (intranet, video-conferencingand e-Readiness cell) four of the selected Ministries,i.e., DLJ, DGFT, CBDT and MEA were the bestequipped. DPPW and CBEC are the worst-off, sincethey did not have any of the infrastructure/institutionconsidered.

It is clear from Fig 5.5, that construction of a website isthe first initiative undertaken by most of the responding

Figure 5.4: Availability of Selected Infrastructure within the Ministries

Ministries, followed by internet. Intranet is a muchmore recent phenomenon, for a few of the Ministrieshave reported non-availability. This is a problemthat has to be sorted out. Without intranet sharing,formalizing use of digital signatures or for that mattervarious aspects of G2E e-Governance cannot beeffectively implemented. Also, IT related resource sharingis one aspect that will remain neglected till there isefficient use of the intranet.

Figure 5.5: Temporal Profile of Internet, Intranet and Website Availability in the Ministries

Notes: 1= Only Intranet is available; 2= Intranet and Video Conferencing facility available3= Intranet and e-readiness promotion cell exist; 4= All of three exist


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Though existence of websites is fairly common, most ofthe selected ministries have their websites in only Englishand Hindi (Fig 5.6). None of the other local languagesare represented in any of the websites. In fact, MCAdoes not even have a Hindi website. India is a multi-lingual nation and has 22 scheduled languages. The focuson Hindi could possibly restrict the outreach ofe-Governance to citizens of the Indo-gangetic belt.

5.6.2.2 Human Resource Readiness

Human resource readiness is one of the most importantaspects of e-Readiness. In spite of infrastructure

Figure 5.6: Use of Local Languages in the Website

readiness, if there is no capacity-building amongthe employees as well as citizens to adopt ICT, theinvestment to create the infrastructure would beineffective.

Figure 5.7 reveals that among the responding ministriesIT training is not restricted among the top or middlegrades — even the lower level clerks can participate inthe training programmes. This, however, reveals littleabout the nature of the training conducted. This wasanother area where we got very little response from theministries under consideration.

Figure 5.7: Awareness and Grade Required for Participating in IT Training

Notes: 0= No website; 1= website in English only; 2= website in English and Hindi;3= website in English, Hindi and any other local language

Notes: 1= Restricted to top level;2= upto middle level;3= upto lower level


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However, the response that there is no restriction in termsof participation in IT training programmes is somewhatinconsistent with the response regarding awarenessregarding e-Governance. At least three departments (DLJ,DGSD and DPPW) respond that the awareness is

restricted only to the middle level. Thus, thoughtechnically, there may be no restriction for participationin IT training programmes, there are indications thatthe lower level employees may not have been nominatedto do so.

Figure 5.8: Existence of Performance Evaluation of e-Readiness

Though in majority of the ministries, there is an existenceof e-Readiness cell, in none of them there is aperformance evaluation system. Thus, within the centralGovernment system, though there are steps being taken

in terms of creation of institutions and infrastructure,systems that evaluate their optimal usage or efficiencyare not in place (Figure 5.8).

Figure 5.9: Application of IT in Selected Human Resource Services

Notes : 0= No special cell to promote e-Readiness1= Special Cell to promote e-Readiness exists but IT performance evaluation system does not exist2= Both a special Cell to promote e-Readiness and an IT performance evaluation system exist

Notes:1= Didn’t use any IT; 2= Used IT for some processes;3= Used IT for most processes; 4= Used IT for all processes


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For administrative purposes, accounting and payroll services have been computerized in all the selected ministries/departments In fact the intensity of application is good in most of the cases (Figure 5.9). This is bound to have abeneficial effect on the functioning of the departments/ministries.

Figure 5.10: Efficiency of use of Intranet Services

Computerisation of administrative records is at the lowerend of ICT application. Use of digital signatures is oneapplication that can speed up and increase the efficiencyof ICT technology at a fairly high end. Though we havediscussed the use of intranet services and the time ofapplication under the section of infrastructure, itsapplication would really indicate the level of its usage.Out of the nine cases, two did not have intranet facility,four have intranet, but do not use it for circulation ofofficial documents. This means that the existinginfrastructure in these four cases is not utilized for officialpurposes even at a moderately low level. Two of theministry/department (MCA and DGSD) use it forcirculation of official documents. However, officialdocuments without digital signatures do not have a legal

standing. Digital signatures are only used in DGFT andthus the department is the only one using its intranetfacility to its optimum level.

5.7 Constraints in Using ICT

From the analysis above, it is clear that with respect to anumber of aspects, ICT is not being optimally used topromote efficient e-Governance. The small sample sizeis a limitation. However, if anything our sample is biasedtowards a greater applicability of ICT. Given this, itbecomes extremely important to understand and identifythe nature of constraints in promoting efficient use ofICT.

Notes: 0= No Intranet1= Intranet exists2= Intranet is used for the circulation of official documents3= Intranet is used for the circulation of official documents with digital signature


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Figure 5.11: Constraints in Using ICT

As observed from Figure 5.11, the major constraint forthe inefficient use of ICT is related to human resources.Three related factors are high attrition rate of IT trainedpersonnel, no career upgradation for IT trained personnelsand lack of IT technicians with relevant skills. To someextent, lack of employees with relevant skills is also aconstraint in some cases. Government supports, financiallyand otherwise has not been identified as one of the majorproblems. Also, unionization has not been seen as ahindrance.

5.8 Summing Up

1. The selected ministries and departments have avaried portfolio, and therefore, it is difficult tocompare their success or failure in the

Notes: 1 = Does not affect; 2 = Affects to a very small extent;3 = Affects to some extent; 4 = affects to a large extent

A = Union related problemsB = Lack of IT technicians with relevant skillsC = Lack of employees with relevant skillsD = Lack of higher level officers (upto joint secretary level) with relevant skillsE = Budgetary constraintsF = Lack of integration between different departments in the MinistryG = Lack of government support for ITH = Resistance to change among employeesI = No career upgradation for IT trained personnelsJ = High attrition rate of IT trained personnels

application of ICT for promoting e-Governance.Non-response to large number of relevant issueshas also hindered our analysis.

2. Infrastructure does not seem to be a majorproblem. However, facility of intranet is absentin two of the nine selected cases. Also, access toexisting infrastructure to the low-level staffappears to be a problem in some cases.

3. Most of the bottleneck seems to be concentratedaround efficient usage of existing infrastructure.For example, transaction of official documentsor use of digital signatures is not common inspite of intranet availability. Also, the only locallanguage the websites are available in is Hindi.The percolation of information to general citizens


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thus, would tend to be restricted to the Hindibelt only.

4. The institutional system does not appear to befully conducive towards effective promotion ofe-Readiness. A performance evaluation systemfor any new endeavor needs to be promoted,which does not exist in any of the departments/ministries covered.

5. Given that most of the constraints in promotingICT usage is to do with human resourceavailability, capacity building geared to therequirement of each of the ministries need tobe focused on. Also, incentives to IT staff haveto be built into the system to gear up retentionof the existing talent within the governmentsystem.

Annexures

e-readiness of selected central ministries/departments · 2016-09-05 · e-readiness of selected...

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