Governance Reforms in Digital Era: Issues with Digital India Programme

Abstract

The digital era has witnessed significant advancements in technology and has brought transformative changes in various aspects of society, including governance. In this context, the Digital India Program, initiated by the Government of India, aims to harness the power of digitalization to create a digitally empowered society. The programme encompasses various initiatives such as digital connectivity, infrastructural development, and citizen services. However, the programme encounters several challenges and issues during its implementation; which impact governance reforms in the digital era such as digital illiteracy, inadequate infrastructure, coordination gaps among departments, and taxation issues. These challenges hinder the programme’s successful implementation and impact governance reforms in the digital era. This research paper explores main objectives of the programme, and also identifies the challenges faced during implementation, analyses the impact of these challenges on governance reforms, and proposes recommendations to overcome the identified issues. The data has been collected from secondary sources such as published papers, articles, reviews, scholarly books and government reports to examine the subject matter comprehensively. The research study contributes to the existing knowledge on governance reforms in the digital era and provides insights for policymakers, stakeholders, and researchers. This paper aims to facilitate effective governance reforms in the digital landscape, contributing to the goal of creating a digitally inclusive and empowered society.