1

A STUDY OF PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS OF ICT

IN E-GOVERNANCE IN PUBLIC SECTOR

A SYNOPSIS SUBMITTED TO

S.N.D.T WOMEN’S UNIVERSITY, MUMBAI

FOR THE DEGREE OF

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

IN

MANAGEMENT

BY

JYOTI KHARADE

(MCA, M.Phil.)

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

DR. GULNAR SHARMA

(M.A., M.Phil.,M.B.A.,Ph.D)

JANKIDEVI BAJAJ INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES,

S.N.D.T WOMEN’S UNIVERSITY,

SIR VITHALDAS THACKERSEY VIDYA VIHAR,

JUHU ROAD, SANTACRUZ (WEST),

MUMBAI- 400049

2014

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction. ........................................................................................................................... 1

2. Statement of research problem..…….………………………………………………………3

3. Significance of the study ........................................................................................................ 5

4.Scope of the study ................................................................................................................... 6

5.Objectives of the study............................................................................................................ 7

6.Hypotheses of the study ......................................................................................................... 8

7.Review of Literature ............................................................................................................... 8

8.Reseach Design and Methodology........................................................................................ 11

8.1 Sampling frame ............................................................................................................... 11

8.2 Limitation of the study .................................................................................................... 15

8.3 Chapter Scheme .............................................................................................................. 16

9.Analysis of the Data .............................................................................................................. 17

10.Testing of the Hypotheses ................................................................................................... 18

11.Findings............................................................................................................................... 30

12.Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 38

13.Suggesstions ........................................................................................................................ 40

14.Future scope ........................................................................................................................ 41

Annexures

References

Bibliography

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A Study of Problems and Prospects of ICT in e-Governance in Public

Sector

1. Introduction

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is rapidly changing the society and the

mode of governance in the 21st century. Information and Communications Technology (ICT)

in simple terms can be defined as the basket of technologies, which assist or support in

storage, processing of Data /Information, or in dissemination /communication of Data

/Information, or both. ICT thus includes technologies such as desktop and laptop computers,

software, peripherals and connection to the Internet that are intended to fulfill information

processing and communication functions. ICT is thus used as an umbrella term that includes

any communication device or application, encompassing radio, television, cellular phones,

computer and network hardware and software, satellite systems and so on, as well as the

various services and applications associated with them, such as videoconferencing and

distance learning.

Information communication technology (ICT) has been used in business and administration

processes since early 1970s, when mass deployment of computers started. The introduction of

the internet in 1980s, further increased ICT’s role in business and in society. According to

Heeks (2002a) Information Communication Technologies (ICT) can be defined as

“Electronic means of capturing, processing, storing and communicating information. ICT

may be computer hardware, software and networks. They also include intermediate

technologies like radio and television, literate technologies like books and newspapers and

organic technologies based on human body like brain and sound waves”. But the pace of

technological development is still very fast, leading to the continuation of the ICT

transformation. Thus, the continuity of technological changes as well as the constant and fast

improvement of the quality of ICT products stimulates further development and diffusion of

ICT. Empirical analysis also reveals a multidimensional influence of ICT on economies and

societies. In addition, ICT contributes significantly to the economic growth, productivity and

efficiency, therefore, national and international interests encourage its introduction and

acceptance into all segments of business, social and everyday environment.

The concept of governance is quite old and has been in existence for more than

centuries. After achieving independence (Swa-raj) the father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi

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stressed the need for ‘Su-raj’ referring to good governance as the need of the country.

According to Kettl (2002), “Governance is a way of describing the links between government

and its broader environment - political, social, and administrative”. The application of

electronic links means the interaction between government and citizens and government and

businesses, as well as in internal government operations to simplify and improve democratic,

government and business aspects of Governance. In a democratic country like India, the

responsibility for governance lies basically with the elected bodies and is performed through

the executive machinery. The elected bodies together with the executive machinery may be

termed as Government. Rules and procedures for working in offices have been well

established and have to be followed by all officers and staff under this machinery.

Government is an institutional superstructure that society uses to translate politics into

policies and legislation. Governance is the outcome of the interaction of government, the

public service, and citizens throughout the political process, policy development, program

design, and service delivery.

With the advent of ICTs, governments the world over are engaged in public sector reforms to

aid improved service delivery. The concept of “public sector” refers to government

departments and agencies that are staffed by public employees. The concept is used in

contradistinction with “private sector”, which generally refers to organizations or business

enterprises whose activities are almost wholly financed through private shareholding or

equity. The public sector usually encompasses the core civil service, state corporations and

public corporations that are largely financed by the taxpayer. The government, as the service

provider, is defined as any public service organisation at the local, state/provincial or national

level (Accenture, 2010). Most of the existing literature refers to four types of e-government

interactions (Seifert and Petersen, 2002; Evans and Yen, 2005; Siau and Long, 2005)

1. Government to Government (G2G)

2. Government to Citizen (G2C)

3. Government to Business (G2B)

4. Government to Employee (G2E)

The composition of the public sector varies by country, but in most nations it includes such

services as the police, military, public roads, public transport, primary education and

healthcare. The public sector reforms are taking place in governments the world over to

enhance service delivery. Such reforms include e-Governance.

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Governments today are expected to, and do play a key role in the convergence of industrial

society to information society. According to McClure, D.L. (2000), “Electronic government

refers to government’s use of technology, particularly web-based internet applications to

enhance the access to and delivery of government information and service to citizens,

business partners, employees, other agencies, and government entities”. According to Jaeger,

P.T. and Tompson, K.M. (2004), “e-Government” is the provision of government information

through the internet to citizens and businesses and among government agencies. Apart from

determining policy and regulatory structure, governments deliver information and services,

online, using ICTs. e-Government is widely hailed as government that is more open and

inclusive of its citizens and government that is more efficient and effective.

“e-Governance” is the public sector’s use of information and communication technologies

with the aim of improving information and service delivery, encouraging citizen participation

in the decision-making process and making government more accountable, transparent and

effective. According to EzGov, (2000), “e-Governance is a way for governments to use the

new technologies to provide people with more convenient access to government information

and services, to improve the quality of the services and to provide greater opportunities to

participate in democratic institutions and process”. e-Governance involves new styles of

leadership, new ways of debating and deciding policy and investment, new ways of accessing

education, new ways of listening to citizens and new ways of organizing and delivering

information and services. e-Governance is generally considered as a wider concept than e-

Government, since it can bring about a change in the way citizens relate to governments and

to each other. e-Governance can bring forth new concepts of citizenship, both in terms of

citizen needs and responsibilities. Its objective is to engage, enable and empower the citizen.

Today e-Governance is no more a buzzword but a reality as countries all over the worldwide

have shown interest in harnessing governance with state-of-the-art information and

communication technology (ICT), in order to foster better governance.

2. Statement of Research Problem

In today’s IT world, technology is moving very fast and due to the competitive

environment the mindset of the citizens is changing equally fast. Citizens seek more

convenience, lower cost and time expenditures, and freedom from cumbersome and

problematic procedures. Also they are more conscious about their rights. The citizens are also

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more open to accepting new mechanisms that deliver the maximum benefit to them. Citizens

increasingly expect the same level of services from the government as they get from other

private sector organizations.

e-Governance, meaning ‘electronic governance’ is using information and

communication technologies (ICTs) at various levels of the government and the public sector

and beyond, for the purpose of enhancing governance. Governments all over the world are

increasingly becoming aware of the tremendous potential of the rapidly developing ICT

sectors. Many countries around the world have been successfully using e-Government tactics

in delivering citizen services, feedback mechanisms, and there are greater levels of

transparency and efficiency in the transactions and levels of satisfaction among the citizens.

The Government of India kick started the use of IT in the government in the right earnest by

launching number of initiatives. First the Government approved the National e-Governance

Action Plan for implementation during the year 2003-2007.

The current level of expenditure on public services do not produce the desired level of

efficiency and effectiveness due to wastage, delays, mismanagement and poor organization

and management skills. Majority of ICT based initiatives end in total failure of a system that

never works; partial failure in which the major goals are unattained or in which there are

significant undesirable outcomes. Despite the failure of e-Government projects, developing

countries are also facing a lot of challenges such as lack of a proper ICT infrastructure, lack

of awareness about available e-Government services and a lack of citizens’ trust in the

government as well as the internet, which are basis for e-Governance project failure.

Citizens’ perception also plays a vital role in the adoption of e-Governance services.

However, there is still a dearth of empirical studies that investigate intention to use,

continuance intention to use, and citizens’ satisfaction with e-Government services.

Evidence from both theoretical and empirical studies reveals that ICTs and new media

technologies have become inevitable in e-Governance. But the motivation for adopting e-

Governance in developing countries like India is quite different from that in developed

countries.

The research is related to study of problems and prospects of ICT in e-Governance in

selected public sector organizations implementing G2C e-Governance project in Pune

Division. Problems are faced by citizens while using ICT based e-Governance services and

also by the public sector organizations while developing and implementing the e-Governance

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project. Researcher would like to find out micro perspective of the problems of ICT in e-

Governance projects in public sector organizations to suggest solution also to better

understand the citizens’ problems and perspectives so that e-Governance project can be more

acceptable and public sector organizations can provide citizen centric, effective and efficient

services. New ICT opportunities and achievements are constantly emerging, which needs to

be adopted rapidly for effective results in e-Governance.

Keeping this in view, the study was undertaken, titled as A Study of Problems and

Prospects of ICT in e-Governance in Public Sector.

The title signifies study of the present status of ICT in selected e-Governance projects

implemented at national, state and local level with reference to Pune Division, drivers and

barriers for ICT based e-Governance by the public sector organizations, ICT use, e-

Governance awareness, use of e-Services, perception about e-Governance services amongst

the citizens, and problems faced in the use of e-Governance by the citizens and to identify

prospects of ICT in selected G2C e-Governance projects.

3. Significance of the study

Traditionally, the interaction between a citizens and the government took place in the

government office. It is now being realized around the world that more comfort and greater

convenience can be given to the citizens by taking the benefits of good governance to the

citizen’s doorstep by utilizing the new developments in ICT. Transparency and

accountability, an absence of corruption, a growth in revenue and a reduction in cost are the

visible features of good governance. It is in this context that the concept of e-Governance has

emerged. e-Governance allows citizens to communicate with the government as well as each

other and thus participate in government policy making.

The researcher wants to study how the implementation of e-Governance is useful for

citizens to directly interact with government. By using e-Governance services, how citizens

can save their time, cost and effort by availing many services. The study is unique in a

number of ways (i) firstly; it focuses on the present status of G2C e-Governance Projects at

National, State and Local level. (ii) Secondly, it helps to understand if the Citizen’

characteristics like area, age, gender, education, occupation, location and income play any

role while interacting with Government electronically.(iii) The mode of ICT delivery

channels used by citizens to interact with Government to avail e-Services. (iv) The study

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examines the awareness and perception of citizens’ about G2C e-Governance Project and e-

Services. (v) The study will help understand use of e-Services in selected G2C e-Governance

projects. (vi)The study will help determine problems in using the e-Governance services by

the citizens. (vii) It examines role of ICT in e-Governance to deliver service with respect to

easy to use, time and cost effective, reliable, and transparent parameters. (viii)The study will

help understand problems encountered in project implementation faced by public sector

organizations that implements e-Governance Project. (ix) The study will help determine

barriers and drivers in adoption of ICT based e-Governance by the public sector

organizations. The study contributes to increase literature in the field.

Citizen Centric e-Governance projects were undertaken only during the last few years

at national, state and local level in India. Hence they have yet to be stabilized. As a result,

such e-Governance research work is yet new in the field.

4. Scope of the study

The present study is confined to selected G2C e-Governance projects implemented by

public sector organizations at national, state and local level with special reference to Pune

Division of Maharashtra State.

The Indian state of Maharashtra came into existence on May 1, 1960, initially with 28

districts. There are currently the 35 districts in the state. Maharashtra’s topography is diverse.

It is classified into five broad regional groups, historically evolved as socio-cultural units,

Vidarbhan, Marathwada, Khandesh and Northern Maharashtra, Desh or Western Maharashtra

and Konkan region. Geographically, historically and according to political sentiments,

Maharashtra has five main regions.

1. Vidarbha Region - (Nagpur and Amravati Divisions)

2. Marathwada Region - (Aurangabad Division)

3. Khandesh and Northern Maharashtra Region - (Nashik Division)

4. Desh or Western Maharashtra Region - (Pune Division)

5. Konkan - (Mumbai Division)

These regions are divided into six revenue divisions for administrative purposes. The 35

districts are divided amongst these divisions. These districts are grouped into six

administrative divisions, Nagpur, Amravati, Aurangabad, Nashik, Pune and Mumbai

Division. Pune division has five districts, Pune, Sangli, Solapur, Kolhapur and Satara.

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The G2C e-Governance projects studied are Income Tax Project and Passport Seva

Project at National level, Rojgarwahini Project and AGMARKNET Project at State level and

e-Governance projects implemented at local level by Municipal Corporations at Pune, Sangli,

Solapur, Kolhapur and Municipal Council at Satara. The scope of the research is limited to

1. Citizens

Urban area citizens from Pune, Sangli, Solapur, Kolhapur and Satara city.

Rural area citizens from Ambegaon (Budruk), Wategaon, Bhalawani,

Waliwade and soangaon villages.

2. Officials/ IT Heads in Public sector organizations implemting G2C e-Governance

projects in Pune Division.

3. G2C e-Governance projects under study implemented by public sector organizations

in Pune Division.

e-Governance projects will be studied on the magnitude of its problems and prospects

related to ICT in e-Governance faced by citizens and public sector organizations. During the

course of the study the researcher has focused on the study of the implementation of e-

Governance project by the public sector organizations. To examine the problems faced by

citizens different demographics features of citizens were studies. The researcher has also

done the comparative study between rural and urban area citizens for ICT use, perception

about e-Governance projects, use of e-Services and problems in ICT based e-Governance.

The satisfaction score of citizens about the e-Governance services were also studied on

different performance parameters. Drivers and barriers in e-Governance service as perceived

by officials and IT heads in public sector organizations under study were studied.

5. Objectives of the study

The objectives of the research study are as follows:

1. To study the awareness of citizens about e-Governance services implemented by the

Public sector organizations.

2. To study the present status and prospects of Information and Communication

Technology (ICT) implementation for the selected e-Governance projects in the public

sector organizations and status of ICT use amongst the citizens in Pune Division.

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3. To identify the problems in use of e-Governance faced by the citizens in Pune Division

according to age, area, gender, education, occupation and income.

4. To identify Citizens’ e-Governance use in selected G2C e-Governance projects and their

perception about overall e-Governance projects.

5. To examine the drivers and barriers in use of e-Governance for public sector

organizations.

6. Hypotheses of the Study

In consistent with the objectives, following hypotheses were formed and tested by the

researcher:

1. Perceived factors as barrier and driver for ICT based e-Governance are different for

National, State and Local level e-Governance Project.

2. Drivers are more than Barriers for e-Governance project implemented by the public

sector organizations.

3. Perception about e-Filling of income tax service for income tax e-Governance project is

same amongst urban and rural citizens in terms of less time required, cost effective,

reliability and transparency performance parameters.

4. Various e-Governance services like accessing information, performing online

transactions and posting grievances or feedback are used almost to the same extent by the

citizens in urban and rural area.

5. Perception about the application for fresh passport e-Governance service amongst urban

and rural citizens is same in terms of less time required, cost effective, reliability and

transparency performance parameters.

7. Review of Literature

Researcher found numerous research studies pertaining to implementation of e-Governance

services. The researcher has done a literature review on various aspects of e-Governance like

e-Governance initiatives in India and Maharashtra, impact assessment of e-Governance

services on citizens, a citizens’ perspective of availing e-Governance services, comparative

study of e-Governance vs. manual services and future prospects for e-Governance

implementation. Literature indicates that the main focus has been given to different sectors or

dimensions related to e-Government service delivery, such as Government to Government

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(G2G), Government to Business (G2B), Government to Employee (G2E), and Government to

Citizen (G2C).

Most of the studies reveal citizens are satisfied with e-Governance service as they

become free from the manual system and save their valuable time, effort and money. Some

study reveals how implementation of e-Governance helps public sector organizations to

increase their efficiency by delivering quality services to satisfy more citizens.

The majority of ICT based initiatives end in total failure of a system that never works;

partial failure in which the major goals are unattained or in which there are significant

undesirable outcomes. Majority of them appear to be heavily technology-centric, adopted

from the environment of developed countries and thus fail to assure rural development in

developing countries such as India. Heeks, (2003) brought to attention the high failure rate of

e-Government projects. His working estimates that 35 percent of e-Government projects in

developing/transitional countries were total failures, 50 percent were partial failures and 15

percent were successes.

Citizens in developing countries are far behind in adoption of ICT. In a series of

empirical research studies, by Nair, M. and Kuppusamy, M. (2004) and Nair, M.,

Kuppusamy, M. and Davison, R. (2005) highlighted the existence of ICT diffusion disparity

between developed and developing countries. The penetration of and access to ICTs is higher

in developed countries than in developing countries like India. Despite the failure of e-

Government projects, developing countries are also facing a lot of challenges such as lack of

a proper ICT infrastructure, lack of awareness about available e-Government services and a

lack of citizens’ trust in the government as well as the internet, which are basis for e-

Governance project failure. Citizens’ perception also plays a vital role in the adoption of e-

Governance services.

According to Sang, S., Lee, J.-D. and Lee, J. (2010), Lack of awareness, lack of

marketing by the government organizations, traditional mindset etc are some of the factors

attributed to low use of portals. The key problem associated with the high failure rate of e-

Government projects is the lack of awareness about the potential factors that may help

citizens to adopt e-Government services.

There are differences in the adoption and implementation of e-Government within several

government organisations at a national and international level (Heeks, 2002b; Moon, 2002).

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These differences can be attributed to the individual organisational requirements,

circumstances, readiness, structure, size and cultures (Lam, 2005).

Surendra Kapoor, Prabhu Gollamudi, Nityesh Bhatt, (2010) in his book titled

Widening e-Governance Canvas, covers selected e-Governance Initiatives in India. The book

not only includes six invited papers on the theme of Widening e-Governance Canvas but also

narrates various e-Governance success stories, which are classified into six categories namely

state-level e-Governance initiatives, department level e-Governance initiatives, district-level

e-Governance initiatives, G2C e-Governance initiatives, G2G and G2B e-Governance

initiatives, and e-Governance success stories of sustainability.

J.Satayanarayana, (2004), in his book titled e-GOVERNMENT: The Science of the

possible has considered e-Government from several perspectives from role and benefits of e-

Government till managing e-government. Entire aspects of e-government are covered in the

twelve chapters.

Mrs Swati Prakash Sardesai, (2008), in her Ph.D. thesis titled Study of Citizen Centric

e-Governance Projects in Maharashtra, submitted to University of Pune derive a set of

parameters to ensure e-Governance ICT projects are successful, implementable, usable,

transparent, time effective, affordable and accurate from citizens’ point of view. The research

is based substantially on 3 major Citizen Centric e-Governance projects (CCEG) projects

implemented in Maharashtra.

Hassan, H. S. H, (2011), in her Ph.D. thesis titled An investigation of e-services in

developing countries : the case of e-Government in Egypt, examines e-Government service

projects and provides insights and learning into how to successfully develop and implement

these projects within a developing country, specifically Egypt. The aim of this research is to

develop a robust framework to support an efficient e-Government system focusing on the

case of Egypt. This is achieved by investigating selected completed and on-going successful

initiatives and focusing on the barriers to, and the enablers of, these initiatives. As a result,

the nature of successful e-Governmental services initiatives is determined, and solutions to

the possible emerging barriers and challenges are developed.

Literature review of books, Ph. D. thesis, published research articles in journals and

published proceedings of conference papers and reports published by the public sector

organizations are further used for designing the questionnaires for the research.

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8. Research design and methodology

Research designs have a critical and directive role to play in the research process.

Research design is the specific framework that has been created to seek answers to the

research problem. According to Kerlinger (1995), ‘A Research Plan, structure and strategy of

investigation so conceived as to obtain answer to research questions and problems. The

research is inferential descriptive in nature. Researcher has used survey based and case study

based research to carry out this research. The study was organized as two independent but

related investigations. Part 1 was the case study to bring out a rich historical account of

public sector organizations ICT transformation in e-Governance, while Part 2 was survey

based where data was collected from citizens from Pune Division and officials and IT Head

from public sector organizations. Two levels of analysis were done as descriptive level for

data summarization; collation and organization that resulted in case study descriptions and

analytical level for theoretical reflection and interpretations. Chapter 4 titled e-Governance

projects: case study presents the conduct of the descriptive level analysis and the analytical

level separately in Chapter 5 titled Data analysis and findings.

8.1 Sampling Frame

The method used for selection of sample is stratified sampling method in which sample units

are divided into five districts. Each district is divided into urban and rural area. More details

are presented in Table No.1.

Table No. 1:

Sample Frame

1 Sampling Technique Stratified and convenience sampling.

2 Population e-Governance Projects at National, State and local

level.

Public sector Employees.

Citizens’ in Pune Divison.

3 Type of Population Finite Population.

4 Analysis Unit Selected G2C e-Governance Project implemented

by Public Sector organizations at National, State and

Local level in Pune Division.

Public sector official, IT Head.

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Citizens’ from urban and rural area in Pune

Division.

5 Sampling Frame G2C e-Governance projects like Income Tax and

Passport Seva from National Level, Rojgarwahini

and AGMARKNET from State level and e-

Governance project at Municipal Corporation/

Council at local level.

Officials, IT Head in Public sector organization.

Rural and Urban Citizens from five districts in Pune

Division.

6 Sample Size Nine G2C e-Governance Projects.

25 Public Sector Organizations.

2000 Citizens.

60 officials/ IT Head.

7 Parameter of Interest Status, problems and prospects in ICT in selected G2C e-

Governance Projects in Public Sector organization and

Citizens in Pune Division.

The scope of research is limited; the survey is undertaken by obtaining a stratified

sample and convenience sample. The description of the research methodology required for

the process of obtaining a sample as well as the nature and size of sample should be

adequately explained. Stratified sampling techniques involves the selection of respondents

from particular strata based on the important characteristics under study such as age, gender,

education, occupation, income and area they live either rural or urban area related to the

research problem etc.

Data from sample unit have been collected of last two years i.e. 2010-2011 and 2011-

2012. The researcher has selected three samples and collected data from them. The first

sample consists of 2000 citizens of Pune Division from urban and rural area. The second

sample has 60 officials/ IT head from public sector organizations under study and the third

sample consist of 25 public sector organizations implementing G2C e-Governance project at

national, state and local level. Table No.2 shows details about sample selection.

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Table No. 2:

Selection of Sample

Sample

No.

Constituents Sample Area Number

(N)

1 Citizens Pune District Urban Area Pune City 200

Rural Area Ambegaon

Budruk

200

Sangli District Urban Area Sangli City 200

Rural Area Wategaon 200

Solapur District Urban Area Solapur City 200

Rural Area Bhaliwani 200

Kolhapur District Urban Area Kolhapur City 200

Rural Area Valiwade 200

Satara District Urban Area Satara City 200

Rural Area Saongaon 200

2 Officials / IT

Head in

Public sector

organization

National level 20

State level 20

Local level 20

3 Public sector

organizations

National level 10

State level 10

Local level 5

The case study research method is as an empirical enquiry that investigates a contemporary

phenomenon within its real-life context; when the boundaries between phenomenon and

context are not clearly evident; and in which multiple sources of evidence are used. Steps to

use case study research methodology are as follows.

1. Determine and define the research questions.

2. Select the cases and determine data gathering and analysis techniques.

3. Prepare to collect the data.

4. Collect data in the field.

5. Evaluate and analyze the data.

A key strength of the case study method involves use of multiple sources and

techniques in the data gathering process. The researcher can determine in advance what

evidence to gather and what analysis techniques to use with the data to answer the research

questions. Data gathered is normally largely qualitative, but it may also be quantitative. Tools

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to collect data include surveys, interviews, documentation review, observation, and even the

collection of physical artifacts.

In the present research, nine different case studies related to e-Governance Mission Mode

Projects of G2C type implemented at National, State and Local level are studied. It may be

mentioned that e-Governance projects involve access to confidential and sensitive

information and procedures. It is not easy to obtain information. The researcher has been

fortunate to have been able to study nine different projects, viz.

1. Passport Seva Project (PSP)

2. Income Tax Project

3. AGMARKNET Project

4. Rojgarwahini Project

5. Pune Municipal Corporation e-Governance Project

6. Sangli Miraj Kupwad Municipal Corporation e-Governance Project

7. Solapur Municipal Corporation e-Governance Project

8. Kolhapur Municipal Corporation e-Governance Project

9. Satara Municipal Council e-Governance Project

Above e-Governance projects have used different method for implementation, have different

success factors, citizens from different social strata.

Case study methodology is used at apex level but within each case following research

methodology has been used.

a. Exploratory Study was conducted by visiting the public sector organizations.

The purpose of exploratory study was to get a reasonable understanding of the

system and to identify citizens and other stakeholders with their roles in the

system. Project objectives were short-listed separately for citizens and

officials / IT Head in public sector organizations.

b. Detailed study was carried out using separate questionnaires for the citizens

and Officials/ IT Head in Public sector organization. Interviews were

conducted of officials and IT heads of public sector organizations.

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c. Document study covering available project documents, websites, published

literature, project manuals, project presentations etc. was carried out.

The selection of the G2C e-Governance projects is based on the following criteria:

1. The project must be delivering definite G2C services.

2. Implementation of the project must be more that 1 year old.

3. The project must cover at least 25 percent identified end user population and deliver

services from multiple locations.

Primary data is collected by using the survey method. The secondary data utilizes already

available information both published as well as unpublished. Various sources like journals,

government reports, Ph.D. Thesis, books, magazines, and internet are explored to collect

secondary data and same has been used to support the objectives and hypotheses whenever it

needed.

Researcher selected Pune Division for study because Western Maharashtra is considered as

the heartland of Maharashtrian culture and this is prosperous belt contributing to growth of

Maharashtra. It covers five districts like Pune, Sangli, Solapur, Kolhapur and Satara which

are contributing to the economic growth of the state. Researcher found it convenient for data

collection as area is familiar.

Various measures of central tendency (mean, mode, median) and measures of dispersion

(standard deviation) are used appropriately. For measuring reliability of the instrument

researcher used Cronbach's Alpha Reliability test. Statistical techniques such as averages,

percentages comparison and cross-tabulation were used. Statistical tests like t-test, Chi-square

test, regression, correlation, ANOVA are applied. Researcher has used Statistical Package for

the Social Science (SPSS) to test the hypothesis and analysis of the data.

8.2 Limitation of the study

1. Due to difficulties in getting authentic statistical data and certain confidential

information from different authorities from the public sector organizations; researcher

has also used secondary data wherever required.

2. Due to limitation of time in obtaining data from general public the research work has

been restricted to geographical area covering one rural and one urban area from the

five districts in Pune Division. A study covering more urban and rural areas in

Maharashtra state would be more useful, informative and illuminating to the

16

Government and public sector organizations for a successful implementation of e-

Governance.

8.3 Chapter Scheme

A brief outline of the chapters in which present study is articulated is shown in Table No. 3.

Table No. 3:

Chapter Scheme for the Thesis

Chapter No. Name of chapter

1 Introduction

2 Review of Literature

3 Research Methodology

4 e-Governance projects: Case study

5 Data analysis and findings

6 Conclusion and future scope

Chapter 1: Introduction

This chapter provides introduction to Information Communication Technology (ICT), ICT

and governance, overview of ICT sector, ICT indicators and e-Governance in India,

classification based on stages of e-Government, factors influencing use of e-Government, e-

Governance in India and challenges in its implementation. It also includes need for the study,

benefit of the study, statement of research problem, objective, hypotheses, scope and

limitation of the study.

Chapter 2: Review of Literature

This chapter covers brief review of referred books, Ph. D. thesis, journal articles and

conference proceedings, Government reports, articles published in newspaper pertaining to

ICT implementation, e-Governance projects in India and abroad, ICT sector in India, analysis

e-Governance projects, problems faced in e-Governance projects, ICT implementation in

various public sector departments etc.

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

17

This chapter provides information related to research design, scope of the study, research

methodology and statistical tools used for analysis and hypotheses testing methods.

Chapter 4: e-Governance projects: Case Study

This chapter provides case study of Passport Seva Project Project (PSP) and Income Tax e-

Governance Project implemented at national level, AGMARKNET and Rojgarwahini e-

Governance Project implemented at state level and e-Governance projects implemented at

Pune Municipal Corporation, Sangli Miraj Kupwad Municipal Corporation, Solapur

Municipal Corporation, Kolhapur Municipal Corporation and Satara Municipal Council

implemented at local level. Growth model analysis of G2C e-Governance projects is

presented.

Chapter 5: Data Analysis and Findings

In this chapter, an attempt has been made to analyze present status of ICT in public sector

organizations and amongst the citizens, problems and prospects in ICT faced by public sector

organizations and citizens in Pune Division. The primary and secondary data is tabulated and

different statistical tools are used viz. percentage, mean, standard deviation, Chi-square test,

T test etc. Chapter also summarizes the findings.

Chapter 6: Conclusion and Future scope

Chapter summarize, conclusion drawn, suggestions and scope for further research.

References and bibliography have been given at the end of the thesis.

9. Analysis of the Data

The fifth chapter analyzes the data obtained from citizens in urban and rural area, officials/ IT

Head from public sector organizations and G2C e-Governance project at national, state and

local level in Pune Division.

The analysis is carried out under various titles presented as under:

1. Profiling Citizens with respect to age, gender, area, education, occupation and

income

2. Awareness of citizens regarding e-Governance Services and media for awareness

18

This data supports the First objective of the study.

3. Citizens Use of ICT

This data supports the Second objective of the study.

4. Present status of ICT in e-Governance Projects

This information supports the Second objective of the study.

5. Problems in use of e-Governance faced by the citizens

This information supports the Third objective of the study.

6. Usage of e-Governance Services by citizens

This information supports the Fourth objective of the study.

7. Citizen’s e-Governance use, perception and overall satisfaction for G2C e-

Governance services

This information supports the Fourth objective of the study.

8. Factors influencing citizens’ to use e-Governance services

This information supports the Fourth objective of the study.

9. Comparative Analysis of e-Governance Services with respect to easy to use, less

time required, cost effective, reliable service and transparent service parameters

This information supports the Fourth objective of the study.

10. Problems, drivers and barriers in use of e-Governance by the Public sector

organizations

This information supports the Fifth objective of the study.

10. Testing of Hypotheses

Hypotheses were tested using statistical tools.

Hypothesis I – Perceived factors that are barrier and driver for ICT based e-

Governance are different at National, state and local level

Test Statistic: – Chi-square test is applied at 5% level of significance.

To study the perceived factors that are barriers or drivers for ICT based e-Governance, fifteen

parameters such as Internal political desire, Overall vision and strategy, Efficient project

management, Telecom policy, Promulgation of security policy and guidelines and

enforcement of the same, ICT policy, Designing and steering the suitable partnership model,

Availability of funds, Business Process Reengineering, Availability of ICT professional

skills, Affordable and well spread electronic service delivery channels, e-Governance project

19

documentation, Maintenance of e-Governance project, Citizens demand for ICT based e-

Governance and Competencies among the officials were considered.

To test the first hypothesis about association between barriers and drivers and level of e-

Governance project following null hypothesis is designed.

H01: There is no association between barriers and drivers for ICT based e-Governance and

level of e-Governance project.

H11: There is association between barriers and drivers for ICT based e-Governance and level

of e-Governance project.

Table No.4 shows the perception of the officials from Public sector organizations at National,

State and Local level about barriers and drivers for ICT based e-Governance.

Table No.4:

Drivers and Barriers for ICT based e-Governance

Factors National level State level Local level

Barrier Driver Barrier Driver Barrier Driver

Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage

Internal political

desire

0 100 0 100 15 85

Overall vision and

strategy

0 100 0 100 0 100

Efficient project

management

30 70 0 100 0 100

Telecom policy 0 100 30 70 60 40

Promulgation of

security policy and

guidelines and

enforcement of the

same

100 0 100 0 0 100

ICT policy

100 0 65 35 0 100

Designing and

steering the suitable

partnership model

100 0 100 0 100 0

Availability of funds 100 0 0 100 85 15

20

Factors National level State level Local level

Barrier Driver Barrier Barrier Driver Barrier

Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage

Business Process

Reengineering

100 0 100 0 100 0

Availability of ICT

professional skills

0 100 0 100 0 100

Affordable and well

spread electronic

service delivery

channels

0 100 100 0 70 30

e-Governance project

documentation

0 100 0 100 100 0

Maintenance of e-

Governance project

100 0 100 0 100 0

Citizens demand for

ICT based e-

Governance

0 100 0 100 0 100

Competencies among

the officials

0 100 0 100 100 0

Total No. of

Respondents (N)

20 20 20

The barriers and drivers are complementary to each other. To study the perceived factors as

barriers and drivers they are categorized into 5 groups as show in Table No. 5 and Table No.6.

Table No. 5:

Perception of Barrier

Barrier Total

(N) 5 6 7 8 9

Level

Local 0 3 11 3 3 20

National 0 14 6 0 0 20

State 7 7 6 0 0 20

Total 7 24 23 3 3 60

21

Table No. 6:

Perception of Driver

Driver Total

(N) 6 7 8 9 10

Level

Local 3 3 11 3 0 20

National 0 0 6 14 0 20

State 0 0 6 7 7 20

Total 3 3 23 24 7 60

The bivariate frequency distribution table is obtained and presented in the Table No. 7.

Table No. 7:

Distribution of No. officials according to driver and level of e-Governance project

Driver Total

(N) 6 7 8 9 10

Level

National

Count 0 0 6 14 0 20

Expected

Count 1 1 7 8 2 20

State

Count 0 0 6 7 7 20

Expected

Count 1 1 7 8 2 20

Local

Count 3 3 11 3 0 20

Expected

Count 1 1 7 8 2 20

Total

Count 3 3 23 24 7 60

Expected

Count 3 3 23 24 7 60

It is seen from above table that the actual count for driver is greater than the expected count at

national level, state level and local level. To test whether the drivers and barriers have

association with the level of e-Governance project Chi-Square test is applied as shown in

Table No. 8.

22

Table No. 8:

Chi-Square Tests to test for association of drivers and barriers with the level of e-

Governance project

Chi-Square Tests

Pearson Chi-Square Value df p-value

35.924 8 0.000

As the p-value is less than 0.05 the Chi square test is rejected. Hence Null hypothesis is

rejected. Hence it can be concluded that there is association between barriers and drivers for

ICT based e-Governance and level of e-Governance project.

Hence it can be concluded that Perceived factors as Barrier and Driver for ICT based e-

Governance are different for National, State and Local level e-Governance Project.

Hypothesis II – Drivers are more than barriers for e-Governance project implemented

by the public sector organization

Test Statistic: – t-test used with 5% significance level.

To test the hypothesis about association between Drivers and Barriers for e-Governance

projects following null hypothesis is designed.

H02: Drivers are not more than Barriers for e-Governance project implemented by the Public

Sector Organizations.

H12: Drivers are more than Barriers for e-Governance project implemented by the Public

Sector Organizations

To test the hypothesis the difference between mean score of Barriers and Drivers is tested

using pair t-test as show in Table No. 9 and Table No. 10.

Table No. 9:

Paired t-Test

t-Test Mean N Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean

Pair 1 Barrier 6.5167 60 0.94764 0.12234

Driver 8.4833 60 0.94764 0.12234

23

Table No. 10:

Paired t-Test

Paired Samples Test Paired Differences t df Sig.

(2-tailed) Mean Std.

Deviation

Std. Error

Mean

Pair 1 Barrier

Driver -1.96667 1.89528 0.24468 -8.038 59 0.000

Above table indicate that there is significant difference in mean score of barrier and driver.

The p-value of t-test is less than 0.05. The test is rejected. Hence Null hypothesis is rejected.

Hence the hypothesis Drivers is more than barriers for e-Governance project

implemented by the public sector organizations. is accepted.

Hypotheses III – Perception about e-Filling of income tax service for income tax e-

Governance project is same amongst urban and rural citizens in terms of less time

required, cost effective, reliable service and transparent service performance

parameters.

Test Statistic: – t- test used with 5% significance level.

To study the perception of citizens about use of e-Filling of income tax return e-Governance

service, information is collected through questionnaire. Response to Question No 6 (2)(f) 1 to

5 provide the information which is rated as under.

Poor service = 1

Average = 2

Good = 3

Very good = 4

Outstanding = 5

To understand mean satisfaction score of e-filling of income tax return service following

formula is used.

Mean percentage satisfaction = Total score of all five questions

---------------------------------------- * 100

Maximum score of five questions

24

Using formula as mentioned above mean satisfaction score and standard deviation of scores

are calculated and presented in the Table No. 11.

Table No. 11:

Descriptive Statistics of perception about e-filling of Income Tax e-Governance service

Performance factor N Minimum Maximum Mean Std. Deviation

Easy to use 294 40 100 87.62 11.41

Less Time 294 40 100 92.86 10.55

Cost Effective 294 40 100 88.44 11.55

Reliable services 294 40 100 93.33 9.59

Transparent services 294 40 100 89.25 10.12

Above table indicate that among citizens using e-Filling income tax return maximum

satisfaction is for ‘reliable service’. Citizens are also highly satisfied for service for ‘less time

required’. Followed by this citizens are satisfied for service for ‘transparent services’, then

‘cost effective’ and then ‘easy to use’.

To test the hypothesis following null hypothesis is designed.

H03: There is no significant difference between perception score of rural and perception score

of urban for e-Filling of income tax service for income tax e-Governance project.

H13: There is significant difference between perception score of rural and perception score

of urban for e-Filling of income tax service for income tax e-Governance project.

For testing the hypothesis various performance parameters were considered like easy to use,

less time required, cost effective, reliable service and transparent service. This hypothesis has

been tested by using t-test as shown in Table No. 11.

25

Table No. 11:

T-test for e-Filing of Income Tax e-Governance service

Performance

Factor

e-Filling of Income Tax e-Governance service

Area N Mean Std.

Deviation

t-

calculated d.f. t-table

Remark

Easy to use

Urban 264 88.00 11.66 1.49 292 1.96

Non-

significant Rural 30 84.60 8.60

Less time

required

Urban 264 93.80 10.36 0.084 292 1.96

Non-

significant Rural

30 84.60

8.60

Cost effective

Urban 264 88.80 11.78 0.000 292 1.96

Non-

significant Rural 30 84.60 8.60

Reliable

service

Urban 264 94.40 9.20 0.211 292 1.96

Non-

significant Rural

30 84.60

8.60

Transparent

service

Urban 264 89.80 10.16 0.000 292 1.96

Non-

significant Rural

30 84.60

8.60

It is seen that the calculated value (1.49) is less than table value (1.96) for easy to use. The

calculated value (0.084) is less than table value (1.96) for less time required. The calculated

value (0.000) is less than table value (1.96) for cost effective. The calculated value (0.211) is

less than table value (1.96) for reliable service. The calculated value (0.000) is less than table

value (1.96) for transparent service.

Since the calculated value is less than the table value the t-test is accepted and subsequently

Null hypothesis is accepted. In this case there is no significant difference between mean score

of perception. Statistical conclusion of results of t-test is as follows:

For easy to use, less time required, cost effective, reliable service and transparent service

there is no significant difference between mean score of perception.

Hence the hypothesis Perception about e-Filing of income tax service for income tax e-

Governance project is same amongst urban and rural citizens in terms of less time

required, cost effective, reliable service and transparent service performance

parameters is accepted.

26

Hypotheses IV – Various e-Governance services like accessing information, performing

online transactions and post feedback or grievances are used almost to the same extent

by the citizens in urban and rural area.

Test Statistic: – Chi-square test at 5 percent level of significance.

To test the hypothesis about association between purpose of use of e-Governance services

and area of citizen following null hypothesis is designed.

H04: There is no association between purpose of use of e-Governance services and area of

citizen.

H14: There is association between purpose of use of e-Governance services and area of

citizen.

The bivariate frequency distribution table is obtained and presented in the Table No. 12.

Table 12:

Distribution of No. of citizens according to purpose of use of e-Governance service by

area

Purpose Online use of service

Area

Total

Rural Urban

To get Information No 780 490 1270

Yes 220 510 730

To use online services No 873 613 1486

Yes 127 387 514

To give feedback No 964 753 1717

Yes 36 247 283

Total 1000 1000 2000

To test null hypothesis chi-square test is applied and result of test are presented in Table No.

13.

27

Table No. 13:

Chi square test for purpose to use e-Governance services and area of citizen

Purpose of use of e-

governance df

Calculated chi

square value

Tabulated chi

square value Result

To get information 1 181.426 3.841 Significant

To use online service 1 177.009 3.841 Significant

To give feedback 1 183.248 3.841 Significant

For purpose of use of e-Governance to get information the Chi-square calculated value is

181.426 and table value at 5 percent level of significance is 3.841 at degree of freedom 1,

results indicate that calculated value is greater than table value hence result of test is

significant.

For purpose of use of e-Governance to use online services the Chi-square calculated value is

177.009 and table value at 5 percent level of significance is 3.841 at degree of freedom 1,

results indicate that calculated value is greater than table value hence result of test is

significant.

For purpose of use of e-Governance to give feedback the Chi-square calculated value is

183.248 and table value at 5 percent level of significance is 3.841 at degree of freedom 1,

results indicate that calculated value is greater than table value hence result of test is

significant.

Therefore test is rejected and subsequently H0 is rejected. It is concluded that there is

association between awareness of e-Governance services and area of respondent.

Hence the hypothesis Various e-Governance services like accessing information,

performing online transactions and post feedback or grievances are used almost to the

same extent by the citizens in urban and rural area. is rejected.

Hypotheses V – Perception about the application for fresh passport e-Governance

service amongst urban and rural citizens is same in terms of less time required, cost

effective, reliable service and transparent service performance parameters.

Test Statistic: – T-test

To test the hypothesis about the perception between area of citizen and application for

fresh passport e-Governance service perception of citizens about use of e-Governance service

28

of application of fresh passport, information is collected through questionnaire. Response to

Question No. 6 (b) 1 to 5 provide the information which is rated as under.

Poor service = 1

Average = 2

Good = 3

Very good = 4

Outstanding = 5

To understand mean satisfaction performance following formula is used.

Mean percentage satisfaction = Total score of all five questions

---------------------------------------- * 100

Maximum score of five questions

Using formula as mentioned above mean satisfaction score and standard deviation of scores

are calculated and presented in Table No. 14.

Table No. 14:

Descriptive Statistics of perception of Application of fresh passport

Performance

Factor N Minimum Maximum Mean Std. Deviation

Easy to use 72 40 100 70.8 16.76

Less Time 72 40 100 79.2 19.2

Cost Effective 72 40 100 74.6 14.6

Reliable services 72 40 100 80.2 18.58

Transparent

services

72 40 100 74.6 14.6

From above table it is observed that maximum satisfaction score is 80.2 which is for ‘reliable

service’ and minimum satisfaction score is 70.8 which is for ‘Easy to use’ factor, satisfaction

score is 79.2 for ‘less time’, satisfaction score is 74.6 for ‘cost effective’ and ‘transparent

services’ factor.

To test the hypothesis following null hypothesis is designed.

29

H05: There is no significant difference between perception score of rural and perception

score of urban for application for fresh passport.

H15: There is a significant difference between perception score of rural and perception score

of urban for application for fresh passport.

For testing the hypothesis various performance parameters were considered like easy to use,

less time required, cost effective, reliable service and transparent service. This hypothesis has

been tested by using t-test as shown in Table No. 15.

Table No. 15:

T-test for application of fresh passport e-Governance service

Performance

factor

Application for fresh passport e-Governance service

Area N Mean Std.

Deviation

t-

calculated

df t -

tabulated

Result

Easy to use

Urban 53 73.2 14.12

2.052 70 1.96

Significant

Rural 19 64.2 21.68

Less time

required

Urban 48 85 14.58

4.551 65 1.96 significant Rural 19 64.2 21.68

Cost effective

Urban 48 78.8 7.62 4.089 65 1.96 significant

Rural 19 64.2 21.68

Reliable service

Urban 48 86.2 12.48

4.816 65 1.96 significant

Rural 19 65.2 22.94

Transparent

service

Urban 48 78.8 7.62

4.089 65 1.96 significant Rural 19 64.2 21.68

In above table it is observed that calculated value (2.052) is greater than table value

(1.96) for easy to use, calculated value (4.551) is greater than table value (1.96) for less time

required, calculated value (4.089) is greater than table value(1.96) for cost effective,

30

calculated value (4.816) is greater than table value (1.96) for reliable service, calculated value

(4.089) is greater than table value(1.96) for transparent service.

It is observed that calculated value is greater than table value hence t-test is rejected and

subsequently null hypothesis is rejected. There is significant difference between mean score

of perception. Statistical conclusion of results of t-test is as follows:

For ‘Easy to Use’, ‘Less time required’, ‘Cost effective’, ‘Reliable service’ and ‘Transparent

service’ there is significant difference in perception of satisfaction score of urban citizen and

rural citizen for application of fresh passport. Satisfaction score of urban citizens is higher

than rural citizens. Hence the hypothesis Perception about the application for fresh

passport e-Governance service amongst urban and rural citizens is same in terms of less

time required, cost effective, reliable service and transparent service performance

parameters. is rejected.

11. Findings

The researcher has tested positively the hypothesis of this research study, with the help of

primary data. The research findings are related to present status of ICT in e-Governance

project, problems, barriers and drivers faced by public sector organization for ICT based e-

Governance. Citizen’s ICT use, e-Governance awareness, use of e-Governance services,

perception about e-Governance Projects and problems faced in use of e-Governance.

11.1 Awareness of citizens regarding e-Governance Services and media for awareness

Most of the citizens are aware about e-Governance services provided by Public sector

organizations at national, state and local level. Majority of awareness is amongst the

young citizens (below 25 years). Female citizens are more aware than male citizens.

Urban citizens are more aware about e-Governance than rural citizens. Maximum

awareness is amongst the post graduate citizens. Citizens doing Government service

are maximum aware about e-Governance. Majority of citizens with Rs. 50,00,01 to

8,00,000 income group are aware about e-Governance.

Majority of citizens are aware about e-Governance through Radio and Television as

ICT device. It is thus seen that 56.3 percent citizens are highly aware about e-

Governance service.

31

11.2 Present status of ICT in e-Governance Projects

All the public sector organizations at national, state and local level conduct structured

awareness programme for promotion of e-Governance.

All the public sector organizations at national, state level provide services through

personal computer, laptop, mobile phone and kiosk/ CSC. 60 percent public sector

organizations at local level provide services through personal computer, laptop and

mobile phone.

All the public sector organizations at national and state level and local level public

sector organizations have used outsourcing approach for e-Governance projects

development.

All the e-Governance projects at national level are implemented using public private

partnership mode (PPP). All the e-Governance projects at state and local level are

implemented using Build-Own-Operate and Transfer mode (BOOT).

Technical and trained manpower in ICT is adequate in public sector organizations at

national, state and local level.

Most of the public sector organizations use three tier application architecture.

Public sector organizations at national and local level use centralized data centre and

public sector organization at state level use state data centre system management

architecture.

The public sector organizations at national, state and local level are using variety of

software’s which are license and open source. There is heterogeneity in the type of

software’s like operating system, front end languages, databases, application software,

and utilities used for the implementation of e-Governance project and hence each e-

Governance project work in a different silo.

All the public sector organizations at national, state and local level organize ICT

training in area of ICT awareness, system security and audit and hardware and

networking area but the frequency of conducting the training is different at three

levels.

11.3 Citizens Use of ICT

Most of the citizens do not use computer and internet.

Most of the citizens use computer and internet at cyber café.

Most of the citizens use internet weekly.

32

The most preferred type of internet connectivity is through ISDN.

11.4 Problems in use of e-Governance by the citizens

55.8 percent citizens faced security or privacy concerns problem as highly ranked

problem factor to use e-Governance system. The first five ranked ICT problems faced

by citizens are ‘Security or privacy concerns’, ‘Don’t know about this facility or

service’, ‘Lack of infrastructure’, ‘Not felt required to use online services’ and

‘Network failure’.

Problems like ‘lack of infrastructure problem’, ‘costly internet connection’ ,‘no surety

to get delivery of service in time’, ‘only few services provided’, ‘unreliable electricity

supply’, ‘network failure’, ‘security or privacy concerns’, ‘grievances are not handled

at kiosk satisfactorily’ ,‘Don’t know about this facility or service’, are faced majority

by rural citizens where as problems like ‘not user friendly’ and ‘not felt required to

use online services’ are faced majority by urban citizens.

Problems like ‘only few services provided’, ‘unreliable electricity supply’, ‘network

failure’, ‘security or privacy concerns’, ‘not user friendly’ are faced majority by

citizens in young age group. Problems like ‘costly internet connection’, ‘no surety to

get delivery of service in time’, grievances are not handled at kiosk satisfactorily’ are

faced majority by citizens in middle age group. It is concluded that problems like

‘lack of infrastructure problem’, ‘Don’t know about this facility or service’, ‘not felt

required to use online’ are faced majority by citizens in elderly age group.

Problems like ‘lack of infrastructure problem’, ‘costly internet connection’, ‘no surety

to get delivery of service in time’, ‘only few services provided’, ‘grievances are not

handled at kiosk satisfactorily’ and ‘not user friendly’ are faced majority by male

citizens whereas problems like ‘unreliable electricity supply’, ‘network failure’,

‘security or privacy concerns’, ‘Don’t know about this facility or service’ and ‘not felt

required to use online services’ are faced majority by female citizens.

Majority of illiterate citizens face problems like ‘lack of infrastructure problem’,

‘costly internet connection’, ‘no surety to get delivery of service in time’, ‘only few

services provided’, ‘unreliable electricity supply’, ‘security or privacy concerns’,

‘Don’t know about this facility or service’, ‘not user friendly’ as compared with

citizens from other group.

Majority of post graduate citizens face problem like ‘network failure’ as compared to

citizens form other group.

33

Majority of primary school educated citizens face problems like ‘not felt required to

use online services’ as compared with citizens from other age group.

Majority of high school educated citizens face problems like ‘grievances are not

handled at kiosk satisfactorily’ as compared with citizens from other group.

Majority of citizens who have farming occupation face problem of ‘unreliable

electricity supply’. Majority of citizens with majuri occupation face problems like

‘lack of infrastructure problem’ and ‘Don’t know about this facility or service’ as

compared with citizens in other occupation group.

Majority of citizens with government service as occupation face problems like

‘network failure’ and ‘security or privacy concerns’.

Majority of citizens with private service occupation face problem like ‘costly internet

connection’, ‘no surety to get delivery of service in time’ and ‘only few services

provided’.

Majority of citizens who are self employed face problem like ‘grievances are not

handled at kiosk satisfactorily’ and ‘not felt required to use online services’.

Majority of citizens who are student face problems like ‘not user friendly’ as

compared with citizens from other group.

Majority of citizens with Rs. 50,000 and below income group face problems like ‘lack

of infrastructure problem’, ‘costly internet connection’, ‘no surety to get delivery of

service in time’, ‘Don’t know about this facility or service’, ‘not user friendly’ and

‘not felt required to use online services’.

Majority of citizens with Rs. 50,001 to 1,90,000 income group face problems like

‘only few services provided’, ‘security or privacy concerns’ and ‘grievances are not

handled at kiosk satisfactorily’. Majority of citizens with Rs. 1,90,000 to 5,00,000

income group face problems like ‘unreliable electricity supply’. Majority of citizens

with Rs. 5,00,000 to 8,00,000 income group face problems like ‘network failure’.

11.5 Use of e-Governance Services by citizens

Majority of citizens from middle age group use to get information, use online services

and feedback/ Grievance.

Majority of female citizens use to get information, use online services and feedback/

Grievance.

34

Majority of urban citizens use to get information, use online services and feedback/

Grievance.

Majority of citizens from unemployed group those are students use to get information,

use online services and feedback/ Grievance. Majority of citizens with Rs. 50,00,01 to

8,00,000 income group use to get information, use online services and feedback/

Grievance.

61.9 percent citizens do not use e-Governance service.

Majority of citizens avail e-Governance services to get information.

36.5 percent citizens use to get information, 25.7 percent to use online services and

14.15 percent to give Feedback / Grievance.

Use of e-Governance services depends on the parameters of area, age, gender,

education, occupation and income.

11.6 Citizen’s e-Governance use, perception and overall satisfaction for G2C

e-Governance services

35.9 percent citizens have used Passport Seva Project and e-Services like application

for fresh passport, reissue, online registration, locate passport seva Kendra, locate

district passport cell, know your police station, track application status, visa services,

download forms/annexure/affidavits and feedback and grievance have less satisfaction

score as compared with the perception score for e-Governance project.

53.9 percent citizens have used Income Tax e-Governance Project implemented at

national level. e-Services like download forms and challans, application for PAN

and/or TAN, track income tax refund status, income tax calculation have less

satisfaction score as compared with the perception score for e-Governance project

whereas e-services like Track PAN / TAN application status and e-Filing of income

tax return online services have more satisfaction score as compared with the

perception score for e-Governance project.

36.3 percent citizens have used Rojgarwahini e-Governance Project implemented at

state level. e-Services like Online registration, Renew registration, View submission

details, Update contact details, View SMS information, View SMS information,

Coaching class information, Feedback / Grievances, Employment search and View

CSC have less satisfaction score as compared with the perception score for e-

Governance project whereas e-Services like transfer registration, cancel registration,

35

Coaching cum guidance information and Books and magazines information, e-

services have more satisfaction score as compared with the perception score for e-

Governance project.

25.75 percent citizens have used AGMARKNET e-Governance project implemented

at state level. All e-Services like Market related information, Infrastructure related

information, Statistical and Analytical report, Kisan call centre and district level daily

report , State level report have less satisfaction score as compared with the perception

score for e-Governance project.

24 percent citizens have used e-Governance project implemented at Municipal

Corporation and Municipal Council at local level. e-Services like Download of forms,

Online payment of Tax and Complaint registration online services have less

satisfaction score as compared with the perception score for e-Governance project

whereas e-services like Recruitment news and feedback have more satisfaction score

as compared with the perception score for e-Governance project

11.7 Factors influencing citizens’ to use e-Governance services

Factors like ‘Citizens requirement assessment considered in e-Governance project’ is

rank first, ‘Citizens awareness about the e-Governance Project’ and ‘Grievances

handled by the e-Governance Project’ are rank second. ‘Accountability of government

towards citizens’ is rank third. ‘Political support for e-Governance Project’ factor is

rank fourth. ‘Internet connection Band width’ and ‘Data security and privacy

concerns’ are rank fifth. ‘Rules and regulations for e-Governance’ is rank sixth.

‘Infrastructure’ is rank seventh. ‘Communication between citizens and their elected

representatives’ and ‘Efficient service delivery in terms of time, effort and cost’ are

rank eighth. Factors like ‘Distance of kiosks (reach ability)’ and ‘Number of services

provided by e-Governance project’ are rank ninth. ‘e-Governance Network

performance’ factor is rank tenth. ‘Telecom Network Performance’ factor is rank

eleventh. ‘Electricity supply’ factor is rank twelfth.

There is difference in the perception of factors influencing use of e-Governance

amongst urban and rural citizens.

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11.8 Comparative Analysis of e-Governance Services with respect to easy to use, less

time required, cost effective, reliable service and transparent service parameters

In Passport Seva Project citizens have high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’

performance parameter for application for fresh passport e-Service. Citizens have

high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for application for

reissue of passport e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’

performance parameter for police clearance e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction

for ‘transparent service’ performance parameter for online registration and

appointment e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’ and

‘reliable service’ performance parameter for reschedule/ cancel appointment e-

Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’ performance

parameter for locate passport Seva Kendra e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction

for ‘cost effective’ and ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for locate district

passport cell e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘easy to use’ performance

parameter for know your police station e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for

‘reliable service’ performance parameter for track application status e-Service.

Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’ performance parameter for visa

services e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’ performance

parameter for download Forms/ Annexure/ Affidavits e-Service. Citizens have high

satisfaction for ‘less time required’ performance parameter for feedback and

Grievance e-Service.

In Income Tax Project citizens have high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’

performance parameter for download Forms/ Challans e-Service. Citizens have high

satisfaction for ‘less time required’ performance parameter for application of

PAN/TAN e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’ and

‘transparent service’ performance parameter for track PAN/ TAN application status e-

Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’ performance parameter

for track income tax refund status e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less

time required’ performance parameter for income tax calculation e-Service. Citizens

have high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for e-Filling of

income tax return e-Service.

In Rojgarwahini e-Governance project citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time

required’ and ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for online registration e-

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Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’ performance

parameter for renew registration e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less

time required’ performance parameter for view submission details e-Service. Citizens

have high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for update contact

details e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’ performance

parameter for view SMS information e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for all

the ‘easy to use’, ‘less time required’, ‘cost effective’, ‘reliable service’ and

‘transparent service’ performance parameter for transfer registration e-Service.

Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘easy to use’, ‘cost effective’ and ‘reliable service’

performance parameter for cancel registration e-Service. Citizens have high

satisfaction for ‘less time required’ and ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for

coaching cum guidance for schedule tribe e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction

for ‘less time required’ and ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for

Book/Magazines/Paper/Radio/T.V. information e-Service. Citizens have high

satisfaction for ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for competitive examination

coaching class information e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time

required’ and ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for feedback/ grievances e-

Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’ performance

parameter for employment search e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less

time required’ and ‘reliable service’ performance parameter for view CSC e-Service.

In AGMARKNET e-Governance project citizens have high satisfaction for ‘cost

effective’ performance parameter for market related information e-Service. Citizens

have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’ and ‘reliable service’ performance

parameter for infrastructure related information e-Service. Citizens have high

satisfaction for ‘easy to use’, ‘less time required’, ‘cost effective’, ‘reliable service’

and ‘transparent service’ performance parameter for statistical and analytical report e-

Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’ performance parameter

for kisan call centre e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’

performance parameter for district level market-wise, commodity-wise daily report e-

Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘reliable service’ performance parameter

for state level commodity-wise, market-wise daily report e-Service.

In e-Governance project at Municipal Corporation/ Municipal Council citizens have

high satisfaction for ‘less time required’ and ‘reliable service’ performance parameter

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for download of forms e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time

required’ performance parameter for online payment of tax e-Service. Citizens have

high satisfaction for ‘less time required’, ‘cost effective’, ‘reliable service’ and

‘transparent service’ performance parameter for recruitment news e-Service. Citizens

have high satisfaction for ‘transparent service’ performance parameter for complaint

registration e-Service. Citizens have high satisfaction for ‘less time required’ and

‘reliable service’ performance parameter for feedback e-Service.

11.9 Problems, Drivers and barriers in use of e-Governance by the Public sector

organizations

Factors like ‘Overall vision and strategy’, ‘Availability of ICT professional skills’ and

‘Citizens demand for ICT based e-Governance’ are perceived as strong drivers for

Public sector organizations implementing e-Governance project at national, state and

local level.

Factors like ‘Designing and steering the suitable partnership model’, ‘Business

Process Reengineering’ and ‘Maintenance of e-Governance project’ are perceived as

strong barriers for public sector organizations implementing e-Governance project at

national, state and local level.

Drivers are more than barriers for the e-Governance project implemented by the

public sector organizations at national, state and local level.

Perceived factors as Barrier and Driver for ICT based e-Governance are different for

National, State and Local level e-Governance Project.

12. Conclusion

In the light of above findings and observations on site the following conclusions are

derived:

1. Public sector organizations at national, state and local level are implementing e-

Governance projects in decentralized way with citizen centric service delivery goal,

the required infrastructure for hosting of e-Governance applications is created by

using National Data Centre (NDS), State Data Centre (SDC) and common services

(CSC) as three core infrastructure pillars of National e-Governance Action plan

(NeGP).

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2. All the public sector organizations at national, state and local level undertake

structured e-Governance awareness programme for promotion of e-Governance and

majority of citizens are aware about the e-Governance services.

3. Irrespective of the level at which the e-Governance projects are implemented by the

public sector organizations, majority of the citizens use traditional way and kiosk for

communication to interact with Government as compared to e-Governance system.

The use of e-Services like accessing information is high amongst the citizens as

compared to performing online transactions and post online feedback or grievances.

4. Implementation of civic services through e-Governance services is a new concept and

is at the initial level at Satara Municipal council and Solapur Municipal Corporation,

while most of the services are delivered online by Income Tax e-Governance project,

Passport Seva Project, Rojgarwahini project, AGMARKNET e-Governnace Project

and e-Governance project implemented by Municipal Corporations at Pune, Sangli-

Miraj Kupwad and Kolhapur and it makes successful transformation from the

traditional (manual) system to e-Governance system.

5. Implementation of e-Governance helps citizens to avail civic services anywhere,

anytime according to their convenience. e-Governance has the potential to be

dominant alternative delivery channel of all civic services, which cannot be easily

challenged by the traditional (manual) method. Use of mobile technology is

increasing amongst the citizens.

6. Irrespective of the level at which the e-Governance project is implemented

appropriate Public Private partnership (PPP) model implemented by the public sector

organizations, would help to provide quality services to the citizens and increase the

revenue for public sector organizations. Implementation of e-Governance services

helps to reduce manpower and administrative cost and deliver better services to the

citizens at lower cost.

7. Citizen’s satisfaction for e-Governance service is high and if the performance factors

like ‘reliable service’ , ‘less time required’ , cost effective’, ‘transparent service’

performance parameter are perceived high.

8. Public sector officials / IT Head’s perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use for

cloud computing is positively related to the intention to use for cloud computing in

the implementation of the e-Governance application.

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9. All the employees are educated and trained, employees training frequency is different

at national, state and local level.

10. Problems faced by the citizen’s in use of e-Governance services depends on the

parameters like area, age, gender, education, occupation and income.

11. Hardware and software problems faced by public sector organizations are of similar

type but differ in intensity also there is heterogeneity in the type of softwares used in

e-Governance projects at national, state and local level.

12. Barrier and Driver for ICT based e-Governance are different for National, State and

Local level e-Governance Project whereas the drivers are more than the barriers for e-

governance project implemented by the public sector organizations at national, state

and local level.

13. Emerging ICT technologies like cloud computing and mobile technologies can be

adopted in e-Governance application to provide e-Services efficiently and effectively.

13. Suggestions

Based on the study undertaken on nine G2C e-Governance projects implemented by

public sector organizations at national, state and local level with special reference to

Pune Division, there is a wide scope for improving ICT used in terms of its use, cost

and performance. Hence, it is suggested that the latest ICT be implemented to provide

e-Governance efficiently.

1. The study finds heterogeneous software’s and hardware’s are used in e-Governance

projects at national, state and local level and similar type of software and hardware

problems are faced by the public sector organizations at national, state and local level.

There is need to adapt new technology like cloud computing approach in selection of

Software as a service (SaaS) or Platform as a Service (PaaS) or Infrastructure as a

Service (IaaS). Cloud computing employs repeatability and standardized, easy access

to shared hardware and software at low cost.

2. Conduct e-Governance audit from the third party to identify the less used e-Services

in the e-Governance project which will help to study and understand the problems

faced by the citizens in its use so that public sector organizations can increase online

use of the services to satisfy the citizen’s expectations on easy to use, less time

required, cost effective, reliable, transparent performance parameters.

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3. Public sector organizations instead of using three-tier architecture for e-Governance

projects can consider the advantages the cloud architectures as it can provide

infrastructure required for e-Governance applications minimizing the down time for

24x7 and assume unlimited supply of CPU, storage and bandwidth when operating

from cloud. Cloud architecture will benefit the public sector organizations in reducing

operating cost and increasing governance. Application developers can focus on

features and usability. In a traditional infrastructure there will be one instance of

application per physical server. With cloud, the services are virtualized, in such a way

that the services can be moved from physical server to other.

4. As the telecom policies are changing mobile based internet connection is gaining

acceptance due to availability of internet anytime anywhere environment. Recent

advancements in mobile technology can be incorporated in e-Governance applications

to provide services to citizens more effectively and infrastructure available with most

of the citizens can be used to deliver services to the citizens and citizens can also

interact with government efficiently.

5. All public sector organizations provide e-Services through Kiosk (Nagari Suvidha

Kendra)/ CFC. Majority of citizens avail services in traditional way and through

Kiosk/ CFC hence public sector organizations can utilize it to for capacity building of

citizens by providing awareness about ICT and its use for availing e-Services

provided by e-Governance projects implemented at national, state and local level.

Building citizens’ trust in e-Governance system may solve the problems like ‘lack of

infrastructure’, ‘Don’t know about this facility or service’ and ‘Grievances are not

handled at Kiosk satisfactorily’ and ‘Security or privacy concerns’ problems faced by

the citizens.

14. Future Scope

The goals and objectives of this study were decided and research was done accordingly.

Since in depth studies in these areas have long term socio-economic dimensions, benefits to

both citizens and public sector organizations and repercussions, the scope of the

investigations can be further expanded as follows:

1. Researcher has studied Government-to-Citizen(G2C) e-Governance services

delivered by e-Governance projects for problems and prospects of ICT in e-

Governance, Moreover, more research could be carried out in the same area and with

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the same methodology while concentrating on the projects dedicated to the

Government-to-Business (G2B) and Government-to-Government (G2G) services.

2. Researcher has studied perception of officials / IT Heads about drivers and barriers in

ICT based e-Governance; further research can be taken to study other stakeholders

like private partners involved in e-Governance project implementation and Employees

in public sector organizations.

3. The Future research could be of comparative nature. The identified factors as barriers

and drivers for ICT based e-Governance can be compared on use of e-Service and

citizens satisfaction to use e-Service of e-Governance project and also indicate the

aspects that need extra effort to enhance the usage of e-Services.

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