Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has identified opportunities for improvement in e-governance in India and provided recommendations to help the Indian government carry forward a programme for comprehensive and effective e-governance in the country.

In a white paper released recently, TCS has made an attempt to use its experience in e-governance projects to define a roadmap for India and highlight current impediments like a silo-based approach that is limiting the benefits of technology use.

The paper also highlights India’s low position in global e-governance rankings, and the need to catalyse policy decisions to improve e-governance in India. India's per capita public sector IT spend is $1.29, compared to $199 in New Zealand and $153 in Singapore, for instance.

On the back of the findings, TCS has come up with a five point plan towards building an ideal e-governance framework in India. This plan includes the passing of a nationwide mandate to allocate a fixed percentage (3 percent) of the annual budget for e-governance projects. It also highlights the need to adopt an integrated and holistic approach towards e-governance focused on services. It recommends a national level oversight of any e-governance programme and thereby a move from individualised e-governance to institutionalised e-governance. It suggests a 'fixed tenure' concept where key government executives are appointed for the entire term of any e-governance initiative. Finally, the plan visualises the formation of a government standing committee to oversee national e-governance programmes.

S Ramadorai, CEO and MD of TCS, said, "If implemented properly, e-governance can be an asset for the un-served and under-served areas in India and drive new efficiency gains nationwide. While Indian IT is the envy of the world and is associated with some of the most advanced and complex IT projects globally, India has not fully leveraged its potential of IT and the expertise of Indian IT industry".

He further added, "According to the WEF Global Information Technology Report, India ranks 44 out of 122 countries analysed and ahead of us are countries like Barbados, Latvia, Tunisia, Thailand and the Slovak Republic. Therefore, there is tremendous potential for e-governance to benefit citizens exponentially and maximise return on government investments".

The newly constituted 'government business unit' in TCS will focus on city, state and national programmes to help governments become more efficient, drive down costs and increase transparency.