Will the government solve these two hurdles facing Digital India in Budget 2016?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the Digital India Initiative on July 1 last year, with the aim to make all citizens of the country digitally literate and bring e-governance and internet to all sections of the society.

Additionally, it also aimed at inclusive growth of electronic services, products, manufacturing, job opportunities, etc.

Thus, the vision of Digital India was centred on three key areas-

-Digital infrastructure as a utility to every citizen.
- Governance and services on demand
-Digital empowerment of citizens.

He also promised investments to the tune of Rs 4.5 lakh crore which would as a result add 1.8 million more jobs.

A host of global investors also lent their unending support. Be it, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg or Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, everyone rallied behind Modi’s vision of a digitally connected India.

Granted that TRAI’s recent ruling against Mark Zuckerberg’s Free Basics is indeed a huge win for Digital India, but that is definitely not enough.

As it turns out, Digital India has a long way to go and a lot of hurdles to cross, which we hope would be addressed in Union Budget 2016.
But, until then here’s a look at the two main hurdles facing Digital India-

1. Broadband penetration in India

Broadband penetration has always been a prime concern, considering how India is down the slippery slopes when it comes to this aspect.
Additionally, The State of Broadband Report which was released by the UN Broadband Commission in October last year stated that India ranked 131 out of 189 countries on fixed-broadband subscriptions on 2014. The fact that it is a drop from the 15^th rank a year before is an added worry.

Then there’s India ranking 80 among 133 developing countries on percentage of internet in 2014 with a 15.3 percent penetration, which clearly proves that the need of the hour is to ensure that there is an increase in the online representation in India, a country with high linguistic diversity.



2. Rural connectivity:

The government has been trying to improve rural connectivity with the aim to connect about 2.5 lakh village panchayats by the end of this year.

Taking broadband to such areas is going to be a tough task considering there needs to be special value-added services, questions raised on quality of services and if the lines will be laid down effectively.

The fact that the total number of broadband-enabled households is a little over than 1.5 crore is no good news, considering that it translates to a penetration rate of mere 5 percent.

Another major setback when it comes to fixed broadband is the fact that a low budget phone is way cheaper than a computer and even though government-run cyber cafes and post offices for e-services are a great solution, but it’s important to keep in mind that most of these villages are struggling with frequent power cuts.

Thus, for the government to step up this numbers in such a short span of time is nothing short of a herculean task.

The question thus is- Will the government be able to solve these hurdles in Budget 2016?

Image credit: Indiatimes