Bhubaneswar, March 9: Technology has made governance more accountable, transparent and innovative, observed experts on governance, IT and digital communication.

Presiding over the technical session on 'Governance with Accountability, Transparency and Innovation' at the Infocom: Advantage Odisha 2017, a business an technology leadership conference that's an initiative of The Telegraph organised jointly in association with the state-run Odisha Computer Application Centre, the state's principal secretary, electronics and IT, Pradeep Kumar Jena said the government was putting more thrust on e-governance. Around 1 per cent of the state's budget (Rs 1.06 lakh crore) has been earmarked in 2017-18 for e-governance, which comes to around Rs 1,000 crore a year.

Jena said the Right to Information Act and the Right to Public Service Act had emerged as two major weapons for good governance, and application of technology had made governance more effective, quicker and cost-saving.

Citing the example of the Student Academic Management System, adopted in colleges for online admission, Jena said a student from Motu in Malkangiri, around 700km from the state capital, could get admitted in BJB College in Bhubaneswar without coming to the city, thanks to the system. A parent has said he can save Rs 3,500 on travel cost for getting his daughter admitted to a city-based college because of the online admission system, said Jena.

But, there are some challenges in the field of e-governance. Around 60 per cent villages in the state are yet to have data connectivity and around 25 per cent mobile connectivity.

Second, fearing insecurity of government data system as the government websites get hacked very often, people are reluctant to share information with the system.

Procurement has also emerged as a big challenge in e-governance, said the senior bureaucrat, underscoring the role of multiple stakeholders in making e-governance more effective.

The Software Technology Parks of India's director-general Omkar Rai said the government was facing a number of challenges. But, information technology has emerged as an effective tool for good governance and making it transparent. "But, creating digital infrastructure for governance is a big challenge," he said.

Avaya India Pvt Ltd sales (India and SAARC) director Nitin Kaushal said communication was a big challenge in e-governance. "It is difficult to reach out to people in every nook and corner of the country. Sometimes, it's also not economical to reach out to people," said Kaushal.

"Once communication problems are addressed, consumption of technology solutions gets easier," he said.

Stating that application of technology solutions made governance innovative and easier, Kaushal said the introduction of Aadhaar number had made it easier for governance.

"Now, around 95 per cent people across the country are covered under Aadhaar. The reason is that application process has been made simpler, thanks to the technology solutions," he said.