Information Technology (IT) has brought about a major shift in the nature and speed of knowledge processing, thereby transforming the way businesses and, indeed, governments, function. An integral aspect of social capital, IT can either be an empowering force for the marginalized, or be instrumental in creating a new dimension of inequality. In post-independence India, the quest to end poverty, disease and inequality of opportunity has inspired the state to launch a series of development initiatives. The results so far have been sub-optimal at best. Harnessing IT for effective socio-economic transformation into an epistemic society has created a need to revisit prevailing notions of governance and development in the country, which is confronted with resource constraints and a yawning digital divide. Conceived against this background, this volume consists of 21 chapters written by authorities responsible for planning and implementing IT in India, including the president of India, H.E. Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, senior government officials, IT professionals and scholars. Divided into four sections–The ICT Route to development; Challenges before the state; ICT initiatives in developing India; and the road ahead–the essays discuss: The concept of good e-governance and its challenges. Challenges before the state, The implementation of cyber laws, The role of communication technologies in minimizing corruption, Creation of sustainable and broad-based access to these technologies, The social and financial returns of partnerships between the stakeholders of IT development, Practical guidelines to make e-governance a reality. Finally, the volume contains case studies of the application of IT in India, both in agriculture and in improving public service delivery systems. This book will be of immense use to policy-makers interested in e-governance, scholars, senior executives of IT companies advocating public-private partnerships in the delivery of urban and rural civic services, NGOs involved in rural development, marketing professionals of companies wanting to penetrate rural markets, and scholars of IT and development.
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