The adoption of e-governance entails working on both the front and the back end. The front end is how the customers access a government service online and the backend is to digitize the government processes.

Rajesh Janey, president, India and Saarc, EMC(offers data storage and information security services), says, ”Reasons for this half-way house are the file-based, legacy systems that are now going online. When you automate an existing project, you have to deal with legacy. Hence, services like passport are not entirely online. But the Aadhaar card (unique identity number) is completely automated as it was a greenfield project."

Another aspect that hinders the totality of e-governance is it takes a minimum of two years for an IT company to be given an e-governance project on contract from the time proposal is made. "The challenge in e-governance is sustenance of teams that oversee the projects. Officials change midway, creating delays, including in payments. TCS was the project lead for MCA21 (now with Infosys) and Passport Seva. TCS designates only 5,000 of its 300,000-strong global workforce to its 160 government clients." adds Chakrabarty of TCS.