Centre plans app store for e-gov services, national cloud infrastructure and more this year

A National Cloud Computing Initiative, setting up a Mobile Service Delivery Gateway and an e-gov app store form the core of the Centre's initiatives for the Information Technology and Telecom sectors for the year ahead.

To be initiated by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY),  primarily responsible for policy formulation and implementation, the one-year agenda unveiled by Union Minister of Communications & IT  Kapil Sibal consists of various schemes and programmes for the domestic electronics and IT-enabled service sector.

The agenda covers 18 areas including initiatives under Information Technology policy, Electronics policy, R&D Policy, Cyber Security policy and development of people-oriented IT solutions.

The most interesting aspect of the agenda is the mobile app store. It is aimed at making government accessible through mobile devices and comes under the Mobile Service Delivery Gateway (MSDG). It aims to create a mobile store with 75 live mobile apps by the end of this year. Mobile payment gateway and mobile wallet service are also to be developed as per the initiative. This service could be interesting from consumer point of view considering the deep penetration of smartphones. This initiative might also open partnership opportunities for various mobile VAS companies, since such an initiative could be built in a PPP model.

The National Cloud Computing Initiative aims to optimise utilisation of infrastructure by establishing cloud infrastructure at NIC Data Centre, Shastri Park, New Delhi. Developing a centre of excellence on cloud computing and setting up an institutional structure for the cloud computing initiative are also part of the agenda.

The IT mass literacy programme envisioned under the agenda aims to have at least one e-literate person in each home in 10 lakh households by the end of this year.  The agenda also aims to to put in place a national cyber security policy in place.

To view the detailed agenda click here.

(Edited by Prem Udayabhanu)