E-governance, which means the use of technology to make governance better, involves the development of technology and research in topics such as making the public-private partnership better and coming up with new business models.

Jaijit Bhattacharya, director, government strategy, Sun Microsystems, said the Indian government wants to invest around Rs 23,000 crore for making e-governance a reality in the future. Sun Microsystems is trying to create the workforce that will be able to implement this vision, Bhattacharya said. “E-governance can contribute to better social infrastructure, lowered cost of running the government, enhanced security and, thereby, better quality of life for the citizens of India. We are sure the centre will be able to bring out the best talent in the field of e-governance,” he said.

The centre will carry out research in related areas and educate stakeholders, who broadly include senior government officials, defence officials and other people part of the E-governance system. The centre will also showcase the latest technological innovations and solutions to the government. It will evaluate the impact of technology on the government and society, and formulate an appropriate IT policy.

Professor MP Gupta of IIT, Delhi said: “A lot of research is required in the area of technology for the implementation of E-governance effectively. Research is also required in the socio-economic realm to analyse the requirements of different government organisations and its citizens. This calls for a collaborative effort between the government, academia and a technology provider. Our collaboration with Sun Microsystems leverages their industry leading technology in order to create a sound technological platform for E-governance projects.”