M.P.A.

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E-GOVERNANCE
ASSIGNMENT SOLUTIONS GUIDE (2011-2012)

Disclaimer / Special Note: These are just the sample of the Answers/Solutions to
some of the Ques- tions given in the Assignments. These Sample Answers/Solutions
are prepared by Tutor for the help of the student to get an idea of how he/she can
answer the questions of the Assignments. Sample answers may be Seen as the
Guide/Reference Book/assignment Guide. Any Omission or Error is highly regretted
though every care has been taken while preparing these Sample Answers/Solutions.
Please consult you Teacher / Tutor before you prepare a Particular Answer.

Q. 2. Describe the role of ICT in transferring internal administration of

government.

Ans. The administration and ICT support function helps a business to run smoothly
from day-to-day. The role of this department has changed over recent years as more
of its tasks are now carried out by computers, hence its title of administration and
ICT support. ICT has played an important role in public administration reforms in
many countries. It changes the way the government performs its functions and helps
reduce operational costs. At the same time, ICT can increase the efficiency of
government services. ICT is one of the key instruments that support good
governance by increasing government transparency and accountability. This will
eventually help reduce corruption opportunities. ICT empowers the general public to
actively participate in policy formulation and help ensure transparent use of public
funds. We will discuss the role of ICT in detail.Internal Administration: It is
typically responsible for policing, national security, and immigration matters. The
ministry is often headed by a minister of the interior or minister of home affairs. In
some countries, matters relating to the maintenance of law and order and the
administration of justice are the responsibilities of a separate ministry.In countries
with a Federal Constitution, an interior minister will often be found at both the
federal and state levels. Similarly, autonomous entities and dependent territories may
also have interior ministers.In certain jurisdictions, similarly named government
departments may have other responsibilities. In the United States, the Department of
the Interior has radically different functions–primarily the management and
conservation of land owned by the federal government, and programmes and
policies dealing with indigenous peoples of the U.S. The functions that fall under
what most other countries call an “interior ministry” are under other government
departments–mostly the Department of Homeland Security, with some others falling
under the Department of Justice. ICT changes the traditional form of administration
into the new electronic administration:

Technology for Effective Internal Administration

Internal functioning of administration will become more effective with the advent of
the following devices:

Wireless Devices:

A wireless device can refer to any kind of communications equipment that does not
require a physical wire for relaying information to another device. Wireless
headphones fitted with a receiver use either radio frequency (RF) or infrared
technology to communicate with a transmitter that is connected to the sound source,
say a television. In most cases, however, when someone refers to a wireless device,
they are speaking of a networking device that can pass data to other wireless
network gear without being physically connected.

Unified Messaging

Unified Messaging (sometimes referred to as the Unified Messaging System or

UMS) is the handling of voice, fax, and regular text messages as objects in a single
mailbox that a user can access either with a regular e-mail client or by telephone.
The PC user can open and play back voice messages, assuming their PC has
multimedia capabilities. Fax images can be saved or printed. A user can access the
same mailbox by telephone. In this case, ordinary e-mail notes in text are converted
into audio files and played back. Unified messaging is particularly convenient for
mobile business users because it allows them to reach colleagues and customers
through a PC or telephone, whichever happens to be available. Some services offer
worldwide telephone access.

E-mail

E-mail (electronic mail) is the exchange of computer-stored messages by

telecommunication. (Some publications spell it e-mail; we prefer the currently more
established spelling of e-mail.) E-mail messages are usually encoded in ASCII text.
However, you can also send non-text files, such as graphic images and sound files,
as attachments sent in binary streams. E-mail was one of the first uses of the Internet
and is still the most popular use. A large percentage of the total traffic over the
Internet is e-mail. E-mail can also be exchanged between online service provider
users and in networks other than the Internet, both public and private.

ICT has played an important role in public administration reforms in many

countries. It changes the way the government performs its functions and helps
reduce operational costs. At the same time, ICT can increase the efficiency of
government services. ICT is one of the key instruments that support good
governance by increasing government transparency and accountability. This will
eventually help to reduce corruption opportunities. ICT empowers the general public
to actively participate in policy formulation and help ensure transparent use of public
funds.
Q. 3. Explain the meaning and importance of organizational culture and
highlight the measures required to bring change in traditional bureaucratic
culture.

Ans. In the past 25 years, the concept of organizational culture has gained wide
acceptance as a way to understand human systems. From an open-systems
perspective, each aspect of organizational culture can be seen as an important
environmental condition affecting the system and its subsystems. The examination
of organizational culture is also a valuable analytical tool in its own right.This way
of looking at organizations borrows heavily from anthropology and sociology and
uses many of the same terms to define the building blocks of culture. Edgar Schein,
one of the most prominent theorists of organizational culture, gave the following
very general definition:

The culture of a group can now be defined as: A pattern of shared basic assumptions
that the group learned as it solved its problems of external adaptation and internal
integration, that has worked well enough to be considered valid and therefore, to be
taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, and feel in relation to
those problems.In other words, as groups evolve over time, they face two basic
challenges: integrating individuals into an effective whole, and adapting effectively
to the external environment in order to survive. As groups find solutions to these
problems over time, they engage in a kind of collective learning that creates the set
of shared assumptions and beliefs we call “culture.”Over the years, in India,
significant progress has been made in the field of economic development. This,
along with a substantial increase in the literacy rate, (from 51.63% to 65.38% in the
last decade) has made Indian citizens increasingly aware of their rights. Citizens
have become more articulate and expect the administration not merely to respond to
their demands, but also to anticipate them. It was in this climate that since 1996 a
consensus had evolved in the Government on effective and responsive
administration. In a Conference of Chief Ministers of various States and Union
Territories held on 24 May, 1997 in New Delhi, presided over by the Prime Minister
of India, an ‘Action Plan for Effective and Responsive Government’ at the Centre
and State levels was adopted. One of the major decisions at that Conference was that
the Central and State Governments would formulate Citizens’ Charters, starting with
those sectors that have a large public interface (e.g. Railways, Telecom, Posts,
Public Distribution Systems). These charters were required to include standards of
service and time limits that the public can reasonably expect, avenues of grievance
redress and a provision for independent scrutiny with the involvement of citizen and
consumer groups. Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances in
Government of India (DARPG) initiated the task of coordinating, formulating and
operationalizing Citizens’ Charters. Guidelines for formulating the Charters as well
as a list of do’s and don’ts were communicated to various government
departments/organizations to enable them to bring out focused and effective charters.
For the formula-tion of the Charters, the government agencies at the Centre and
State levels were advised to constitute a task force with representation from users,
senior management and the cutting edge staff. The Charters are expected to
incorporate the following elements: (i) Vision and Mission Statement; (ii) Details of
business transacted by the organization; (iii) Details of clients; (iv) Details of
services provided to each client group; (v) Details of grievance redress mechanism
and how to access it; and (vi) Expectations from the clients. Primarily an adaptation
of the UK model, the Indian Citizens’ Charter has an additional component of,
expectations from the clients’ or in other words, obligations of the users’.
Involvement of consumer organizations, citizen groups, and other stakeholders in the
formulation of the Citizens’ Charter is emphasized to ensure that the Citizens’
Charter meets the needs of the users. Regular monitoring, review and evaluation of
the Charters, both internally and through external agencies, are enjoined. As on
March, 2005, 107 Citizens' Charters had been formulated by the Central
Government Ministries/ Departments/Organizations and 629 Charters by various
agencies of State Governments and Administrations of Union Territories. Most of
the National Charters are posted on the government’s websites and are open to
public scrutiny. The organizations with Citizens’ Charters are advised to give
publicity to their Charters through such means as print/electronic media and
awareness campaigns.

Q. 7. Describe e-commerce and its technical and non-technical limitations.

Ans. Electronic commerce or e-commerce is a term for any type of business, or

commercial transaction, that involves the transfer of information across the Internet.
It covers a range of different types of businesses, from consumer-based retail sites,
through auction or music sites, to business exchanges trading goods and services
between corporations. It is currently one of the most important aspects of the
Internetto emerge.

E-commerce allows consumers to electronically exchange goods and services with

no barriers of time or distance. Electronic commerce has expanded rapidly over the
past five years and is predicted to continue at this rate, or even accelerate. In the near
future the boundaries between “conventional” and “electronic” commerce will
become increasingly blurred as more and more businesses move sections of their
operations onto the Internet.

A key requirement in today’s business environment is the ability to communicate

more effectively, both internally with your employees and externally with your
trading partners and customers. Turban (2008) suggests the following are some of
the limitations of e-commerce that are classified as technological or non-
technological:

Technical Limitations

● Lack of universal standards for quality, security, and reliability.

● The telecommunication bandwidth is insufficient, especially for m-commerce

(electronic commerce via mobile phones).

● Difficulty in integrating e-commerce infra-structure with current organizational IT

systems – Many companies use IT systems, which are old (i.e. legacy systems).
These were developed to support different needs and different kinds of software and
appli-cations. These systems contain valuable business information, but have to be
integrated with new ones. In many occasions this is extremely difficult. When it
comes to full integration with back-office operations, for example, the cost of
integrating legacy systems with modern ones may be greater than that of actually
scrapping them completely.

Non-Technical Limitations

Security and privacy concerns deter customers from buying.

● Lack of trust in EC and in unknown sellers hinders buying.

● Many legal and public policy issues, including taxation, have not yet been
resolved.

● Online fraud is increasing.

● Some customers like to feel and touch products. Also, customers are resistant to
the change from shopping at a brick-and-mortar store to a virtual store.

Q. 8. Enumerate the areas of ICT intervention in citizen service delivery.

Ans. There are number of areas where ICT works in providing services to the

masses like:
Access to Public Documents

Governments have a responsibility to provide information about matters of public

interest. On some matters the public should also be consulted. But such consultations
are meaningful only if citizens have access to correct and sufficient information
including information on alternatives. It should, therefore, be clear that ICT cannot
act as a substitute for reforms that may be required to support information needs of
poverty reduction programmes. Other complementary efforts are therefore needed
such as legislative reforms. Authentication Statements The National e-
Authentication Framework (NeAF) will assist agencies, jurisdictions and sectors in
authenticating the identity of the other party to a desired level of assurance or
confidence. TheNeAF encompasses the electronic authentication (e-authentication)
of the identity of individuals and businesses dealing with the government, on one
side of the transaction, as well as the authentication of government websites on the
other side.

Online Payments

Government online payments enable citizens to pay bills online securely using a
credit card. Whether a citizen needs to pay for his or her property taxes, utility bills,
recreation fees, parking tickets, animal license fees or any other government fees, an
online payment system will securely process the transaction and route the payment
to the appropriate receivables account. Online payments allow cities and counties to
better serve citizens by extending service hours, reducing wait times, and eliminating
the hassles and lost time due to driving, finding the correct department and waiting
in line. Citizens and businesses can simply log on to their government’s Website
from any Internet-enabled computer when and where they want and pay their bills.
Complaints, Grievances and Suggestions Excellence in customer service is the most
important tool for a sustained business. Customer complaints are part of the business
life of any corporate entity. This is more so for banks because banks are service
organizations. As a service organization, customer service and customer satisfaction
should be the main concern of any bank. Providing prompt and efficient service is
essential not only to attract new customers, but also to retain existing ones. This
policy document aims at minimizing instances of customer complaints and
grievances through proper service delivery and review mechanism and to ensure
prompt redressal of customer complaints and grievances. The review mechanism
should help in identifying the shortcomings in product features and service delivery,
as the customer dissatisfaction would tarnish bank’s name and image. The online
auction business model is one in which participants bid for products and services
over the Internet. The functionality of buying and selling in an auction format is
made possible through auction software which regulates the various processes
involved. Several types of online auctions are possible. In an English auction the
initial price starts low and is bid up by successive bidders. In a Dutch auction,
multiple identical items are offered in one auction, with all winning bidders paying
the same price–the highest price at which all items will be sold (treasury bills, for
example, are auctioned this way). Currently, almost all online auctions use the
English auction method.

Online Mandi (Market) Rates

The step towards Globalization of Indian Agriculture: a sunshine portal for the
farmers to bargain better. This help immensely in getting the rates of different
products in different markets of the country.

A Current Research Information System (CRIS) is a database or other information

system storing data on current research by organizations and people, usually through
some kind of project activity, financed by a funding programme. There is an
increasing awareness of the need for quality research management (information)
systems.

Q. 9. Examine the RTA Act 2005

Ans. RTI Act, 2005 is an important milestone in the growth of the democratic
system in the country. It has removed the wall of secrecy built against the common
people by those holding in authority. The Act makes it statutory for the latter to
reveal all unclassified information when and where required by an ordinary citizen
of the county. However, the success of this Act requires ample enlightenment of
those who hold authority and those who want to avail information for the betterment
of their selves or that of the society at large. Those in authority need to be constantly
reminded about their responsibilities and obligations under this Act until they are
fully integrated into the democratic culture.

Take the example of Kerala, the government launche Website to remind all officials,
high and low, to act in full spirit of the RTI. Act so that democracy assumes a deeper
meaning. On the other side of the spectrum there is the common citizenry who need
to be conversant with the modalities for availing information under this Act. They
need to be enlightened about their rights and the ways to satisfy those rights. It is the
fervent hope of the government that the site on RTI. Act will help to remove the
chasm between the rulers and the ruled and will help to achieve transparency in all
government transactions.

An Act to provide for setting out the practical regime of right to information for
citizens to secure access to information under the control of public authorities, in
order to promote transparency and accountability in the working of every public
authority, the constitution of a Central Information Commission and State
Information Commissions and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

Whereas the Constitution of India has established democratic Republic; And

whereas democracy requires an informed citizenry and transparency of information
which are vital to its functioning and also to contain corruption and to hold
governments and their instrumentalities accountable to the governed; And whereas
revelation of information in actual practice is likely to conflict with other public
interests including efficient operations of the governments, optimum use of limited
fiscal resources and the preservation of confidentiality of sensitive information; And
whereas it is necessary to harmonise these conflicting interests while preserving the
para-mountcy of the democratic ideal; Now take the example of Bihar. Bihar
govern-ment is going to use its power provided in Section 27 of Right to Information
Act to amend rules under RTI Act, a move being resisted by RTI activists. It is a
known fact that state governments and competent authorities quite often misuse
power provided to them under Section 27 and 28 of RTI Act respectively to amend
the rules which at times are made contrary to even provisions of main RTI Act, like
was done by Delhi High Court earlier on implementing RTI Act there. Regrettably,
neither the Central Government nor the State Governments have tried to perform
their duty towards propagation of RTI Act as required from them underSection 26 of
RTI Act. This is a glaring example where state governments and competent
authorities are prompt in misusing powers provided under Section 27 and 28, but
ignore duly assigned under Section 26. Union government should repeal Sections 27
and 28 of RTI Act not only to prevent misuse, but also make uniform rules all over
the country to be followed alike under RTI Act.

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