A decade long push to make technology accessible to every citizen has reshaped how people connect with government services and the digital economy. Launched in July 2015, the Digital India programme reflects the Prime Minister’s vision to democratize technology, improve quality of life, and create employment opportunities across the country.
The initiative is built around 3 core objectives. These include strengthening digital infrastructure, delivering government services online, and promoting digital literacy and jobs. Together, these goals aim to bridge the gap between urban and rural India through technology driven solutions.
Several flagship initiatives under Digital India have played a key role in this transformation. DigiLocker enables secure access to official documents, while the Unified Payments Interface has driven large scale adoption of cashless transactions. UMANG allows citizens to access multiple government services through a single mobile platform. CoWIN supported efficient vaccine management, and the Government e Marketplace has improved transparency in public procurement.
A major pillar of the programme is the Common Services Centres network, which brings digital services closer to citizens in remote and rural areas. More than 800 services are now available through these centres. As of October 2025, around 567,000 Common Services Centres are operational across India, with nearly 441,000 located at the Gram Panchayat level. In the North East, Assam leads with over 15,511 centres serving rural communities.
Digital literacy has also seen strong progress through the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan. The scheme aims to make 6 crore rural households digitally literate. By March 2024, over 6.39 crore individuals had received training, with Assam reporting 2.36 million trained candidates, the highest in the region.
Connectivity expansion remains central to the BharatNet project, led by the Department of Telecommunications. By October 2025, 214,843 Gram Panchayats were service ready, including 1,507 in Assam.
To address future skill needs, the FutureSkills PRIME initiative offers over 500 courses in partnership with NASSCOM. More than 1.57 million candidates have registered so far, with a focus on women and learners from tier 2 and tier 3 cities.
Through coordinated efforts with states and institutions like Software Technology Park of India, National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology, and National Informatics Centre, Digital India continues to strengthen grassroots access to technology and digital services.
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