Lok Sabha Question No. 2243 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-08-02
Subject: Promotion of Digital Transactions
Ministry: ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Bhagirath Chaudhary

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND  INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2243

TO BE ANSWERED ON: 02.08.2023

## PROMOTION OF DIGITAL TRANSACTIONS

## 2243.  SHRI BHAGIRATH CHOUDHARY:

Will the Minister of ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state:

- (a) whether digital transactions are being promoted in the country;
- (b) if so, the details thereof; and
- (c) the concrete steps taken by the Government during the last five years?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI RAJEEV CHANDRASEKHAR)

- (a) and (b):  The Government of India launched the Digital India programme with the vision of transforming  India  into  a  digitally  empowered  society  and  a  knowledge-based  economy,  by ensuring digital access, digital inclusion, digital empowerment and bridging the digital divide. The programme is centred on three key  vision areas,  namely,  digital  public  infrastructure  as  a  core utility to every citizen; digital governance and services on demand; and digital empowerment of citizens. These initiatives are promoting digital transactions in the country.
- (c):   Government has taken various steps to  ensure that digital technologies improve the life of every citizen in India, which involves creation of Digital India stack with various Digital Public Infrastructures including DigiLocker, Adhaar, Unified Mobile Application for New-Age Governance  (UMANG),  Common  Service  Centres,    Pradhan  Mantri  Gramin  Digital  Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA) scheme, Unified Payments Interface (UPI) etc. that has resulted in growth of digital transactions, making India as one of the pre-eminent nations of the world to use digital technology to transform the lives of its citizens.   Details of steps taken by the Government for promotion of digital transactions is given in Annex-I

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## Steps taken for promotion of digital transactions

Various  citizen-centric  initiatives  have  been  taken  by  the  Government  to  promote  digital services and digital transactions. The major initiatives are given below:

- 1) DigiLocker : Digi Locker is a platform for storage, sharing, verification of documents & certificates.  So  far,  18  crore  registered  users  are  registered  with  DigiLocker,  and  593 Crore issued documents are accessible through it.
- 2) Unified Mobile Application for New-Age Governance (UMANG) : UMANG provides a unified platform to all Indian Citizens to access pan India e-Gov services ranging from Central to Local Government bodies and other citizen centric services. Currently, 1,723 services  from 324 Central/ State Government departments/ agencies are on-boarded on UMANG along with Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) Utility services.
- 3) Aadhaar: Aadhaar number is a unique digital identity which does not change over the lifecycle of an individual and is digitally authenticable on any time anywhere basis. As on  30.06.2023,  the  estimated  number  of  living  Aadhaar  number  holders  is  130.20 crore. The  use  of  Aadhaar  as  identity  document  for  delivery  of  services  or  benefits  or subsidies  simplifies  the  Government  delivery  processes,  brings  in  transparency  and efficiency, and enables beneficiaries to get their entitlements directly in a convenient and seamless manner. Aadhaar obviates the need for producing multiple documents to prove one's  identity.  When  linked  with  a  bank  account,  Aadhaar  becomes  the  'financial address'  of  an  individual  which  helps  to  accomplish  the  country's  goal  of  financial inclusion.
- 4) e-Sign : e-Sign service facilitates instant signing of forms/documents online by citizens in a legally acceptable form. The services are being leveraged by various applications using OTP based authentication services of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).
- 5) API Setu :  API Setu platform facilitates implementation of Open API Policy and builds open  and  interoperable  digital  platform  to  enable  seamless  service  delivery  across government. 3700+ APIs provided by various Central and State Government departments are published on the platform with 150 crore transactions made.
- 6) MeriPehchaan : MeriPehchaan/ National Single Sign-On (NSSO) is a user authentication service  wherein  a  single  set  of  credentials  can  provide  access  to  multiple  online applications or services.
- 7) Common Service Centres (CSCs ): Common Service Centres are physical facilities set up  primarily  at  the  village  level  to  deliver  government  and  private  sector  services  to citizens.  Many  CSCs  offer  digital  payment  services,  enabling  citizens  in  rural  areas  to access and utilize various government services through digital transactions.
- 8) Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA): The Government of  India  has  initiated  PMGDISHA  to  promote  digital  literacy  in  rural  India,  which includes training  on use of various modes of digital payments.
- 9) Unified Payments Interface (UPI): It  is  a  real-time  payment  system  which  facilitates instant  and  seamless  fund  transfers  between  different  banks  and  enables  users  to  make transactions through their smartphones with the help of UPI enabled mobile applications.

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