Lok Sabha Question No. 1903 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-02-11
Subject: Promotion of Information Technology to Connect Village Level Entrepreneurs
Ministry: ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Dr. Shivaji Bandappa Kalge, Shri Bhumare Sandipanrao Asaram, Shri Gyaneshwar Patil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1903

TO BE ANSWERED ON: 11.02.2026

## PROMOTION OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TO CONNECT VILLAGE LEVEL ENTREPRENEURS

## †1903. SHRI BHUMARE SANDIPANRAO ASARAM:

SHRI GYANESHWAR PATIL:

DR. SHIVAJI BANDAPPA KALGE:

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

- (a) whether the Government propose to promote Information Technology to connect village level entrepreneurs digitally across the various States of the country;
- (b)  if  so,  the  details  of  the  States  of  Maharashtra  and  Madhya  Pradesh  including  Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar districts of Maharashtra;
- (c)  whether the Government propose to integrate State Information Technology (SIT) agencies with Common Service Centre E-Governance Service India Limited for digital transformation and if so, the details thereof; and
- (d) the major initiatives taken by the Government to launch new technologies in order to bring positive changes in the lives of the people, capacity building and strengthen services of the State Government and increase their income?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI JITIN PRASADA)

(a)  to  (d):  Government  is  promoting  the  use  of  Information  Technology  to  digitally  connect village-level  entrepreneurs  across  States  through  multiple  initiatives  under  the  Digital  India programme.

## Key initiatives include:

- Common  Service  Centres  (CSCs) :  Over  5  lakh  CSCs  operated  by  Village  Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs) provide digital services such as banking, insurance, telemedicine, education, and government services in rural and remote areas. State and district wise details of  functional  CSCs,  including  State  of  Maharashtra  and  Chhatrapati  Sambhaji  Nagar district of Maharashtra, are available on the website https://csc.gov.in/
- BharatNet: Provision of high-speed broadband connectivity to Gram Panchayats to enable digital service delivery and entrepreneurship at the village level. As of December 2025; 2,14,904 Gram Panchayats (GPs) have been made service-ready.

† O.I.H.

- Digital platforms and e-marketplaces: Initiatives such as GeM, ONDC and various State e-governance platforms enable rural entrepreneurs, SHGs and small businesses to access wider markets.
- Skill development and capacity building: Programmes under PMGDISHA, Skill India, and  CSC Academy  focus  on  digital  literacy,  IT  skills  and  entrepreneurship  for  rural citizens.
- Support for startups and MSMEs: Schemes such as Startup India, Digital MSME, and promotion of fintech and agritech solutions facilitate technology adoption by grassroots entrepreneurs.

CSC e-Governance Services India Limited regularly coordinates with State IT Departments and their agencies for collaboration and integration of State e-District services with CSC in order to strengthen the State Government's service delivery and the income of the VLEs.

As on 31.01.2026, a total of 16 States/UTs have integrated their e-services with the CSCs. These include Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Puducherry, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu & Kashmir, Sikkim and Tamil Nadu.

To bring positive change in citizens' lives and ensure equitable access to government services, Government  of  India  has  implemented  a  wide  range  of  technology-driven  solutions  which includes:

- Aadhaar provides  a  universal  digital  identity  to  over  143  crore  residents,  enabling seamless service delivery, while UPI has transformed digital payments, driving financial inclusion by connecting millions of users, merchants, and banks.
- DigiLocker and UMANG offer anytime access to documents and over 2,390 government services through a single interface respectively.
- Digital  initiatives  such  as DIKSHA,  GeM,  e-Courts,  e-Office,  and  CoWIN have strengthened education, procurement, governance, and public health systems respectively.
- Health-focused  platforms including  eSanjeevani,  e-Hospital,  and Aarogya  Setu  have expanded healthcare access nationwide.
- Direct  Benefits  Transfer  (DBT) delivers  welfare  payments  directly  and  remove  fake beneficiaries. So far, Rs. 48+ lakh crore has been transferred through DBT.
- National Scholarship Portal (NSP) enables scheme owning Ministries/Departments and States/UTs  to  process  applications  and  disburse  Scholarships/funds  directly  into  the beneficiary's  bank  account  through  Direct  Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode. The National Scholarship Portal (NSP) serves over 7.47 Crore beneficiaries, with a total disbursement exceeding Rs. 44,181+ Crore. So far, 153 schemes belonging to 13 Ministries/Departments and 21 States/UTs are onboarded on NSP.
- CSCs, PMGDISHA, FutureSkills PRIME, MyGov, Jeevan Pramaan, and Poshan Tracker further promote inclusion, transparency, digital literacy, citizen engagement, and last-mile service delivery across urban and rural India.

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