Lok Sabha Question No. 4185 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: Outcomes achieved under Flagship Digital Empowerment Schemes
Ministry: ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Shri Ganesh Singh

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4185

TO BE ANSWERED ON: 18.03.2026

## OUTCOMES ACHIEVED UNDER FLAGSHIP DIGITAL EMPOWERMENT SCHEMES

## 4185.    SHRI GANESH SINGH:

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

- (a) the quantitative outcomes achieved under flagship digital empowerment schemes -namely PMGDISHA, UMANG, and DigiLocker -including coverage, user adoption, service transactions and document issuances till date;
- (b) the qualitative improvements observed as a result of these initiatives such as enhanced digital literacy,  ease  of  access  to  public  services,  reduction  in  paperwork  and  transaction  time, transparency and inclusion of rural, elderly and first-time digital users;
- (c) the manner in which these schemes have directly benefited citizens in terms of cost savings, convenience, portability of documents, grievance reduction and last-mile delivery of services; and (d) whether any impact assessments or user-satisfaction metrics have been undertaken to guide further strengthening of these platforms?

## ANSWER

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

(a) to (d): In line with Hon'ble Prime Minister's vision to democratize technology and empower citizens, the Government of India launched the Digital India programme in July 2015.

Through this programme, Government has bridged the digital divide using pronged strategy:

- Increasing access to internet,
- Making internet affordable,
- Providing digital public infrastructure,
- Enhancing the digital literacy

These efforts have collectively enabled wider access to digital services and opportunities, thereby fostering  inclusive  and  equitable  digital  growth  across  the  country.  It  can  be  seen  from  the following statistics:

| #   | 2014-15   | 2024-25   | Remarks   |
|-----|-----------|-----------|-----------|

| Total broadband subscribers                             | 25 Cr       | 103 Cr       | 400% increase in subscribers                       |
|---------------------------------------------------------|-------------|--------------|----------------------------------------------------|
| Total numbers of Mobile Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) | 7.9 Lakh    | 29.50 lakh   | Increase of about 273%                             |
| villages covered with mobile connectivity (2G/3G/4G)    | ~ 5.27 lakh | 6.35 lakh    | Increase of about 20.5% (near- universal coverage) |
| Total optical fiber laid                                | 358 kms     | 6,92,676 Kms | OFC laid increased by about 1,935 times            |
| Average monthly data consumption per subscriber         | 61.66 MB    | ~ 25.25 GB   | Data consumption increased by ~ 419 times          |
| Cost of data per Gb                                     | Rs 269      | ~ Rs 7.9     | 97% reduction in cost                              |

Digital India program has brought fundamental change in the people's lives:

- More  than  143  Cr  Aadhar  numbers  have  been  issued  providing  digital  identity  to  Indian residents.
- Aadhar was critical in developing the unified payment interface system. India's UPI is now the world's largest digital payment system with more than 46 Cr users and 685 banks. UPI powers 81% of India's digital payments and nearly 49% of global real -time digital payments.
- Using Jan Dhan, Aadhar and Mobile (JAM) Trinity, subsidies and benefits worth Rs. 49.82 lakh crore have been transferred directly to the citizens.

## Specific details of PMGDISHA, DigiLocker and UMANG:

DigiLocker: DigiLocker enables citizens to access and share digitally issued documents anytime and anywhere, eliminating the need to carry physical copies and facilitating seamless verification by authorities.

DigiLocker has provided digital access to authentic digital documents from original issuer for the common citizen. Currently, 67 crore users are registered on the platform. More than 967 crore documents have been issued using DigiLocker.

UMANG: provides a single unified interface to access multiple Government services, enabling citizens to avail services from their homes, thereby saving time and travel costs.

UMANG mobile application for all government services is operational and offers more than 2,446 services. It has more than 10.51 Cr registered users and more than 741 crore transactions have been carried out so far.

PMGDISHA: Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA) was launched in 2017 to ensure digital literacy. The scheme concluded on 31 st  March 2024. The scheme was one of the world's largest digital literacy initiatives. Against the target of training 6 Cr people, more than 6.39 Crore persons were trained nationwide.

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