Akshaya is an Information Communication Technology (ICT) project which started with a great mission to bridge the digital divide in Kerala. It was the first district-wide e-literacy project in India which was inaugurated by his Excellency Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam, then President of India on 18th November 2002. This project was started with the unique goal as to make one person in every family to be computer literate. Now more than 75 per cent of Population of Kerala is the beneficiaries of this project. The Government of india has sanctioned the request of Government of Kerala to integrate the Akshaya centres with the Common Service Centres scheme under the National e-Governance Programme (NeGP). Accordingly all Akshaya centres are now Akshaya Common Service Centres. Akshaya is acting as an instrument in rural empowerment and economic development. The project is a catalyst in creating massive economic growth and creation of direct and indirect employment in the State by focusing on the various facts of e-learning, e-transaction, e-governance etc.
Akshaya Common
Akshaya is an ambitious endeavour that was initiated in the State of Kerala in the presence of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam on the 18th of November, 2002. The Government of Kerala focussed on the digitisation of the State through the reinvention of service delivery channels. This bought about a revolutionary transformation in the design and the operation of public services within the State. Better opportunities to meet a citizen’s need for increased social inclusion were seen with the emergence of digital organisations to create services.
Akshaya Centres have emerged out to be a success with the most exceptional network of active Common Service Centres that are designed to deliver various Government to Citizen, Government to Business and even, Business to Citizen services to the public under one single solid roof. Currently, there are over 2,650 Akshaya e-Centers throughout the state of Kerala with a minimum of 2 centres in each Panchayat. Akshaya acts a vehicle by digitising people towards an improved quality of life, ease in accessibility to information, complete transparency in governance and overall socio-economic growth.
Mission
Akshaya has a strategic mission to transform public services across all sectors of the State of Kerala. Akshaya plays a pivot role as ‘Agents of Change’ for the sustained, socio-economic development through Kerala and the impact of its activities result in enormous gains for public participation and social inclusion.
The following are the critical points of the mission Akshaya works towards to achieve in the State of Kerala.
- To bridge the gap between the “Information Rich” and the “Information Poor”.
- To transform the governance in the State in order to provide efficient, transparent and convenient services for the citizens of the State through Information and Communication Technologies.
- To improve public service delivery by increasing the accessibility of service to the common man in their own locality.
- To bring up the rate of e-literacy in underserved areas and to offer a platform for the “Government to Citizen” services through the advantage of a public-private partnership.
Vision
The vision of Akshaya is as follows.
- To achieve 100% social and digital inclusion through the “Connecting the Unconnected”.
- To improve the services at the base of the delivery chain.
- To build collaborative relationships among citizens and other communities.
- To restructure the programs in order to leverage Government assets for the purpose of enhancing the mission productivity.
- To disseminate information to improve public communication and to promote the shared understanding of general issues.
- To strengthen and promote entrepreneurship by means of digital interventions.
Services Offered
- Aadhaar enrolment
- Utility bill payment
- e-District services
- Motor 2 wheeler and 4 wheeler insurances
- Universal Health Insurance
- Personal Accident or Mediclaim Insurance
- Overseas Mediclaim Insurance
- Ration card applications
- Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana / Comprehensive Health
- Insurance Agency of Kerala enrolments
- Motor vehicle license payments
- Labour welfare boards Aadhaar seeding
- SC/ST pre-metric scholarship applications
- Farmer’s data entry
- Commercial tax e-filing
- Pharmacist registrations
- Food Business Operator (FBO) registration
- Kerala Academy for Skills Excellence (KASE) registration
- University Fee Payment
- Haj registration
Impact of Akshaya
The Government services in rural areas are not so accessible and are of lower quality when compared to those in the urban areas. Factors such as the cost of transportation can affect rural service delivery and may impede access and the utilisation of services and information. The very key to democracy is access to information and services. The public access to Government-held information would allow its citizens to understand better the role of the Government and the decisions made on their behalf. The Government of Kerala has initiated an essential stream of studies on this matter which finally led to the implementation of Akshaya. The following are the impacts of Akshaya in various fields.
Socio-Economic Development Tool
Akshaya is a giant leap towards making the Government more accessible to its citizens. It would potentially empower individual citizens by offering them with a responsive channel for accessing services and information as well as interacting with the Government. By reinforcing the monopoly over Government-Citizen relationship with transparency and security, Akshaya e-Centres have made an excellent performance by being the front end delivery network for Government Services.
Citizen Empowerment Tool
Akshaya was envisaged to offer training to at least one member in a family for the purpose of being e-literate. During the rollout period, basic training was provided to the selected individuals to familiarise themselves with the basics and the scope of IT with the support of relevant hands-on. This was the most significant rural e-literacy training project worldwide ever by organising and concluding by the transformation of 32.8 Lakh citizens benefitting from the initiative.
e-Governance Tool
In the State of Kerala, Akshaya is considered the ambassador of the Government for all Aadhaar related issues and assistance provided to the citizens of the State. More than 1.81 Crore citizens have come forward to enrol themselves under the UID with the help of Akshaya Centres in Kerala. The State has opted Akshaya centres as a one-stop service delivery gateway for its people. Being a social partnership business model, Akshaya had proved to be efficient when it handled the Chief Ministers Jana Samparkka Program successfully by delivering end to end service through its broad network of the workforce across the State.
Anti- Corruption Tool
Akshaya is viewed as a positive and authorised channel for e-Governance and for enhancing the trust of the people in the Government through citizen empowerment and governance accountability. Akshaya goes a step forward by curbing corruption which is a governance issue. This is achieved by integrating crucial elements such as access to services and information, capacity building and empowerment. The ability to trace decisions and actions and accountability of the Government can be achieved by increasing the access to information or services and the transparency of rules and their applications in individual choices. Increase in computer literacy, in general, can be achieved through the improved capacity and commitment of resources.
A Social Empowerment tool
Akshaya is a governance tool that creates opportunities for the upliftment of all, especially the weaker sections of the society by fixing accountability in a more efficient way. Therefore, e-government efforts of Akshaya have an impact on gender equality and women’s empowerment. As an unbiased and inclusive government initiative, Akshaya always ensures to give utmost priority to gender equality. The empowerment of women and children is one of the many remarkable achievements of Akshaya by protecting their rights to participate in the information society completely.
A measurement tool for social return on investment
The advent of e-governance with the help of Akshaya has been a significant benefit by turning around the way citizens interact with their Government. Through the Akshaya Centres, the Government empowers its citizens with quick and convenient access to a broad array of services as well as reducing the costs to a great extent.
Financial Inclusion
Around 1000 and more Akshaya centres have been equipped with banking kiosks and micro ATMs in order to offer the complete spectrum of banking and insurance services at the ease of the citizens. This would cater to the villagers and individuals who reside in areas which have a fewer number of banks. Kiosk banks have been designed to be mutually beneficial to Akshaya entrepreneurs, banks and the public. Akshaya centres offer insurance policies to rural citizens through the ownership of about 650 IRDA licenses.
FAQs
What is Akshaya Common Service?
Akshaya Common Service is an initiative by the Government of Kerala, India, aimed at providing digital services and promoting e-governance across rural and urban areas. These centers act as access points for citizens to avail various government and non-government services online.
How can citizens benefit from Akshaya Common Service Centers?
Citizens, especially those in rural areas, can access government services without the need to visit multiple offices. Akshaya Centers provide convenient, affordable, and timely access to various essential services, saving both time and travel costs.