Indians quick to go digital for public services; happy dealing with Govt

New Delhi: Nearly 50 per cent of people surveyed in India believe that interacting with the Government is easy, according to Accenture.

That response is higher than the results from six other countries participating in a global “pulse survey” conducted with more than 1,400 people in Australia, France, Germany, Singapore, the US and the UK.

Easier interaction
About one-third of respondents in these countries believe it's easier to interact with the Government than with private-sector companies. In India, 50 per cent people feel it's just as easy to interact with the Government as it is with private-sector companies.

Consumers, however, want increased access to public services and are more inclined to use digital channels, including online and mobile resources, to conduct routine government business. In fact, more than 70 per cent of the survey respondents already use the Internet for submitting and tracking government forms and payments and more than half (53 per cent) say they want to use more online channels in the future.

“Digital citizens are empowered in ways that previous generations could only imagine,” said Mr Krishna Giri, who leads Accenture's Health & Public Service business in India. “They can initiate and dictate the dynamics of citizen-to-government relationships with a tweet, blog post or Facebook message sent to hundreds of people from their smart phone. And high performing governments are working now to reshape the way they deliver public services to meet the new demands of their citizens.”

Users in India are more likely than those from all other countries to use digital services beyond Web sites and portals. Nearly two-thirds of respondents said they would use mobile Web sites and apps and 77 per cent would be willing to receive electronic emergency broadcasts or alerts through digital channels. A much smaller percentage, 28 per cent, would use social media to contact a government official to request a service or resolve a problem.

No barriers
Nearly one in five citizens said there were no barriers to preventing digital interactions with the Government. Of those who did report barriers, about 30 per cent were concerned with the Government having access to personal information.

Almost 70 per cent said they would like the Government to be more integrated and have the ability to share information across agencies, making it even easier to conduct government business.