On the 4th Thursday of every month applicants arrive at the Chief Minister’s Office in the morning. Grievances are scrutinized, registered and instantly transmitted online to the concerned authorities at the Secretariat level, District level and Sub-District level, whereupon the authorities input their replies by afternoon on the same day. From 3.00pm on the same day, the Chief Minister personally listens to the applicants one-by-one. The grievances as well as the replies of the concerned authorities are available through the system on a screen. The concerned secretaries are present along with the Chief Minister, for direct interaction with the aggrieved citizen, and district authorities are connected through video-conferencing.

After listening to all the aspects of the case from all sides, necessary instructions are given for resolving the grievance. A record is maintained in the SWAGAT database and a separate log is maintained for each case. There is a focus on monitoring the cases to ensure solutions are made according to instructions given by the Chief Minister. Citizens can view the status of their application online, using their allotted password and login at local Government Offices and at any internet access point.

Grievances are only eligible if they have already been presented to the appropriate authorities (such as the Sub-District Officer or the District Officer), and have not been resolved at this level. Cases for attention of the Chief Minister are selected as those that are long-standing, acute humanitarian issues, difficult to resolve at other levels of Government and those that have policy implications.

The positive impacts realized by the State level SWAGAT gave drive to expand the system to 225 Sub-District offices in 2008, for greater accessibility to the public. Thus the geographical scope covers all of the 55 million citizens and 225 Sub-District of the State. At the District level SWAGAT session, the district authorities hear the public grievances on the same day. Sub-District level SWAGAT is held on every fourth Wednesday, i.e. one day prior to District and State SWAGAT. The software application also enables an online review of Sub-District SWAGAT, District SWAGAT and State SWAGAT outcomes.

The government of Gujarat (GoG) wants to use e-Governance as the tool to improve Accountability, Transparency & Effectiveness in Government administration. The e-Sarkar System project has been implemented for the same through automating the government functions and processes at all levels of the administrative hierarchy. GoG has given stress to Change Management and Top-down approach for successful implementation of e-Sarkar project.
e-Sarkar provides Document Management, Workflow Management, Collaborative Environment and Knowledge Management in an integrated fashion and delivers an Electronic Workplace that result in productivity improvement in Government.
The project initially covered all employees of the Government of Gujarat at New Sachivalaya, Gandhinagar. In order to achieve Single File Management System across the state, e-Sarkar has been extended to all other HoDs and to Districts, Taluka and Gram Panchayat Level across Gujarat in a phased manner.
e-Sarkar has not only helped improve the accountability, transparency and effectiveness but also benefited the citizens directly through applications such as Online RTI Filing through Citizen facing Online RTI Portal and processed online through RTI Module of e-Sarkar etc. and benefited the government through applications such as e-Meeting, LAQ Management, e-Tapal /e-File Module, Asset Management; MP/MLA reference, GOI/PMO Reference, Knowledge Repository etc. in total more than 15 such Modules/Functionalities.

SICN is a network owned by Government of Gujarat for their Voice Communication needs. This network is spread in capital of Gujarat Gandhinagar connecting almost all the Govt. Boards & Corporations Offices.

The core of this network is Lucent make DEFINITY G3r EPABX with the capacity of 7000+ lines and 570 trunks working on E1 R2 MFC and ISDN-PRI, expandable up to 25000 lines.

Through OFC this EPABX is connected to 11 remote units.

As a backbone around 100 Kms. Of Optical Fiber has been laid and 150 Kms. Of JFC has been laid with Structured cabling for Voice & Data nodes. There are 7000+ Voice Nodes and 5000 Data Nodes.

Gujarat is an aspiring leader with e readiness Initiatives with the IT Policy 2006-2011. All departments have prepared their IT Action Plan, which has a one-year focus and a five-year perspective. A fix part of the budget is committed to IT related activities. Each department has Chief Information Officer ( CIO) who reports directly to Secretary of the department.

The IT Policy also showcase other features. IT enhances man power skills, collobarations and Business promotions. Mega Projects, IT Parks, SEZ and spaces for IT/ ITES promotions. Power exemptions for large units, financial assistance are other areas focused upon. Distance Learning and Education is yet another Initiative that takes a major uplift. Optimum use of existing educational infrastructure, including distance learning through satellite communication facilities is available at Bhaskaracharaya Institute for Space Application and Geo-informatics (BISAG).

Under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) of Government of India, State Data Centre (SDC) has been identified as one of the core and critical infrastructure components needed for consolidation and hosting of applications that are essential for the delivery of e-Governance services. SDC would be integrated with the other two core infrastructure components i.e SWAN and CSC/E-Gram.

Government of Gujarat has set up Gujarat State Data Center (GSDC) in Gandhinagar, the State capital. GSDC includes 2600 sq.ft of server & storage area, 600 sq.ft of connectivity zone and 1300 sq.ft of control room & utility area. GSDC has been connected to all the Government offices through GSWAN infrastructure.

Gujarat State Data Centre will act as a mediator and convergence point between open unsecured public domain and sensitive government environment. The GSDC has been equipped to host / co-locate systems such as Web Servers, Application Servers, Database Servers, SAN, and NAS etc.

GSDC will provide much functionality such as Central Repository of the State, Secure Data Storage, Online Delivery of Citizen Information/Services Portal, State Intranet Portal, Disaster Recovery, Remote Management and Service Integration etc. GSDC would also provide better operation & management control and minimize overall cost of Data Management, IT Resource Management, Deployment and other costs.

“Gujarat State Data Centre (GSDC) under NeGP is the first SDC made Operational in India".

The Gujarat Security Operations Center (GSOC) operates under the purview of the Directorate of ICT & e-Governance, Department of Science and Technology, Gujarat, with the primary objective of strengthening the security of critical information infrastructure of the Government of Gujarat. Established in May 2022, GSOC is committed to overseeing advanced security measures, vigilant monitoring, and proactive threat detection to protect the Critical Information Infrastructure (CII) of the state government deployed at the Gujarat State Data Center (GSDC).
GSOC diligently monitors cybersecurity issues, working tirelessly to prevent and address potential threats against CII and respond to cybersecurity incidents in coordination with stakeholders and state and national agencies such as CERT-In, NCIIPC, NCCC, etc. GSOC is entrusted with the following crucial functions:

• Identifying Critical Information Infrastructure
• Issuing cybersecurity guidelines and advisories
• Conducting Vulnerability Assessment & Penetration Testing
• Promoting Cybersecurity Awareness and Capacity Building

The Digital Gujarat Portal provides government services through both online and physical assistance counters in district, taluka, and e-gram centers. The Government of Gujarat's Flagship initiatives such as Jan Seva Kendra, Seva Setu, Digital Seva Setu, and Online Scholarship are operational through the Digital Gujarat Portal.
It operates through two models: 1. Online Model and 2. Physical Assisted Counter Model.

1.Online Model:

• Extend the reach of e-services to all citizens on the Web and mobile. Hence, it minimizes the need for people to go to government offices to get the benefits of government schemes and services.
• More than 110 services including citizen-centric services i.e. Income Certificate, Caste Certificates, Non-Creamy Layer certificates, Widow certificate, Senior citizen certificate, Domicile certificate, Ration Card services, pension schemes, and scholarship (Pre-metric and Post-metric) schemes are available online. Annually, the Digital Gujarat Portal receives over 3 Lac applications through the internet.
• Each year, the Digital Gujarat Portal facilitates direct disbursement of scholarship funds to over 68 lakh students, more than 1800 Crore, directly into their bank accounts.
• Promoting Cybersecurity Awareness and Capacity Building

2.Physical assisted counter Model:

• The Digital Gujarat portal is accessible at all Jan Seva Kendra and e-Gram centers, facilitating government service delivery at district, taluka, and village levels.
• Applicant who doesn’t have a laptop, computer, or access to the internet, can obtain the government service by visiting the nearest e-Gram or Jan seva Kendra.
• Monthly, Jan Seva Kendra receives more than 6 lacs applications
• A dedicated program called Seva Setu has been implemented through the Digital Gujarat Portal. In this initiative, the government proactively reaches out to citizens to address their requirements, shifting the paradigm from citizens reaching out to the government.
• More than 2.5 Crore applications have been received in the last 8 phases of Seva Setu Initiative, and the 9th phase is currently underway, aiming to deliver government services directly to the doorsteps of citizens.
• Under the Digital Gujarat Portal umbrella, Digital Seva Setu has been launched to provide citizen-centric services (Income Certificate, Caste Certificate, Ration Card services) at the village level, aiming to reduce the necessity for citizens to visit Taluka/District Centers. This initiative leverages the backbone network established under the BharatNet project.
• More than 14000 Gram Panchayats provide 321 services, allowing villagers to get services at the village level through the Digital Seva Setu initiative and the initiative has received approximately 1.40 Crore applications till date.

Way Forward

• Implementation of WhatsApp Chatbot solution to deliver government services via WhatsApp solution. After an applicant's application is approved, the chatbot will send the certificate directly to the citizen’s WhatsApp number.
• Implementation e-Sign and e-Seal across all certificates, offering citizens eSign-based certificates in place of traditionally signed documents endorsed by the relevant approval authority.
• Digital Gujarat Portal has been approved by MeitY under section 4(4)(b)(ii) of Aadhaar Authentication for Good Governance Rules. The department is planning to implement Aadhaar authentication into the system to enhance the delivery of government services.