Govt Launches 4,740 Digital Centers to Bridge Rural Divide and Empower Villages

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has announced the launch of the Digital India Common Service Center (DICSC) project, a transformative initiative aimed at bridging the digital divide in rural India. This ambitious project, beginning in Pilibhit and Gorakhpur, seeks to extend digital services to every corner of the nation, setting up nearly 4,740 model centers across ten districts. The DICSC project’s objective is to create easily accessible, well-equipped service centers in gram panchayats across these areas to support e-governance and commercial services for rural citizens.

Notable allocations include 720 DICSC centers for Pilibhit and 1,273 centers for Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh. Additionally, other states have also been selected to benefit from this project. Among these, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in Maharashtra will see 870 centers, Chamba in Himachal Pradesh will have 309, and Khammam in Telangana will gain 589 centers. Other districts like Gandhinagar, Mamit, Jodhpur, Leh, and Puducherry are also part of this expansive network, each receiving multiple DICSC centers. CSC e-Governance Services India Limited has been tasked with the overall implementation and centralized monitoring of these centers to ensure effective service delivery.

With an initial budget allocation of Rs 31.61 crore, the project will span six months, with an option for a three-month extension. The core focus is to offer rural residents a comprehensive platform that enables access to crucial services such as Aadhaar registration, banking, tele-law, telemedicine, education, and e-commerce. Each center will be equipped with high-speed internet and modern facilities, creating a multi-functional hub for villagers.

Beyond infrastructure, the initiative focuses on empowering Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs), which will stimulate local economies and create job opportunities in these communities. An additional component includes GPS-enabled mobile vans to deliver essential government services and promote digital literacy in even the remotest areas.