Other Finalists : Planning Commission & Cabinet Secretariat, Govt of India : Desktop Executive Video Conferencing System

Information and Communication Technology innovations and its implementations

are rapidly changing the performance of our day-to-day functions. The technology

is substituting the requirements of traveling by providing options like video

conferencing, which is becoming quite popular and credit goes to drastic

reduction in average price of videoconferencing equipment and overall

improvement in network infrastructure and bandwidth capabilities.

With Indian government's initiative to prioritize e-Governance, Desktop EVCS

was undertaken to enhance efficiency to reduce total process time by

complementing travel and thus saving a lot of public money. EVCS is an

integrated system with 17” LCD display and a fixed camera with integrated

microphone and speakers. It is capable of conducting VC sessions over IP up to

768 Kbps using H.264 codec. It is interoperable with Group VC systems using

H.323 protocols and has capability to send and receive computer presentations

using H.239 standards. EVCS is equipped with Advanced Encryption standards (AES)

to ensure that communication is confidential and secure. In the earlier

communication system, officials mainly used RAX phones. EVCS on the other hand

enables virtual meetings between officials and ensures quick response by holding

conferences where a large number of Chief Secretaries and Secretaries can

frequently interact. In total EVCS has connected desks of 35 Chief

Secretaries/Administrators of States/UTs and 79 Secretaries to Government of

India to facilitate hassle free inter-Ministerial consultations and quick

decision making. Using this video conferencing system, point-to-point video

conferencing can be initiated by anyone connected to EVCS and multi-point video

conferencing can be arranged through National Information Center, Delhi. In

implementing EVCS, existing IP based network infrastructure of NIC called NICNET

has been used. NIC officers in various Ministries, Departments, States and Union

Territories have provided on-site training, documentation and demonstration to

Chief Secretaries and their staff. Videoconferencing equipment for EVCS has been

purchased from Polycom via an open tender process and these equipment come with

a 3 year warranty. Total cost of implementation of this project along with

equipment was Rs 2 Cr which is small when compared to the total money and time

spent on face to face meetings.