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.