Sarcouncil Journal of Public Administration and Management

Abstract: India’s vision of becoming a developed nation by 2047 depends on the transformation of public service delivery. Certainly, this is a journey to be undertaken through an effective model of digital governance. To explore this connection, the current paper examines the role of e-governance in improving public service delivery in India within the framework of the Viksit Bharat @2047 agenda. The paper uses theoretical perspectives from co-production, co-creation, and citizen-centric governance to analyze the traces of India’s digital governance evolution from the pre-2015 era of bureaucratic silos to the current ecosystem of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled administration. The paper argues that India’s e-governance approach has fundamentally redefined the citizen-state relationship by enhancing transparency, efficiency, and accessibility while also confronting persistent challenges including the digital divide, digital literacy gaps, and institutional resistance. The paper examines key initiatives such as Digital India, the National e-Governance Service Delivery Assessment (NeSDA), Centralized Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS), and the emerging DPI-AI convergence to show that e-governance serves as both an instrument of administrative reform and a foundation for substantive democratic participation. The analysis concludes that realizing the Viksit Bharat vision requires moving beyond digitization toward a unified and citizen-centric governance platform that combines technological innovation with human judgment, constitutional values, and inclusive design.