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Video conferencing @ gov.in
The government is purchasing both video conferencing equipment
and services in a big way. By Mehak Chawla
 Vignesh
Kumar, a senior IT manager at one of the largest PSU banks in the country, has
been a happier employee for the past 18 months. Before that, he had to travel
to remote corners of North-east India every couple of months in order to get
a first-hand view of the ATM network in those parts and check with local personnel
about network and other technical glitches. However, a couple of years back,
his organization decided to opt for video conferencing. After this implementation,
Kumar’s trips have almost ceased. He now conducts his meetings over video
conferencing once every month and feels that this mechanism works much better
for him.
His contentment is shared by many other government employees
who have been experiencing the benefits of video conferencing. The government
has emerged as the largest buyer of video conferencing equipment over the last
couple of years. According to industry estimates, the video conferencing market
in India stood at about `350 crores (including both endpoint equipment and services)
at the end of FY 2010. As per Frost & Sullivan estimates, the market is
expected to grow at a CAGR of 23.9% till 2015.
In 2010, the government sector accounted for about 28% of
the VC market by revenues. This was despite the fact that most analyst firms
don’t include PSUs within the government vertical. Only the ministries
and departments are recorded under the label of government while the PSUs are
accounted for within their specific verticals. All of which means that the usage
in government is higher than the 28% figure would suggest since a lot of enthusiastic
adoption of video conferencing has happened within the PSUs. Notable amongst
these have been the adoptions by large PSU banks like the State Bank of India
and some PSUs in the Oil & Gas vertical.
According to ICT practice, Frost & Sullivan, South Asia and Middle East,
“Government spending on video conferencing endpoints and infrastructure
has attained a growth of 29.2% in CY 2010 over the previous year.”
The massive growth can primarily be attributed to two causes namely the widespread
government network that necessitates the use of all parallel means of communication
and the efficiency that video can help bring to various lines of operation.
The growth is also here to stay. For not only is the potential for deployment
massive, it is also making its presence felt at a strategic level. Though attendance
through video conferencing is still not accepted by the law, the Indian government
is set to make attendance via video conferencing legal for board meetings conducted
by corporations. This law is already functional in several countries including
the US, Canada and Malaysia.
Video everywhere
 "Cisco
& the Karnataka Government have launched a pilot remote education initiative
at Hoskote."
Minhaj Zia
National Sales Manager, Collaboration, India & SAARC, Cisco |
It was the government that came to the vendors’ rescue
during the slowdown. Apart from that, the government has also achieved some
innovative implementations of this technology. While in the corporate domain,
video is restricted to official meetings with an aim to reduce travel time and
expenses, in the government it has been used as a tool for delivering education,
for trying prisoners without their having to be brought to court, to facilitate
telemedicine and as a medium for the common man to voice his grievances to the
government. According Minhaj Zia, National Sales Manager, Collaboration, India
and SAARC, Cisco, some relevant areas where the government has used video innovatively
include telemedicine, distance learning and education, justice, telework and
surveillance.
Here are a few instances of the same. In Jharkhand, a number
of prisoner trials are now happening through the medium of video conferencing.
The elaborate prison management system implemented by Jharkhand has been functioning
since 2007 and, thanks to that, the state now has a database of criminal records
in a standardized format. Jharkhand was one of the first states to utilize its
SWAN network in order to set up significant video conferencing facilities across
government institutions. Following Jharkhand’s example, jails in UP and
Bihar have also started deploying video conferencing for conducting trials.
The rest of the states are expected to follow suit soon.
In Gujarat, which is among the advanced states in India in
terms of IT usage, video is being used in many ways.
KR Gururaja Rao, Chairman and MD, Gujarat Informatics Limited, said, “We
use video conferencing across the government for everything from meetings to
solving public grievances. Even our CM uses video conferencing extensively under
the SWAGAT program.” State Wide Attention on Public Grievances by Application
of Technology (SWAGAT) is a unique initiative where the CM of Gujarat addresses
citizen-centric problems in real time through video conferencing. For this particular
project, video conferencing equipment was deployed throughout the state right
up to the Taluka level.
A big impetus for video conferencing has come in the form of State Wide Area
Network (SWAN). With SWANs up and running in 24 states, connectivity, that’s
been the biggest bottleneck to using video conferencing, is no longer a hurdle.
The adoption of video conferencing within the government has been riding on
the back of the state WANs. According to Frost & Sullivan, “One of
the chief objectives of the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) is to inculcate
a citizen-centric focus into all administrative departments and to transform
the traditional processes and service delivery mechanisms. Video Conferencing
is an effective means to achieve this objective backed by the successful implementation
of SWAN across 23 states as on Dec 2010.”
Usage patterns
 The
usage of video conferencing varies in the government. The buying pattern of
segments within the government showcases a difference in terms of adopting a
CAPEX/OPEX model. Certain highly secured departments like Defense that are inclined
to reticence opt for buying VC/TP solutions outright while only outsourcing
their management. Major General Rajesh Pant, VSM, Additional Director General
Information Systems, Integrated HQ Ministry of Defense (Army), said, “We
own and secure all of our video communications ourselves. Security is the biggest
challenge for us and we can’t compromise on our communications.”
Similarly, departments like Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI),
the Courts; Ministry of Finance, Food Processing and Commerce that are frequent
users of VC prefer captive setup of video equipment. On the other hand, in the
case of departments that deal with e-Governance, agriculture and rural development,
the National Informatics Center (NIC) buys equipment on their behalf, sets up
the video conferencing rooms and hires it out to these departments as and when
required, much on the lines of what a Reliance Web World does in the corporate
sector. In the NIC hosted mode, the State Information Centre plays a significant
role in connecting the districts and states with the National centers. Departments
can book their slots and schedule their meetings online.
According to Dr. Y.K. Sharma, Deputy Director General, NIC,
the scheme is a prudent one, since not every department has the bandwidth to
procure and maintain a video conferencing set-up. “We have seen a good
response in terms of usage,” he commented.
 "The
government is getting into managed video conferencing models in a significant
way."
Sukhmani Bedi
Director Products, Tulip Telecom |
Although it is mostly the CAPEX model that the government
is adopting, given the fact that they don’t have to worry about expenses,
Sukhmani Bedi, Director Products, Tulip Telecom, observed that the government
was starting to consume OPEX-based video conferencing services. “The government
is getting into managed video conferencing models in a significant way. They
are also beginning to get prudent about spending,” she added.
Real-time opportunity
 In
Abu Dhabi, under a pilot project, over 300 pupils in government schools are
learning their multiplication tables with an iPad application that uses video
conferencing to deliver lessons and coursework. The Abu Dhabi Education Council
developed a technology-driven classroom project called iClass, which will enable
third and fourth grade students in six schools to use mobile devices and 3D
software during their lessons.
Compare that with the fact that the Indian Government is
all set to distribute Aakash, a $60 tablet (initially $35; changes to the configuration
to incorporate a capacitive screen among other things pushed up the price) to
over 10 million post-secondary students in India. The tablet offers video conferencing
capabilities and the government plans to utilize this in a big way. This means
that there is a tremendous opportunity for vendors and application developers
to facilitate video for the government. The scale of deployment within the government
is massive and so is the vendor opportunity that comes with it.
The leading vendors in the video conferencing space are rolling
their sleeves to tap the government sector with all their vigor. Bedi of Tulip
Telecom, said, “The government is a big market for video and the technology
is gathering momentum. Rural development is being given a lot of impetus and
vendors are keen to grab the opportunity.”
Tulip is already working on several video projects for the
government including the Bihar Jail and some defense wings.
Polycom has a special focus on the government vertical and has managed to create
deep inroads there. Cisco too is working with the government on several projects.
“Recently, Cisco and the Karnataka Government launched a pilot remote education
initiative at Hoskote,” added Zia.
With NIC aiming to expand its network of video by adding a substantial number
of units per year, the opportunity is getting bigger. New projects like UID
and the modernization of police forces are also opening up avenues for vendors
to deploy their solutions. BFSI is also flinging open its gates to video conferencing.
In its communication on e-Governance, issued to 21 public sector banks, three
financial institutions and seven public sector insurance companies, the Ministry
of Finance made it clear that e-Governance, through the use of video-conferencing
would improve the quality and efficiency of service delivery and help gradually
move towards a state of fewer paper-based transactions. That means that we can
expect banks to move onto the video platform soon enough.
Telepresence’s uptake
As of now, almost all of the solutions deployed by the government have been
video conferencing solutions. While some practices like law have opted for high-definition
video conferencing, the government is still far from the trend of telepresence
that has bee immensely popular with MNCs.
The longevity of the procurement process and the fact that there has been limited
usage of video for high-tech purposes like surgeries etc. that mandate the usage
of telepresence have resulted in the slow and limited uptake of this technology
in government circles.
Moreover, there are other usage challenges within the government. In a few cases,
even the equipment that has been bought is gathering dust. However, some tech-savvy
projects like the UID have started using telepresence right off the bat. Some
sections of defense are also utilizing telepresence.
Having said that, for the foreseeable future, video conferencing is expected
to rule the roost in this sector.
mehak.chawla@expressindia.com
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