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Why doesn't govt embrace open source?
May 26, 2006, 3:44 pm |
*Why doesn't govt embrace open source?*
PANKAJ SHARMA
[ THURSDAY, MAY 25, 2006 12:00:00 AM]
Water water everywhere not a drop to drink...
This quote seems true for the Indian e-governance domain. While there is
a vast technology-neutral environment, yet most of the new applications
and e-governance talks on using programs make little or no use of them.
Most of the top-level officials are aware of the benefits of using a
technology-neutral environment, yet without any firm policies in place.
Though use of open source is an integral part of any e-governance
project report, it fails to move beyond. In the end, proprietary
software and environment win thumbs-up in bagging the projects.
While it may be true that issues such as ownership and after-sales
support might be an issue in migrating to an open environment,
neutrality offers certain inherent benefits, which can?t be offered by
its proprietary counterpart.
In a country like India, we only have limited pockets of growth where
technology has made an impact. Infrastructure and knowledge are a
challenge for the masses and what is needed is a smart system where we
can get maximum while spending minimum. The core logic here is penny
saved is penny earned.
The other important issue is that of interoperability, which would not
only result in a big saving but also provide a ubiquitous delivery of
government services. In such a scenario, an open environment can really
be a good option to migrate to.
We need to adopt an out-of-the-box approach towards technology
neutrality. We have to propagate it and create a futuristic vision for
it. The issue also has its roots in certain other things which might not
be apparent in a bird?s eye view. But surely the solutions mentioned
below can be helpful in providing a good breeding ground for promotion
of technology neutrality.
Creating an IT-enabled workforce
Our greatest lacuna is a poor education system where technology
education doesn?t form part of the core curriculum. This has resulted in
a digital divide not just between the rural and urban population but
even among the urban.
Thanks to this divide, information technology is viewed as an something
difficult. An IT-savvy system would ensure that students have a positive
attitude towards technology.
Education on open source
As a first step, we need to integrate technology neutral IT education in
our education policy. ?Catch them young? holds true in creating a
society which could accept technology neutrality with open arms.
Though most schools in urban areas and some in rural areas do claim to
offer computer education, they are unaware of neutrality and thus end up
imparting IT education on a proprietary platform which, over certain
time, becomes a habit and convenience.
Teaching in a neutral environment should surely be considered in order
to develop the requisite skill set to work in an open environment.
Even in higher education, there should be certain specialised courses
and curriculum targeted towards gearing the students towards open source.
Going a step further, the existing and new staff in government domain
should be imparted hands-on experience on technology-neutral platforms
and tools.
A PPP for open source
There lies a great opportunity in the open source domain which can be
tapped by the private sector in terms of better product rollouts. For
government sector, the opportunity is in the form of having a low-cost
ownership and maintenance.
Efforts should be made to provide special benefits to the players
rolling out products on technology-neutral platform for government use.
This can be a good rider to promote the entrepreneurial zeal in this
domain.
Collaborations between the private sector and the government sector
should be promoted in order to roll out applications and programs on
open source.
Firm policies
At present, there are no firm policies which make use of technology
neutrality a mandatory criterion in government projects. This has
resulted in a state of confusion among various government agencies,
which ultimately prefer proprietary application.
A lack of clarity and capacity by the implementing agencies is often
quoted as reason for this preference but we should understand that this
is a classic chicken-and-egg situation ? we can?t have capacity until we
are hands-on with something and we can?t have a hands-on experience
until we have the capacity.
But we need to make a start and now is the moment for using open
technologies in a government environment as we are still in nascent
stage and a correct action at this point would ensure that we don?t
commit a mistake.
Last but not the least, we need to move beyond the myopic view that
technology neutrality is a utopian yet an unachievable situation and
that technology neutral applications and environment are nobody?s baby.
These factors are more of an opportunity than a challenge for the
government which can actually use it to its advantage in not just
rationalising the cost of ownership issues to a realistic level but also
build customised options for its use.
We should also understand is that it might not be practically possible
to change things overnight but if there is a time to start surely this
is the best time.
(The views expressed by the author are personal)
The author is a senior consultant with the national e-governance
programme, Ministry of Communication and Information Technology.
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Regards
Vinay
Mob: 9422113939
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Vinay Yadav vinayRas Infotech
www.vinayras.com Nagpur, India
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Linux Consultant & PHP/MySQL Developer
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