- Brings together state and public sector officials to discuss the future of digital governance in Maharashtra.
- Commits to partnering on the critical digital skills and technology required for Maharashtra’s digital success.
Mumbai, March 16, 2021: Committed to partnering with the public sector to accelerate India’s digital transformation, Microsoft India today launched the Digital Governance State Roadshow, hosting the first virtual event for the state of Maharashtra. Senior state officials, public sector leaders, industry bodies and experts came together to discuss the impact and integration of technologies like cloud, data and AI into state priorities like e-governance, education, urban development, cybersecurity and citizen engagement. Anchoring these discussions, Microsoft shared its commitment to partner with the state, making available the technology and tools required to accelerate its digital success.
The Digital Governance State Roadshow is a unique knowledge-sharing platform to deliberate on the significance and opportunity that technologies like cloud computing, data, and AI offer for transforming governance in India. Public sector organizations around the world are using the power of AI and the cloud to innovate in a fast and agile manner, address problems at scale, and transform public services for citizens.
Microsoft’s Digital Governance State Roadshow brings together public sector officials across various states in the country to advance dialogue on how technology can play a critical role in accelerating economic and societal progress, addressing the unique needs of our country.
Inaugurating the event, Shri Satej D. Patil, State Minister for Home (Urban), Housing, Transport, Information Technology, Parliamentary Affairs, Ex. Servicemen Welfare, Government of Maharashtra, said, “Maharashtra has always focused on adopting advanced technologies in fortifying its digital infrastructure and e-governance mechanism, which under the able leadership of our Hon’ble Chief Minister, Shri Uddhav Thackeray has taken lead in implementing the best of technology in various departments. For instance, we have developed an online portal for the implementation of the biggest farm loan waiver in Maharashtra which has reimbursed more than 34 lakh loan accounts seamlessly using digital transformation. Different digital programs that are focused on scheme implementations, fortifying cybersecurity operations and engaging startups in blockchain development are strongly underway. I believe that this state roadshow will bring together a number of stakeholders from Maharashtra to discuss how various departments are making the best use of innovative technologies and tools to make its e-governance mechanism successful and the most sought after in the country. I appreciate that Microsoft is starting this series from Maharashtra and urge companies like Microsoft to keep innovating and coming forward to make digital channels more robust, secure, accessible and flexible for the government and for the general public at large.”
In his welcome address, Navtez Bal, Executive Director, Public Sector, Microsoft India, said, “India’s public sector has demonstrated tremendous agility, innovation and resilience this past year, addressing problems at scale and ensuring the smooth continuity of citizen services. Technology played a central role in enabling this resilience and response. It is our privilege to launch the Digital Governance State Roadshow for Maharashtra, a state that has truly embraced technology-led development and innovation. We look forward to working closely with state governments across the country, empowering government officials to leverage data, AI and secure cloud technology for efficient, transparent and productive governance.”
The event saw panel discussions, fireside chats and a skilling workshop with participation from senior government and public sector officials of Maharashtra including Sanjay Bhatia, UPA Lokayukta, Maharashtra, Ashish Kumar Singh, Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, and Additional Chief Secretary, Transport and Ports, Government of Maharashtra, Dr Rajagopal Devara, Principal Secretary, Finance Department (Reforms), SVR Srinivas, Principal Secretary, Housing Department, Government of Maharashtra, among other speakers. Dialogue at the event spanned a host of subjects including Maharashtra’s vision for the future of e-governance, digital transformation and innovation for governance, using technologies for smart urban infrastructure projects, the significance of data and analytics in urban development, and approach to cybersecurity.
Microsoft is deeply invested in the digital transformation of the government ecosystem in India and has been working closely with central and state governments across the country to deliver critical digital skills and technology to accelerate their digital success.
About Microsoft
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Microsoft set up its India operations in 1990. Today, Microsoft entities in India have over 13,000 employees, engaged in sales and marketing, research, development and customer services and support, across 11 Indian cities – Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, New Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune. Microsoft offers its global cloud services from local data centers to accelerate digital transformation across Indian startups, businesses, and government organizations.
