International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research

E-ISSN: 2582-2160   •   Impact Factor: 9.24

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Twenty Years of Common Service Centers: Promise, Performance, and the Road Ahead

Author(s) Prof. Navneet Kumar Verma, Mr. Deepak Singh
Country India
Abstract Launched as the part of National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) in 2006, Common Service Centers (CSCs) were designed as ICT-enabled, village level kiosks, that would deliver government and private services to citizens at their doorstep. This article sheds light on its impact, especially after its amendment in 2015 and tries to evaluate how it affected the service delivery up to the last mile. It also focuses on the persistent gaps and shortcomings in the implementation and functioning of the scheme and suggests some policy measures for better digital inclusion and efficient public service delivery.

This article offers a policy and governance revaluation of CSCs through two complementary lenses. First, it conceptualizes Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs) as quasi street-level bureaucrats, exercising frontline discretion that can widen access but also enhance dependence. Second, it positions CSCs within the political economy of the platform state, where public services, private offerings, and data infrastructures converge at the last mile. The analysis revolves around under-discussed dimensions—green governance, linguistic mediation, crisis resilience, youth aspirations, and rights-based compliance under India’s Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act and Rules. The article concludes with a reform agenda that reframes CSCs as accountable community digital commons aimed at building citizen capability over time and reducing digital dependency.
Keywords Common Service Centres; Digital India; intermediation; street-level bureaucracy; platform state; DPDP; last-mile governance; data-privacy
Field Sociology > Administration / Law / Management
Published In Volume 8, Issue 1, January-February 2026
Published On 2026-02-04
DOI https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i01.67999
Short DOI https://doi.org/hbnp2x
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