The primary data requirement for effective e-governance was a national citizen identity card which would be a multipurpose card having the photograph, biometrics-fingerprint, iris-based system and digital signature of every citizen of the country, he said.
Observing that good governance was being recognised as an important goal by many countries, he said the Internet revolution has proved to be a powerful tool for good governance initiatives. The President said there was now a conscious effort to have the citizen as the centre of focus of governance.
"India faces a great challenge and the opportunity in implementing an e-governance system for one billion people was something no other country has attempted." Kalam inaugurated the Digital Library Centre at Rashtrapathi Bhavan and also the e-learning centre at the President's Estate School.
He visualised e-governance as an opportunity for transparency with seamless access, secure and authentic flow of information crossing the inter-departmental barrier and providing a far and unbiased service to the citizen.
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