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The purpose of this paper is to evaluate e‐governance projects for the social and economic development and citizen services by ten major states of India: Haryana, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and West Bengal.

ICT and e‐governance policy framework of these ten states was captured from their published policy documents/ literature, as well as through the in‐person interviews and discussions with the concerned Secretary/Director/Managing Director level officials at different forums on the basis of a structured questionnaire.

The results highlight the policy gaps and suggest that there is a need to look at improving such factors as capacity building, common standards, security guidelines, quality, completeness, depth and spread of services, coordination, mindset, etc. In terms of overall performance, four e‐governance projects, e‐Sewa in Andhra Pradesh, Bhoomi in Karnataka, Setu in Maharashtra and Suwidha in Punjab had higher scores than other projects.

The paper introduces the best e‐governance projects which can be role models for other states in improving e‐governance initiatives. This will help policy makers to understand the policy gaps and focus on those parameters which lead to good governance, not only in India but in other similar developing economies as well.

The purpose of this paper is to attempt to find out whether the new information and communication technologies can make a significant contribution to the achievement of the objective of good governance. The study identifies the factors responsible for creating a conducive environment for effective and successful implementation of e-governance for achieving good governance and the possible barriers in the implementation of e governance applications. Based on the comprehensive analysis it proposes a strategic policy framework for good governance in Punjab in India. Punjab is a developed state ranked amongst some of the top states of India in terms of per capita income and infrastructure.

The study designs a framework for good governance by getting the shared vision of all stakeholders about providing good quality administration and governance in the Indian context through “Participatory Stakeholder Assessment”. The study uses descriptive statistics, perception gap, ANOVA and factor analysis to identify the key factors for good governance, the priorities of public regarding e-services, the policy makers’ perspectives regarding good governance to be achieved through e-governance.

The study captures the good governance factors mainly contributing to the shared vision. The study further highlights that most Indian citizens in Punjab today believe in the power of information and communication technology (ICT) and want to access e-governance services. Major factors causing pain and harassment to the citizens in getting the services from various government departments include: unreasonable delay, multiple visits even for small services; poor public infrastructure and its maintenance in government offices. In the understanding of citizens the most important factors for the success of e-governance services are: overall convenience and experience of the citizens; reduction in the corruption levels by improvement in the transparency of government functioning and awareness about the availability of service amongst general masses.

The present study has evolved a shared vision of all stakeholders on good governance in the Indian context. It has opened up many new possibilities for the governments, not only to use ICTs and help them in prioritizing the governance areas for focused attention, but also help to understand the mindset of the modern citizenry, their priorities and what they consider as good governance. The study will help policy makers focus on these factors for enhancing speedy delivery of prioritized services and promote good governance in developing countries similar to India.