As many as 21 State and Union Territory legislatures in India are now conducting their legislative business in digital mode through the National e-Vidhan Application (NeVA), while seven others are at various stages of implementation, the government informed Parliament on Wednesday.
Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Law and Justice and Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal shared the information in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
Digital transformation of legislatures
NeVA is a unified digital platform developed to transform State and UT legislatures into paperless and digitally enabled Houses. The initiative is designed as a generic software system capable of meeting the diverse operational requirements of legislative bodies across the country.
Meghwal said 28 State and UT legislatures have signed tripartite Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with the Centre and their respective state governments for adopting the platform.
The agreements outline the cost-sharing arrangement between the Union and state governments and specify conditions for the release of funds for implementing the system.
End-to-end digital legislative workflow
The NeVA software suite includes mobile and web applications, a public portal and e-book modules that enable end-to-end digitalisation of legislative processes.
Through the platform, legislators can electronically submit questions and notices, access legislative documents online and digitally manage key parliamentary business such as Bills, debates, proceedings and the List of Business.
The initiative also provides for the installation of necessary ICT infrastructure and hardware in legislatures to support fully digital functioning.
Punjab Assembly already fully digital
Meghwal noted that the Punjab Legislative Assembly became a fully digital House after adopting the NeVA platform on September 21, 2023.
The Centre has made provisions to extend the platform to all State and UT legislatures in the country, aiming to modernise legislative processes, improve transparency and enhance efficiency in parliamentary functioning.
