Key Success Factors for the e-Governance Initiatives Through Common Service Centres in India: An Empirical Study with Special Reference to Akshaya e-Kendras in Kerala

The National e-Governance Plan formulated by the Government of India lays out the foundation for the long-term growth of e-governance in the country. The Common Service Centre (CSC) scheme is a cornerstone project under National e-Governance Plan, approved in the year 2006, and acts as the delivery point for government, private and social sector services such as G2C, B2C and G2B to the rural citizens of India at their doorsteps. In Kerala, the Kerala State IT Mission is the nodal agency to create and run a CSC network through Akshaya e-kendras. This study aims to provide empirical evidence about the major success factors for e-governance services through Akshaya e-kendras. Infrastructure, accessibility, transparency, system quality, service quality, convenience, trust, e-participation and interoperability were the variables used for the study. SPSS Amos 22 was used for developing confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling for the study. The study found that the key success factors for the success of CSCs are service quality followed by transparency and convenience. Other important factors are accessibility, system quality and interoperability. The least contributing factors are trust and infrastructure.