Bhubaneswar, July 29 (IANS) Odisha Health and Family Welfare Minister Mukesh Mahaling on Wednesday said Common Service Centres (CSCs) have become a key pillar in building a Digital Odisha by ensuring doorstep delivery of government and digital services to citizens.
Addressing the 17th Common Service Centre (CSC) Day celebrations in Bhubaneswar, the Minister said CSC SPV had been serving as a powerful medium for nationwide digital inclusion for the past 17 years.
He noted that CSC had become a crucial bridge in taking the Digital India campaign from village to village and door to door. By successfully delivering government services, banking, digital education, telemedicine, the National Digital Health Mission, and various social security schemes to rural areas, CSC had bridged the digital divide and empowered lakhs of rural entrepreneurs.
Mahaling said the National Digital Health Mission had enabled people in rural areas to access digital health IDs, teleconsultation services, and modern healthcare facilities, marking a significant transformation in rural healthcare delivery.
He credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision and Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi’s leadership for accelerating Odisha’s digital transformation.
The Minister noted that the state now had more than 45,000 CSC centres delivering digital services to citizens and creating a new chapter in digital governance.
Highlighting the contribution of CSCs, he said they had facilitated the registration of over one crore women under the Subhadra Yojana, distribution of more than 1.76 crore Ayushman Bharat cards, registration of over eight lakh beneficiaries under the Ayushman Vay Vandana Yojana, and implementation of schemes such as e-Shram, PM Vishwakarma, crop insurance, digital literacy, telemedicine, and several social security programmes.
“The CSCs have become trusted centres of hope, healthcare, and development, particularly in rural and tribal areas,” Mahaling said.
The Minister added that CSCs had made remarkable progress in strengthening digital governance, healthcare, and financial inclusion by connecting every village with digital services and ensuring transparent and accessible public service delivery.
He further stated that CSCs had generated livelihood opportunities for nearly two lakh Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs) across the country and facilitated business worth around Rs 12,800 crore.
He also highlighted that the incentive provided to CSCs by the Odisha Government had increased from Rs 1 crore two years ago to Rs 6.5 crore at present, reflecting the rapid growth and success of the CSC network in the state.
Notably, Odisha Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water Minister Rabinarayan Naik attended the event as the Chief Guest.
–IANS
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