Rural Digital India / From Internet to Village Desk: MP’s Umri to Pilot India’s ‘Phygital’ Service Model
Key Points
Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia will inaugurate a Samriddhi Kendra in Umri village of Madhya Pradesh’s Guna district on March 14 as part of a pilot project aimed at bringing “phygital” services to rural communities.
Phygital is a mix of physical and digital services. In this model, people can visit a local centre in their village where staff help them access government schemes, healthcare, education or financial services using digital technology and high-speed internet.
The word “phygital” is formed by joining physical and digital. In simple words, it means people can go to a real place, such as a village service centre-where they receive help to use digital services like online forms, telemedicine, banking or government schemes.
For many villagers who may not have smartphones, internet access or the knowledge to use online portals, the phygital model makes services easier. Instead of travelling far to government offices, they can visit a nearby centre where trained staff assist them while the services are delivered digitally.
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For many villagers who may not have smartphones, internet access or the knowledge to use online portals, the phygital model makes services easier. Instead of travelling far to government offices, they can visit a nearby centre where trained staff assist them while the services are delivered digitally.
Officials say the centre will use the high-speed internet created under BharatNet, one of the world’s largest rural broadband programmes that aims to connect villages across India with fast internet.
The Umri centre is part of a larger pilot initiative that also includes villages in Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Each centre is expected to serve nearby villages within a five-kilometre radius.
If successful, the government believes the phygital model could help bridge the gap between technology and rural communities, making important services faster, simpler and more accessible for people living in villages.
(IANS)
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