Indian politicians going tech savvy; using data analytics to improve decision-making

In Balasore, a city in the state of Odisha, one can find around 800 volunteers of Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti, a nonprofits voluntary outfit, going from door to door. They are busy collecting village-level data, which is being entered into an app on tablets before being centrally collated.

These volunteers are collecting data on a wide range of subjects -schools, aanganwadi centres, health facilities, Panchayati Raj institutions, roads, transport, electrification and agriculture in the constituency of lawmaker RK Jena.

This data will be analysed by a not-for-profit development organisation called Swaniti Initiative, which will then use self-created tools to draft a development plan for the sitting MP.

There has been an increasing inclination towards using big data and analytics to strengthen the process of decision-making and improve governance at national, state and constituency levels.

Some of the big leaders who use these tools are Minister of State for Finance Jayant Sinha, lawmaker Jay Panda, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu.

Talking of states, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and Odisha are at the forefront of this data revolution.
This revolution has stemmed from PM Modi's push to use the latest tools for improving governance, as told by Rwitwika Bhattacharya, founder of Swaniti Initiative, to ET.

"With the recent focus of the government, a large shift has been towards digital governance, which is data-driven... a movement away from the pen and paper model," said Bhattacharya.

Swaniti's present team includes graduates from Harvard and Stanford, along with IITs and IIMs.

The techniques and tools used for this data revolution include social media analysis, predictive algorithms, data analytics and forecasting based on primary data.

"In the old days, candidates would hire pollsters to measure responses from electorates. Today, it can happen easily with big data," said Deora. "It is an effective way of reducing gaps between politicians and people."

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