India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology showcases blockchain initiatives hosting 7.93 million government-issued documents including education, property, judiciary, and drug logistics. Various departments utilize blockchain for verification services.
Approximately eight million government-issued verifiable documents are presently stored on five blockchains owned and operated by India's National Informatics Centre (NIC), a government agency.
Under India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the NIC has unveiled a fresh website showcasing its diverse blockchain initiatives. According to the disclosed details, 7.93 million documents, spanning various sectors such as education, property, judiciary, and drug logistics, are presently secured on the blockchain.
India predominantly utilizes three blockchain platforms for its developments: Hyperledger Fabric, Hyperledger Sawtooth, and Ethereum. The five blockchain solutions currently in operation are certificate chain, document chain, drug logistics chain, judiciary chain, and property chain.
These documents originate from six states and three government departments, including the Central Board of Secondary Education, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, and the Ministry of Justice.
Departments embracing blockchain technology have facilitated verification services concerning property ownership, birth and death certificates, a supply chain management system for medicines, and educational certificates.
India is actively developing proof-of-concept blockchains dedicated to land records, blood banks, tracking goods and services tax (GST), and a Public Distribution System (PDS). Last year, Hindustan Petroleum, one of India's major oil and gas companies, collaborated with blockchain software firm Zupple Labs to incorporate blockchain-based digital credentialing technology into its purchase order system.
The primary objective behind India's blockchain implementations is to combat the nation's persistent issue of document forgery. By leveraging blockchain technology, the Indian government issues digitally signed, immutable certificates, mitigating the risk of alteration or misuse by malicious entities.
Despite hesitancy in fully endorsing cryptocurrencies, India has generally embraced blockchain technology, with numerous state and local governments actively contributing to the nation's blockchain adoption efforts.