Amar Patnaik, BJD Rajya Sabha MP said the government itself has the best problem statements for blockchain adoption. The ex-CAG bureaucrat with a PhD in management and now an advocate authored an article for the New Indian Express where he states that the best possible blockchain use cases are in the government sector with its complex problem statements in various domains like land records management, health, education, pensions, etc.
The former bureaucrat is an active voice in the field of data protection, emerging technologies. “Considering its nature as a decentralised and distributed technology with peer-to-peer protocol, it inherently enhances traceability and transparency in real time and is almost fraud-proof,” the articles states.
The MP offered an illustrative example of Georgia where the government was able to enhance efficiency in its land titling process by replacing the back-end software of the existing system with blockchain.
Blockchain can be used to introduce Electronic Health Records (EHRs) and in the insurance sector. “For example, in the case of a car insurance use case, all the transactions related to the car in terms of its wear and tear can be noted in a blockchain-based electronic ledger.”
On the aspect of insurance, the MP argues that the “ledger cannot be manipulated and is accessible to the insurance company. This will force the insured person to proactively eschew negligence on his part.”
“India must harness this tool through progressive regulation and ensure blockchain plays an important role in transforming the way the public sector works and delivers services to citizens,” the MP concludes.
This is not the first time, the MP has batted for the adoption of blockchain technology by the government. In July, the MP argued that “blockchain solutions enable reductions in complexity and cost of transactions while also ensuring improvement in transparency and fraud controls.“
Last month, the MP pressed that government must put in place a regulatory framework to protect investors, foster innovation.
