IAS Anshuman Raj, a 2020 batch officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre currently posted as Managing Director of the State Wide Area Network (SWAN) and Director of the State Computer Security Incident Response Team (MP-CERT) Bhopal, aims to make the state’s digital governance faster, more efficient, and technology-driven.

“My main role will be to bring greater efficiency to the websites through which we deliver services -by reducing downtime and identifying areas for improvement”Raj explained.He stressed that optimizing minor delays, such as those in Aadhaar linkage can save significant man-hours when multiplied across thousands of users.

Raj also highlighted the transformative potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in governance.“AI is evolving rapidly, and integrating it with GIS opens up immense possibilities”he said.

During his earlier tenure, one of his major contributions was SIPRI,a GIS-based planning tool that has become vital for panchayats in creating infrastructure such as check dams and stop dams. The technology has been integrated into state initiatives and was also used to identify optimal sites for Amrit Sarovars based on slope, proximity to water bodies and drainage density.

Overseeing MP-CERT,Raj is working to strengthen the cybersecurity framework and develop it as a model for other states. 

Building on his experience with his previous initiatives including a GIS-based crop loss assessment system using multispectral and satellite imagery, and a well detection project that is expected to identify nearly 45 lakh wells across Madhya Pradesh- the focus is on strengthening Madhya Pradesh’s digital systems with emerging technologies