The Information Technology Act, 2000
CHAPTER III: ELECTRONIC GOVERNANCE
Section 6A: Delivery Of Services By Service Provider
Bare Act
6A Delivery of services by service provider - (1) The appropriate Government may, for the purposes of this Chapter and for efficient delivery of services to the public through electronic means authorise, by order, any service provider to set up, maintain and upgrade the computerised facilities and perform such other services as it may specify, by notification in the Official Gazette. Explanation - For the purposes of this section, service provider so authorised includes any individual, private agency, private company, partnership firm, sole proprietor firm or any such other body or agency which has been granted permission by the appropriate Government to offer services through electronic means in accordance with the policy governing such service sector.
(2) The appropriate Government may also authorise any service provider authorised under sub-section (1) to collect, retain and appropriate such service charges, as may be prescribed by the appropriate Government for the purpose of providing such services, from the person availing such service.
(3) Subject to the provisions of sub-section (2), the appropriate Government may authorise the service providers to collect, retain and appropriate service charges under this section notwithstanding the fact that there is no express provision under the Act, rule, regulation or notification under which the service is provided to collect, retain and appropriate e-service charges by the service providers.
(4) The appropriate Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify the scale of service charges which may be charged and collected by the service providers under this section: Provided that the appropriate Government may specify different scale of service charges for different types of services.
Simplified Act
Simple Explanation of Section 6A of The Information Technology Act, 2000
6A Delivery of services by service provider
- Part 1: The government can give permission to certain service providers to create and manage digital facilities. These providers can also be asked to perform additional services as mentioned in an official government publication. A 'service provider' can be anyone or any organization that is allowed by the government to offer electronic services according to the rules of that service sector.
- Part 2: The government can allow these authorized service providers to charge fees for their services. The amount and rules for these charges will be decided by the government.
- Part 3: Even if there's no specific law or official statement that says service providers can charge for electronic services, the government can still allow them to do so as long as it follows the rules mentioned in Part 2.
- Part 4: The government will announce how much service providers can charge. They can set different prices for different types of services.
Explanation using examples
Imagine a scenario where the Government of India wants to provide a more efficient system for its citizens to apply for passports. Under Section 6A of The Information Technology Act, 2000, the government can authorize a private company like Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to set up and maintain an online portal for passport applications.
This online portal would allow citizens to fill out their passport applications, submit necessary documents, and even pay the passport application fees. The government can allow TCS to collect and retain a certain service charge from each applicant for providing this service. This service charge would be specified by the government and could vary depending on the type of service, for example, normal or tatkal passport application service.
Even if there is no explicit provision in the Passport Act or any other law to collect these service charges, the government can still authorize TCS to do so under Section 6A of the IT Act. This helps in efficient delivery of services to the public through electronic means.
