Digital public platforms can make welfare delivery more transparent but may exclude those without digital access. Discuss with reference to livestock insurance.

A digital public platform puts the whole welfare chain on one system that can be traced end to end: enrolment, payment and grievance. On 28 September 2026 the Livestock Insurance Portal (rashtriyapashubima.dahd.gov.in) was launched to do this for the National Livestock Mission (NLM) [1]. It makes the scheme more transparent. However, it will only reach farmers who can use it.

How the portal improves transparency

• Single window: policy issuance, premium, claims and beneficiary verification sit on one interface. It links farmers, States, insurers and implementing agencies [1].
• Real-time monitoring: delays can be traced to a particular State or insurer. This supports its stated goal of accountable claim settlement [1].
• Traceable subsidy: the 2021 reform cut the farmer's premium to a flat 15% (earlier 20–50%) and raised the cap to 10 cattle units per household [2][3]. The portal lets this subsidy be tracked to the actual beneficiary.
• Data for pricing: premium rates are currently fixed through consultation with public-sector insurers and States [4]. Pooled claim data could allow rates based on actual risk instead.

How it may exclude

• Digital divide: pastoralists, women livestock-keepers and herders in hilly areas may lack smartphones, internet connectivity or digital literacy. This can make them depend on middlemen.
• Awareness gap: publicity under NLM already gets 100% central assistance [4]. Yet at the launch the Minister still had to call for social-media and IEC campaigns [1]. A farmer who does not know about the scheme cannot log in.
• Bottlenecks outside the portal: cover is given only after States deposit their matching share [4]. A general-category State pays 40% of the remaining 85%, which is 34% of the premium [2]. A website cannot make a State with a tight budget pay.

Way forward

• Assisted enrolment: offer help through veterinary field staff and Common Service Centres, with offline and vernacular options.
• Public dashboards: publish State-wise coverage from the portal's data.
• Pay for results: link publicity funds to the number of new households enrolled.

The portal has strengthened the transparency side of livestock insurance. Its inclusion side now needs a "phygital" model, where digital tracking is combined with human outreach and reliable State funding. Done this way, the platform can advance SDG 1.5, which aims to make the rural poor more resilient to shocks.