Digital Governance and Urban Security in India: A Case Study of the Delhi NCR Region

Abstract

Digital governance—the use of technology to enhance public services and local management—has become central to India’s urban transformation. This paper examines how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping urban security through MyGate, a widely used digital gatekeeping application in the Delhi-NCR region. Drawing on qualitative fieldwork across three socioeconomically distinct neighborhoods—Gurgaon, Dwarka, and Janakpuri—the study analyses interviews with residents, security staff, and Resident Welfare Association (RWA) members. The findings reveal that while MyGateoffers efficiency and convenience, it primarily digitises existing human-centred security systems rather than transforming them. The platform’s design reproduces a micro-surveillance state at the residential level: movements of residents of gated communities are logged, biometric data are stored, and behavioural information is monetised through commercial models. Residents’ responses vary by class, age, and digital literacy—ranging from Gurgaon’s younger professionals who embrace convenience to Dwarka’s middle-class residents who demand legal safeguards, to Janakpuri’s older citizens who view facial recognition as an infringement on dignity and privacy. The study argues that these trends reflect a broader process of privatised decentralisation, where digital platforms assume governance functions without public accountability. It calls for a specialised AI-governance framework that extends beyond the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, incorporating privacy-by-design principles and oversight mechanisms such as an AI Ethics Committee. Only through such measures can technology strengthen citizenship and trust, rather than normalising surveillance in the name of convenience