A Case Study on Use of Blockchain Technology as a Dominant Feature to Issue and Verify Documents Required for Admission to UG/PG Technical Programs in Maharashtra (India)

Paper-based documents are required at the time of admission to UG/PG programs in Maharashtra. Candidates are eligible for admission if they are fulfilling all eligibility criteria and possess all the required documents. These documents are verified by the verification officer at prescribed centers. This manual verification of documents is error-prone. Also, the candidate may not have all the required documents atthe time of admission because of the delay in issuing those documents from concerned authorities of the government. Documents in physical form are also prone to manipulation and are vulnerable to fraud. There are industries and institutes that are working on a blockchain-based solution to issue the certificates, but there are many other documents that are required for the admission such as SSC and HSC certificates, Domicile and Nationality Certificates, Caste related certificates, and other proformas and certificates as applicable. Many times, candidates are not able to produce these documents on time and also these documents are vulnerable to fraud. The framework proposed in this study addresses the challenges related to issuing of the documents by government and education-institute authorities; availability of documents with candidates; and verification of the documents by admission-related authorities. Blockchain provides a secure and reliable way for saving data, running transactions, performing activities, and trust-building. For many, Blockchain is a thoroughgoing technology in the crypto domain, its applications range from Banking, Supply Chain Management, Cryptocurrency, Governance, etc. Publications by industries and scholars, website resources, and UG/PG admission brochures by DTE are utilized to develop this study.