An interview with Akshit and Abhishek Goel, Founder at Jaagruk Bharat, a one stop portal that empowers Indians with correct information & guidance about government policies
In this enlightening interview, we speak with Akshit and Abhishek Goel, the founders of Jaagruk Bharat, a pioneering platform dedicated to empowering Indians with accurate information about government policies.
Their initiative aims to bridge the knowledge gap, ensuring that citizens have access to the guidance they need to navigate complex bureaucratic systems. Join us as they share their journey, vision, and the impact Jaagruk Bharat is making across the country.
Can you share your individual journeys leading up to the founding of Jaagruk Bharat?
Akshit Goel: a visually impaired individual with a rare disease, faced significant challenges in accessing accurate information about government schemes and rights for differently-abled citizens.
Despite his education and coming from a well-established family, he found himself lost in a maze of fragmented and unclear guidance across government hospitals, local NGOs, and customer service centers.
Frustrated by the lack of reliable resources, Akshit discussed these issues with his uncle, Abhishek Goel, a corporate professional in India. Together, they recognized the urgent need to bridge the knowledge gap and empower citizens to access their rightful entitlements.
This vision led to the founding of Jaagruk Bharat in April 2024, a platform dedicated to providing clear, accessible information on government schemes and rights for marginalized communities.
Abhishek Goel: a corporate professional, was deeply moved by the struggles faced by his nephew, Akshit Goel, a visually impaired individual with a rare disease.
Akshit’s personal experience of navigating the complex and fragmented landscape of government schemes and rights for differently-abled citizens left him frustrated and confused. Recognizing the critical gap in knowledge and the widespread confusion around government entitlements, Abhishek decided to take action.
His discussions with Akshit revealed the urgent need for a platform that could bridge this knowledge divide and make government schemes more accessible to those in need.
Inspired by this mission, Abhishek collaborated with Akshit to create Jaagruk Bharat in April 2024—a dedicated initiative aimed at empowering citizens, especially the differently-abled, with accurate and easily understandable information about their rights and available government benefits.
Can you walk us through the main features of Jaagruk Bharat?
Jaagruk Bharat is a platform that not only provides information about every government scheme and rights individuals have but also assists them at every step.
The venture does that through social media platforms, a dedicated website and an app. The platform provides comprehensive information in the simplest way possible for every layman to understand.
Main Features:
- Textual information is supported by multimedia content to further simplify the understanding process.
- Every feature in the UI is designed to provide ease of use and functionality.
- They have created communities and forums for users to share their opinions on varied topics.
- They are also planning to provide 24-hour chat & call support for queries soon through their app
Jaagruk Bharat also provides personalized support to users to help them fill forms, file applications and avail benefits by charging a nominal fee
The information is accessible in multiple languages along with features like voice search and text-to-speech conversion. Each information provided is thoroughly researched and fact-checked to provide the most accurate data possible.
Jaagruk Bharat acts as a funnel for the common people. It begins by channeling crucial information and easy access to government schemes and policies, progressing into offering chat and call support, and ultimately providing actionable guidance and hands-on assistance to help individuals navigate governmental procedures and access benefits
What strategies have you found most effective in reaching and educating users about government policies?
We started uploading videos on common issues like Want to get your Adhaar card updated? on our Instagram and Youtube. It gradually turned into a full-fledged business, having a website and an app.
Currently, the platform has 80,000 followers on Instagram and about 25,000 subscribers on YouTube. Its Instagram page reaches more than 3 million people per month and is expected to reach 10 million by the end of 2024.
Jaagruk Bharat has a diverse audience base from tier 1,2 and 3 cities, including metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore Hyderabad etc.
What challenges did you face when launching Jaagruk Bharat, and how did you overcome them?
Complexity of government information and simplifying the same to make it easy for common people. We created a dedicated team of content writers who would read the government notification and write simplified content
Understanding needs of common people whether they are interested in detailed information only or they would want it to be followed by services. We have received 10,000+ queries so far showing people need personalized support even after multimedia content and simplified information
Collating information from all sources into one platform and checking for facts and giving relevant links as sources from where we derived the information was a major challenge. We wanted to differentiate ourselves from other news websites where the information was not accurate or verifiable.
What are your future plans for expanding Jaagruk Bharat’s reach and offerings?
Future plans for *Jaagruk Bharat* focus on expanding both its reach and the range of services they offer. With Rs. 1.5 crore in pre-seed funding—Rs. 1 crore from a Hyderabad-based HNI and Rs. 50 lakh from family and friends—they are positioned to grow rapidly.
While they currently provide free information through their website, social media, and customer support, they will soon introduce paid services (currently under POC) to assist individuals with government licenses, certificates, and other processes, offering end-to-end guidance throughout.
Their goal is to expand the service offerings significantly, with plans to introduce hundreds of services by the end of FY-26.
Although they are just beginning to generate revenue, primarily through brand collaborations and services POC, they are confident that their model will not only be financially sustainable but will also continue making a positive social impact, helping individuals access their rights more easily and effectively. The co-founders of Jaagruk Bharat aim to empower 500 million in the next 10 years.
What do you think are the biggest barriers to access for citizens regarding government policies?
Few of the biggest barriers which the feel have created a gap between citizens and their awareness about Government policies are:
- Incomplete Solution & poor user experience
- No content for awareness
- Except Umang only offline solution
- Incomplete and non-verified info
- Information space is highly fragmented
- No customer support
What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs looking to make a social impact through technology?
For aspiring entrepreneurs aiming to create social impact through technology, our advice is to focus on bridging the gap between information and accessibility.
Platforms like Jaagruk Bharat demonstrate how technology can be leveraged to empower individuals by providing crucial information—such as government schemes and individual rights—directly to those who need it.
The key is to ensure that your solution goes beyond just sharing information; it should also assist users in taking action.
Utilize multiple channels like social media, dedicated websites, and mobile apps to reach a broader audience.
Keep your platform user-friendly and prioritize clear communication. Most importantly, stay committed to supporting your users at every step of their journey, ensuring that your technology truly drives meaningful change in their lives.
Akshit and Abhishek Goel’s commitment to transparency and accessibility through Jaagruk Bharat is reshaping how Indians engage with government policies.
Their innovative approach not only informs citizens but also fosters a sense of empowerment and responsibility.
This conversation underscores the vital role of informed citizens in a democratic society and inspires others to pursue similar paths in driving social change through accessible information.
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