Success Story
About the Client
LokOS is a digital platform that captures and manages member profiles, livelihood details, savings, lending, and repayment information for rural communities across India. Operated by Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) including Self-Help Groups (SHGs), Village Organizations (VOs), and Cluster Level Federations (CLFs), the platform centralizes and digitizes these processes to streamline financial management and promote the economic empowerment of women in rural areas.
Business Situation and Requirements
LokOS was growing quickly, but its platform struggled to handle the needs of a nationwide rural livelihoods program. With millions of records and thousands of SHGs, VOs, and CLFs on the system, performance began to slow down. The system’s single, tightly connected architecture caused it to slow down as data grew, making it harder for field teams to access or update records during busy periods.
Security and maintenance also became challenges. User authentication depended directly on the database, creating security risks and making access management harder. The codebase had become complex, so even small updates required significant effort. At the same time, weak verification processes caused data accuracy issues, making reliable reporting difficult and often requiring manual checks.
To fix this, the client partnered with Unthinkable. The aim was to transform the platform into a scalable and high-performance system that could handle millions of records without slowing down. It was also designed to improve security, simplify user authentication and access management, reduce system complexity, and ensure more accurate data and reliable reporting for field teams and stakeholders.
Their key requirements included:
Platform Audit & Assessment: Review the LokOS system carefully to find slowdowns, usability problems, and improvement areas.
Decoupled & Scalable Architecture: Redesign the system to separate it from the overloaded database, making it faster, flexible, and scalable.
Data Integrity & Accuracy: set up processes to keep data correct, reliable, and consistent for better trust and decisions.
Intuitive User Interface (UI): Make the UI simple and easy to use for bookkeepers, trans-approvers, and admins.
Solution
The project started with a detailed knowledge transfer and a complete LokOS code audit by our team. Next, we re-architected the system, reduced database load, and added validation checks to improve data accuracy and performance.
Meanwhile, we redesigned the interface with simple dashboards and smoother workflows for easier use. In addition, a cloud-native Kubernetes setup allowed dynamic scaling, while caching and queue systems boosted speed, stability, and overall efficiency.
Optimizing Performance and Reducing Database Load
- Migration to Keycloak greatly improved login speed, stability, and system scalability, allowing users to access the platform more reliably.
- Redis caching stored 120 GB of frequently used data in memory, reducing repeated database calls and speeding up operations.
- System delays dropped significantly, and response times became much faster for all users.
- Self-help groups can now process transactions, access reports, manage profiles, and complete daily tasks more efficiently.
- These upgrades improved overall user experience, reduced frustration, and made the platform more reliable during peak hours.
Enhancing Daily Operations with Smarter System Architecture
- We implemented Azure Service Bus to handle user requests asynchronously, reducing database pressure during peak hours and helping admins complete tasks smoothly.
- We use Azure Blob Storage to securely store and provide easy access to transaction files, keeping data safe and organized.
- The system runs faster, stays more stable, and becomes more reliable for everyday users.
- These improvements ensure smoother daily operations and enhance overall efficiency for all users.
Boosting Reliability and Ensuring High Code Quality
- We added distributed tracing tools to see the system in real time and quickly fix errors like timeouts.
- Health checks monitor important services like Azure Blob Storage and Redis continuously. This helps catch potential problems early, preventing interruptions for users.
- Regular code reviews with SonarQube keep the code clean, reduce mistakes, and make the platform stable long-term.
Modernizing Identity and Account Verification
- We built the platform to manage over 100 million users while preventing duplicates and fraud.
- We integrated Aadhaar and bank account verification with deduplication to digitize identity checks efficiently.
- We offloaded verification tasks to trusted platforms like DigiLocker and NPCI to reduce system load and improve accuracy.
- We created unique IDs for each SHG member, speeding up verification and reducing manual work.
- These measures strengthened data security, ensured integrity, and provided faster, more reliable access to services.
Enabling Offline Access and Efficient Reporting
- We added offline functionality so users can work even without internet access.
- The system syncs data automatically every six hours to keep information accurate and consistent.
- We set up a data lake to handle large volumes of reporting data efficiently.
- The platform generates structured JSON reports daily without affecting the main database.
- This lets bookkeepers in remote areas work smoothly and keeps reporting reliable for state and national systems.
Impact
Team Unthinkable upgraded LokOS, increasing performance by 90%. Furthermore, offline access and faster logins allow bookkeepers to work efficiently. In addition, trans-approvers can operate without interruptions, improving user experience and reliability.
Moreover, better data management supports SHG members’ savings and financial aid. As a result, LokOS now serves over 100 million households and 10 million SHGs, handling ₹2 trillion in transactions every year. Ongoing upgrades continue to improve efficiency and enable faster, more informed decision-making.
100+
million Households Served
10M+
Self-Help Groups (SHGs) Managed
1M+
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