According to ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY), India’s internet user base will nearly double in the next two years with the BharatNet project connecting more homes in rural areas.
As per ministry estimates, India currently has around 800 million internet users.
MeitY is of the view that internet connectivity is going to power the artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystem in the country and will be favoured globally since it is being developed ethically and under the guidance of data privacy laws.
As per a Nasscom report from 2020, data and AI can add $450-500 billion to India’s gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025, representing about 10 per cent of India’s $5-trillion economy target.
According to the report, nearly 45 per cent of this value will be generated by three sectors: consumer goods and retail ($90-95 billion), agriculture ($60-65 billion), and banking and insurance ($60-65 billion).
At present, India is one of the top data consumers and is among the fastest-growing markets. Using data sets is the next challenge for India, according to MeitY.
