Views of Jitin Prasada: “AI is a cornerstone of transformative solutions”

With initiatives such as Digital India, Aadhaar-linked services, UPI-based digital payments and mobile-first innovations, India has been among the front runners in the global digital landscape. These bold initiatives, in turn, have driven India towards better governance and financial inclusion, and boosted the country’s start-up culture. That said, it is essential to ensure that the internet remains free from cyber crimes, making shared internet governance imperative. Addressing the India Internet Governance Forum 2024, Jitin Prasada, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology and Commerce and Industry, spoke about India’s digital journey, artificial intelligence’s (AI) impact on the Indian economy, the need for cybersecurity in the advent of new age technologies, need to reduce the carbon footprint of the digital landscape and the importance of multilateralism in domestic and international internet governance. Edited excerpts from his address…

The internet today is not merely a tool for connectivity, it is the backbone of our economy and individual aspirations. I remember Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s lines from his launch of the Digital India programme in 2015, when he said, and I quote, “Earlier, human civilisations were based around rivers and oceans, then later around highways, and today, civilisations will be based around fibre optic cables, that is, the internet.”

Since then, India’s digital journey has demonstrated the transformative potential of technology. With over 1.4 billion citizens and close to 1 billion internet users, India is not only the largest democracy, but also a vibrant digital economy, setting new benchmarks for innovation and inclusivity.

India has become a powerhouse of innovation, as evidenced by the tremendous strides in the country’s Global Innovation Index rankings. As we gather to celebrate our tremendous progress in building a robust internet technology ecosystem, this forum is an opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to harnessing the internet as a force for integral growth and sustainable development. Our discussions today should not only focus on addressing the challenges of internet governance, but also on exploring transformative solutions.

India’s growing digital prowess

India’s transformative journey over the past decade, marked by rapid digitalisation and digital successes such as UPI, Aadhaar and Digital India, serves as a model for other nations.

India’s progress in leveraging the digital economy to deliver good governance is already being globally lauded. From direct benefit transfers to digital public infrastructure, our technological solutions have set new records in governance. Earlier, the Prime Minister had remarked in his last visit to Poland that India’s daily UPI transactions equal that of the population of the European Union.

Our resilience-determined infrastructure, powered by the BharatNet project, has reached most gram panchayats, bringing the promise of the digital age to rural communities.

To build cyber resilience

Alongside this progress, we must address the critical challenges of cybersecurity threats, misinformation and network disruptions. A robust internet infrastructure cannot exist without adopting advanced security protocols and real-time threat detection systems. This will ensure that our digital networks remain reliable and secure, even in the face of evolving challenges.

The key to achieving this is by engaging with a wide variety of stakeholders, of whom the most significant are internet users. Their voices resonate in both national and international forums. For instance, the Global Partnership on AI promotes multi-stakeholderism by fostering collaboration among governments, academia, industry and civil society. We have demonstrated how these collaborations can deliver results, such as Digital India empowering women entrepreneurs through digital platforms, enabling farmers with real-time market data and enhancing children’s access to education through e-learning. Other examples include MyGov, which enables citizens, businesses and governments to collaborate and contribute to policymaking, offering a participatory platform for feedback and ideas.

Another instance of policy development through a multi-stakeholder approach was the formulation of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, where inputs received through public consultations were considered and adopted. The multi-stakeholder approach ensures that our policies remain open, inclusive, adaptive and responsive to the needs of all. However, despite being the largest connected nation globally, our presence on critical global public forums, where global standards and technologies for the internet are determined, is notably underrepresented.

It is the priority of our government to address this, as well as balance and ensure that our nation’s perspectives contribute significantly to shaping the global discourse on internet governance.

The upcoming WSIS+20 review, which is being organised by the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) in 2025, holds significant importance for India and the international community. Marking the 20th anniversary of the summit, the WSIS+20 review will provide a platform to assess global progress in building an inclusive information society.

Through its participation, India will showcase its tangible progress in bridging the digital divide, and consequently, several other gaps including regional, linguistic and gender bias. For instance, today, 95 per cent of our villages have been connected with 3G and 4G, with a special focus on the most inaccessible areas. India’s technology-enabled start-up ecosystem spans over 600 districts across the country, with more than half of them being led by women. The government’s flagship AI language tool, Bhashini, is empowering citizens to access governance in their local language.

Our vision is for Digital India to drive national and global solutions for the deepest interiors of our country. Tier II and Tier III cities, towns and villages will be at the forefront of this revolution. We will ensure that technology becomes the force multiplier in the country and provides opportunities to everyone.

Moving towards sustainable digitalisation

Another priority for India is building a green and sustainable internet. The rapid growth of the digital economy comes with environmental challenges, such as high energy consumption of data centres and electronic waste.

As part of our sustainability commitments under the “Panchamrit Declaration” announced by the Prime Minister at COP26, we have taken proactive steps to reduce the carbon footprint of our digital infrastructure. From promoting the use of renewable energy to incentivising green innovations in the tech industry, we are striving to align technological progress with environmental stewardship.

I urge all stakeholders to integrate sustainability into their digital strategies.

Ushering in the AI revolution

AI is a cornerstone of these transformative solutions. Our vision is to develop AI in India, make AI work for India, and ensure AI benefits to everyone. India is poised for a transformative AI revolution.

India is home to the world’s largest youth population and has the highest percentage of people using large internet language models. Every third or fourth Indian start-up is investing in AI. About Rs 100 billion has been approved in the budget for the “IndiaAI” mission, aiming to bolster the country’s global leadership in AI, democratise its benefits across start-ups and ensure technological self-reliance.

This vision stems directly from the Prime Minister’s views, who often states that trust in AI will only grow when its ethical, economic and social aspects are addressed. The AI mission is built on seven critical pillars–compute capacity, innovation centres, data set platforms, application development initiatives, future skills, start-up financing, and safe and trusted AI.

Concluding remarks

India has consistently demonstrated its firm conviction to establish global shared principles for an open, free and secure digital and technological future for all. As one of the world’s largest digital economies, India brings unique and valuable insights into how digital tools can empower populations at scale. In this context, let us strive to build an internet that reflects the values of equality, transparency and sustainability, empowering every citizen and ensuring the internet remains a force for good.