From empowering the marginalized, Digital India to now make India a ‘trusted innovation partner' to the world: PM Modi

Time of India

6 hours ago

PM Modi
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday pitched the
Digital India
campaign as a 'trusted innovation partner to the world', and said the programme – which now completes a decade – has been transformative for those on the margins by democratising access, and building digital opportunities for all.
'From how we govern, to how we learn, transact, and build, Digital India is everywhere,' PM Modi said in a special message on 'A Decade of Digital India'.
He said that while many initially feared that the use of technology will deepen the gap between the haves and the have-nots, the success of the programme changed that mindset as technology helped eliminate the gap between the haves and the have-nots. 'When the intent is right, innovation empowers the less empowered,' he said as he spoke about the positives from the 'India's Stack' of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPIs) such as UPI, Aadhaar, DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer), ONDC, CoWIN, and DigiLocker.
'We are moving from digital governance to global digital leadership, from India-first to India-for-the-world. Digital India has not remained a mere government program, it has become a people's movement. It is central to building an
Aatmanirbhar Bharat
, and to making India a trusted innovation partner to the world,' the PM said.
He said the programme not only helped bridge the digital divide, but also resulted in democratising opportunity for all.
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'In 2014, India had around 25 crore internet connections. Today, that number has grown to over 97 crores. Over 42 lakh kilometres of Optical Fibre Cable equivalent to 11 times the distance between Earth and the Moon now connects even the most remote villages.'
The PM said that the 'India Stack' has now emerged as the 'digital backbone' of the country with platforms such as UPI now handling over 100 billion transactions in a year.
'Around half of all real time digital transactions happen in India. Through DBT, over Rs 44 lakh crore has been transferred directly to citizens, cutting out middlemen and saving Rs 3.48 lakh crore in leakages.'
Modi said India's digital economy is now empowering MSMEs and small entrepreneurs. 'ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) is a revolutionary platform which opens a new window of opportunities by providing a seamless connection with huge market of buyers and sellers.
GeM (Government E-Marketplace) enables the common man to sell goods and services to all arms of the govt. This not only empowers the common man with a huge market but also saves money for the govt.
'
He said the Digital India programme had also helped the burgeoning startup ecosystem.'India now ranks among the Top 3 startup ecosystems in the world, with over 1.8 lakh startups. But this is more than a startup movement, it is a tech renaissance.'
He said the $1.2 billion India AI Mission is now enabling access to 34,000 GPUs at globally-unmatched prices at less than $1/GPU hour, making India not just the most affordable internet economy, but also the most affordable compute destination. 'India has championed humanity-first AI. The New Delhi Declaration on AI promotes innovation with responsibility. We are establishing AI Centres of Excellence across the country.
'
Modi said with a large footprint of digital consumption and innovation in India, the world is looking at the country to lead the next wave of innovation. 'To all innovators, entrepreneurs, and dreamers: the world is looking at India for the next digital breakthrough… Let us lead with technology that unites, includes, and uplifts.'