New Delhi – Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said data is “the new oil” and data centres “the new refineries” as India pushes its digital‑transformation plan. He spoke at the NDTV Word Summit, stressing that the government wants the country to become self‑sufficient – “Aatmanirbharta” – in critical minerals and digital infrastructure.
Vaishnaw urged the government to keep talent at home, so students and engineers can find jobs in India instead of moving highlighted the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and said the government is “going big on digital credit” to make financial services easier to use by technology.
India’s fast rollout of 5G drew praise, with the minister noting the country now has the second‑largest 5G network worldwide. “We covered about 90 percent of the country with 5G,” he said, adding that the network reaches even far‑flung areas.
He also talked about India’s growing role in artificial intelligence. Bengaluru‑based startup Sarvam will launch its indigenous AI model by December 2023 or January 2024, and Vaishnaw said he was excited to test the model once it goes live.
Google is reportedly investing $15 billion to build an AI hub in Visakhapatnam. The minister said the hub would boost AI research, “providing computer facilities that will improve our ability to create AI applications.”
Looking ahead, Vaishnaw said 6G will “completely replace” 4G and 5G, becoming a new paradigm that will interconnect everything in your hand.
India’s leadership in digital infrastructure is highlighted by the fact that more than 13 countries use the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and over 50 countries are interested in adopting the Aadhaar identity framework.
Source: ianslive
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