| Introduction: Describe DPI briefly Body: Highlight role of DPI in India’s socio-economic development and in achieving SDG Conclusion: Way forward |
Digital public infrastructure (DPI) refers to blocks or platforms such as digital identification, payment infrastructure, and data exchange solutions that help countries deliver essential services. It provides necessary technical and organizational frameworks to ensure that digital services are secure, reliable, and accessible to everyone.
How DPI has contributed to India’s socio-economic development?
- Digital inclusion: Inclusive Digital Public Infrastructures (DPIs) ensure that all segments of society, particularly underserved and marginalized populations, have access to essential digital services, thereby promoting digital inclusion and empowerment. Enabling people to participate in the digital economy, obtain knowledge, and make use of a variety of online services, promotes digital inclusion.
- Better Agricultural Practices: Farmers can receive up-to-date information on weather, market prices, and optimal agricultural techniques from inclusive DPIs. Their ability to make wiser decisions is enhanced, which raises agricultural productivity.
- Social development: By filling in the gaps in the delivery of traditional education, digital infrastructure can support online learning and skill development initiatives. Through the use of electronic health records, telemedicine, and online consultations, digital infrastructure can enhance healthcare services in remote locations with limited access to healthcare services.
Role of DPI in achieving SDG in India’
- Quality education: DPI can support quality education through online learning platforms and improved access to educational resources which help in achieving SDG Goal 4. Eg, the National Knowledge Network (NKN) is a high-speed network that connects universities, research institutions, libraries, and other knowledge hubs across India & enables the sharing of knowledge and resources, facilitating collaborative research and innovation.
- No Poverty: DPI can contribute to poverty reduction by enabling financial inclusion and providing access to government welfare programs. Initiatives like UPI, Digital India, Aadhar & UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance) have certainly led to poverty reduction and helped in achieving SDG Goal 1.
- Health & well-being: DPI has supported health services through telemedicine, health information systems, and online consultations, improving healthcare accessibility, especially in remote areas. Eg, National Health Stack is a proposed digital infrastructure for the healthcare sector in India, which aims to provide a common platform for health data exchange and interoperability.
Conclusion
To achieve the aim of a $5 trillion economy, the adoption of DPI will depend on several elements, including infrastructure development, digital literacy, and resolving potential privacy and security concerns.
