Curated By: Business Desk
Last Updated: August 30, 2023, 11:35 IST
Over 1.3 billion Indians are equipped with a digital ID today.
He says that because of digital infrastructure, the progress that India made in the last 9 years, was equivalent to 47 years of development.
Nandan Nilekani, the Co-founder and Chairman of Infosys, recently shared insightful observations about India’s progress and development, attributing a significant portion of this advancement to the country’s digital infrastructure. He emphasized that India’s leaps in the past nine years, largely due to its digital growth, equated to a staggering 47 years of development.
Nilekani’s remarks came during an event organized by the Ekstep Foundation in Delhi. Addressing a diverse audience, he underscored the transformative power of technology and its implications for citizens. The services that digitalization has enabled – spanning healthcare, digital education, identity authentication, financial inclusion, and more – are all emblematic of a larger shift facilitated by the establishment of a Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) across the nation. The event aimed to explore pathways to empower and enable India’s burgeoning population for productive engagement.
The pivotal role of DPI in India’s accelerated development was a central theme of Nilekani’s discourse. He observed, “India’s progress over the last several years has been marked by multiple transformations, with digital innovation serving as a linchpin for economic growth.” Underpinning his perspective was the striking equation he presented: “Digital capital + human capital = people + advantage.” Nilekani tapped into India’s demographic advantage, spotlighting the youthful populace as a wellspring of untapped potential. In this context, he highlighted the imperative of nurturing this talent pool to harness the immense demographic dividend.
Reflecting on India’s digital evolution, Nilekani traced its origins to the Aadhaar ID system. “The initial vision was to grant a digital identity to every Indian,” he noted. Today, this vision stands realized, with over 1.3 billion Indians equipped with a digital ID. Nilekani elaborated on the system’s functionalities, which encompass online identity authentication through fingerprint, iris scans, one-time passwords (OTPs), and facial recognition. A staggering 80 million transactions are processed daily, reaffirming the widespread embrace of Aadhaar for online verification.
Nilekani’s leadership extended to the role of Founding Chairman of UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India), a position that contributed to shaping India’s digital trajectory. He spotlighted the profound impact of the Know Your Customer (KYC) verification system, a mandatory requirement for opening bank accounts and obtaining new mobile connections. Nilekani’s discourse encapsulated the multi-faceted influence of India’s digital journey, with Aadhaar serving as a foundational pillar of this remarkable transformation.
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