Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said India is using technology as a weapon in the war against poverty, and the country’s youth have ensured tech and talent globalisation.
In his video message to the Bengaluru Tech Summit (BTS), PM Modi also said “India is no more a place known for red tape. It is known for red carpet for investors. Whether it is FDI reforms, or liberalisation of drone rules, or steps in the semiconductor sector, or the production incentive schemes in various sectors, or the rise of ease of doing business”, he told the 25th edition of Asia’s largest technology event.
India has many excellent factors coming together, PM Modi noted.
“Your investment and our innovation can do wonders. Your trust and our tech talent can make things happen. I invite you all to work with us as we lead the world in solving its problems.”
India’s technology and innovation, he said, have already impressed the world. But the future will be much bigger than our present. Because India has innovative youth and increasing tech access”. Noting that the power of India’s youth is known across the world, PM Modi said they have ensured tech globalisation and talent globalisation.
“Healthcare, management, finance – you will find young Indians leading many domains. We are using our talent for global good. Even in India, their impact is being seen,” he said.
India, PM Modi said, jumped to the 40th rank in the Global Innovation Index this year.
“In 2015, we were ranked 81. The number of unicorn start-ups in India has doubled since 2021. We are now the 3rd largest start-up hub in the world. We have over 81,000 recognised startups. There are hundreds of international companies that have R&D centres in India. This is due to India’s talent pool,” he said.
PM Modi said Indian youth are being empowered by increasing tech access. A mobile and data revolution is happening in the country. In the last eight years, broadband connections rose from 60 million to 810 million, smartphone users went up from 150 million to 750 million.
The growth of the internet is faster in rural areas than in urban areas. A new demography is being connected to the information superhighway, he said. For a long time, PM Modi said, technology was seen as an exclusive domain, and it was said to be only for the high and mighty.
“But India has shown how to democratise technology. India has also shown how to give tech a human touch. In India, technology is a force of equality and empowerment,” he said.
Referring to the world’s largest health insurance scheme, ‘Ayushman Bharat,’ the PM said it provides a safety net for nearly 200 million families. “It means, about 600 million people. This programme is run based on a tech platform. India ran the world’s largest COVID-19 vaccine drive. It was run through a tech-based platform called COWIN”.
Speaking on the education sector, he said India has one of the largest online repositories of open courses. There are thousands of courses available across different subjects. Over 10 million successful certifications have happened. This is all done online and free.
“Our data tariffs are among the lowest in the world. During COVID-19, low data costs helped poor students to attend online classes. Without this, two precious years would have been lost for them”, PM Modi said.
