NEW DELHI, Aug 19: Digital footprint is the new currency for the economic development of the next generation for any country. The recent viral video of India’s External Affairs minister S Jaishankar narrating an incident of his visit to a restaurant in the US along with his son during the Covid-19 pandemic indicates how India successfully adopted digital technology to manage the crisis, taking advantage of the Central governments Cowin portal.
While the Indian minister showed his vaccination certificate using his mobile, his son who lives in the US, took the paper certificate out of his wallet. This shows the degree of adaptability of digital technology in India, which is even much higher compared with many developed countries like the US. Although being a developing country, the Indian digital footprint is appreciated worldwide for its social inclusiveness, which has the 2nd highest penetration of internet users in the world with 600+ million users.
Bullish about the digital power and accessibility of the internet in India to transact and its deep penetration into the society, Scott Rigby, chief technology advisor and principal product manager for enterprise solutions at JAPAC, during a recent visit to India stated: “India is very lucky. You’ve got a deep pool of technical talent to be able to execute on that and be able to realize that.”
Currently, India is also eyeing the expansion of the 5G network to capitalize on its advantages, which would further expand its digital footprint. The penetration of digital footprint has expanded to all the sectors of the Indian economy which is attributed mainly to the factors of affordability, i.e. availability of cheap data as well as local talent along with the federal government’s push, and it is catching up. The momentum of the digital revolution could be gauged from an increase in the smartphone users base, multiplying 5 times during the period 2014-2019. Global telecom gear makers expect India to account for about 15% of the worldwide market for the 5G network. It would cover over 50 percent of the geographical area of the country in the next two years. The development would usher India in a big way into a digital economy.
Analysts point out the difference between ‘access’ and ‘usage’ of technology, especially in digital infrastructure and India has already mastered both of them. The issue facing the developed world is ‘usage’, i.e., consumer privacy, security, data protection, and productivity. The developing world needs ‘access’, i.e. digital availability, affordability, and usage of infrastructure. India’s path in digitalization showed a universal approach that is necessary to reconcile these factors and became a successful leader in its programs.
