India's Digital Renaissance

India’s rapid adoption of technology and digital infrastructure is revolutionising governance, empowering citizens, and driving economic growth

- RAJEEV CHANDRASEKHAR

THE LAST 10 years have witnessed a significant transformation in India. The Indian economy has become the fifth largest in the world and is currently the fastest-growing large economy globally. Over this decade, the government’s Budget has tripled from ₹16 lakh crore to ₹48 lakh crore. Among many milestones, one stands out for symbolising India’s qualitative transformation—the leadership of the Narendra Modi government.

For decades, Indian governance was characterised by dysfunctionality and corruption. This was famously described by Rajiv Gandhi in the late 1980s when he noted that out of every ₹100 allocated, only ₹15 reached its intended recipient. This leakage, corruption, and inefficiency defined India’s governance for six and a half decades after Independence until Prime Minister Narendra Modi assumed office, bringing with him a vision of ‘Maximum Governance’.

We are living in an era of remarkable technological transformation. This shift is no longer about potential—it is now a reality that is reshaping economies and improving lives. In India, we have seen firsthand how technology can empower countries that were once marginalised, enabling them to leap into a new era of opportunities.

From the outset, PM Modi embraced technology as the catalyst for achieving his goal of Maximum Governance. He envisioned technology applications built on the foundation of Aadhaar, India’s digital ID, to enable direct connections between the government and citizens’ bank accounts. This vision has evolved into IndiaDPI (India’s Digital Public Infrastructure), a stack of applications at the heart of India’s digital government architecture.