‘Technology Is About Inclusion, Not Just Innovation’
PM Narendra Modi has said in India, technology is not only about innovation but also about inclusion.
WASHINGTON, June 24 (The CONNECT) – The beauty of democracy is the constant connect with the people, to listen to them, and feel their pulse, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said.
Addressing the joint sitting of the US Congress on Thursday, Modi said democracy is one of our sacred and shared values. It has evolved over a long time, and taken various forms and systems. Throughout history, however, one thing has been clear.
Democracy is the spirit that supports equality and dignity. Democracy is the idea that welcomes debate and discourse. Democracy is the culture that gives wings to thought and expression. India is blessed to have such values from times immemorial. In the evolution of the democratic spirit, India is the Mother of Democracy, he said.
“The US is the oldest and India the largest democracy. Our partnership augurs well for the future of democracy. Together, we shall give a better future to the world, and a better world to the future,” Modi said pointed out that the foundation of America was inspired by the vision of a nation of equal people.
“Throughout your history, you have embraced people from around the world. And, you have made them equal partners in the American dream. There are millions here, who have roots in India,” he said.
Referring to the growth of India as the fifth largest economy, he explained that India is focusing on infrastructure development. “We have given nearly forty million homes to provide shelter to over hundred and fifty million people. That is nearly six times the population of Australia! We run a national health insurance programme that ensures free medical treatment for about five hundred million people. That is greater than the population of South America! We took banking to the unbanked with the world’s largest financial inclusion drive. Nearly five hundred million people benefited.
This is close to the population of North America! We have worked on building Digital India. Today, there are more than eight hundred and fifty million smart phones and internet users in the country. This is more than the population of Europe! We protected our people with two point two billion doses of made in India COVID vaccines, and that too free of cost,”
In India, technology is not only about innovation but also about inclusion, Modi said. Today, digital platforms are empowering the rights and dignity of people, while protecting privacy.
In the last nine years, over a billion people got a unique digital biometric identity connected with their bank accounts and mobile phones. This digital public infrastructure helps us reach citizens within seconds with financial assistance.
He said 850 million people receive direct benefit financial transfers into their accounts. Three times a year, over hundred million farmers receive assistance in their bank accounts at the click of a button. The value of such transfers has crossed three hundred and twenty billion dollars, and we have saved over twenty five billion dollars in the process. If you visit India, you will see everyone is using phones for payments, including street vendors.
Last year, out of every 100 real time digital payments in the world, 46 happened in India. Nearly four hundred thousand miles of optical fibre cables, and cheap data have ushered in a revolution of opportunities. Farmers check weather updates, the elderly get social security payments, students access scholarships, doctors deliver tele-medicine, fishermen check fishing grounds and small businesses get loans, with just a tap on their phones.
an American phone maker invests in India, it creates an entire ecosystem of jobs and opportunities, in both countries. When India and the US work together on semi-conductors and critical minerals, it helps the world in making supply chains more diverse, resilient and reliable, he said.
“We were strangers in defence cooperation at the turn of the century. Now, the United States has become one of our most important defence partners. Today India and the US are working together, in space and in the seas, in science and in semi-conductors, in start-ups and sustainability, in tech and in trade, in farming and finance, in art and artificial intelligence, in energy and education, in healthcare and humanitarian efforts,” Modi added.
