PM Modi addresses G20 Digital Economy Ministers' meet, announces new AI-powered language translation platform

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing the G20 Digital Economy Ministerial Meet on Friday (August 18), via video message, emphasised on the country's digital transformation and its commitment to inclusive digital development.

PM Modi underlined how Bengaluru is home to technology, science and the spirit of entrepreneurship saying, "There is no better place than Bengaluru to discuss the digital economy."

He then stressed the progress made by India in the field of technology and digitalization, which he said was initiated with the launch of the Digital India initiative in the year 2015.

“India’s digital transformation over the last nine years is unprecedented. It all started with the launch of our Digital India initiative in 2015. It is powered by our unshakeable belief in innovation. It is driven by our commitment to speedy implementation and it is motivated by our spirit of inclusion, leaving no one behind,” he said.

Attributing this transformation to innovation, speedy implementation, and a spirit of inclusion, he said, "The scale, speed, and scope of this transformation is beyond imagination."

Listing out examples of Aadhaar, he laid emphasis on how technology was deployed in the country to digitally transform governance.

Citing JAM trinity — Jan Dhan bank accounts, Aadhaar, and Mobile — he threw light on the Direct Benefits Transfer plugging leakages in the system.

“We have used the power of JAM trinity — Jan Dhan Bank accounts, Aadhaar and Mobile — to revolutionise financial inclusion in India. Every month, nearly 10 billion transactions take place on UPI, our instant payment system. More than 45% of the global real-time payments happen in India,” the Indian prime minister said

“Fully digitised taxation systems are promoting transparency and e-governance”, he added.

The prime minister emphasised that India's diverse landscape makes it an ideal place to test scalable, secure, and inclusive solutions that can benefit the entire world.

Further noting that the digital economy will face security threats and challenges in future, he stressed on building a consensus on the G20 high-level principles for a secure, trusted, and resilient digital economy.

“As the digital economy spreads globally, it will face security threats and challenges. In this context, it is important to build consensus on the G20 high-level principles for a secure, trusted, and resilient digital economy. We in G20 have a unique opportunity to lay the foundation for an inclusive, prosperous and secure global digital future,” the Prime Minister declared in his opening remarks.

The event, which is being held in Karnataka's capital city Bengaluru, is attended by dignitaries from across the world, aimed at providing a platform for discussions around the future of the digital economy.

PM Modi announces AI-powered language translation platform 'Bhashini'

PM Modi in his video address also announced that India was building “Bhashini” which is an AI-powered language translation platform that would be available in all Indian languages.

“India is an incredibly diverse country. We have dozens of languages. and hundreds of dialects. It is home to every religion in the world and innumerable cultural practices from ancient traditions to the latest technology - India has something for everyone. With such diversity, India is an ideal testing lab for everyone. A solution that succeeds in India can be easily applied anywhere in the world,” the Prime Minister said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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