Budget 2023 gives a big push for AI, continues focus on digitisation

Open-source platform for agriculture, anonymous datasets for innovation on the cards

The Budget envisions a technology-driven and knowledge-based economy with strong finances. Some of the focus areas to achieve this are artificial intelligence (AI), adopting open source software, and opportunities from the 5G internet. The government plans to deploy digital solutions in all its seven priority areas — from infrastructure and last-mile delivery to the financial sector.

To begin with, three centres of excellence in AI will be set up in top educational institutions to develop “cutting-edge” applications and scalable solutions in agriculture, health, and sustainable cities. Leading industry players will also partner in interdisciplinary research aimed at building an effective AI ecosystem and nurturing quality human resources in the field. The finance minister said this would help in “realising the vision of making AI in India and make AI work in India”.

The Budget has proposed to set up 100 labs in engineering institutions to realise a new range of opportunities, business models, and employment potential in the high-speed 5G internet. These labs will develop applications like smart classrooms, precision farming, and intelligent transport systems. “Budget 2023 could undoubtedly be termed as a blueprint for India @100. It touched upon all the critical aspects required to position India as a leader in terms of digital offerings, along with a focus on talent and sustainability,” said a statement from Nasscom.

According to Budget estimates, the Centre may allocate Rs 16,549.04 crore for the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the agencies that work under it.

The allocation is against the Revised Estimate of Rs 11,719.95 crore in FY23.

The other significant point the minister added was the National Data Governance Framework (NDGF) Policy to open up anonymous and non-personal datasets for innovation and research by Indian start-ups and academia. The policy was released by MeitY for public consultation in May 2022. It aims to modernise the government’s data collection and boost AI and the data-led start-up ecosystem in the country.

The Budget said digital public infrastructure would be built for agriculture as an open source, open-standard, and interoperable public good. The inclusive, farmer-centric solutions platform will be developed similar to the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). The Centre has initiated the computerisation of 63,000 primary agricultural credit societies (PACS) with an investment of Rs 2,516 crore.

Rekha M Menon, chairperson and senior managing director, Accenture India, said: “AI can add an estimated $450-500 billion to India’s GDP by 2025, and more than 60 per cent will be from four key sectors -- financial services, consumer packaged goods and retail, health care, and industrials and automotive.”

Aadhaar and DigiLocker — the foundational platforms for identification and authentication — will now be used to develop a “one-stop solution” for reconciling and updating the identity and address of individuals maintained by various government agencies, regulators, and regulated entities, said the Budget.

The skill-development initiative scheme, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0, has been extended to provide new-age courses for Industry 4.0 like coding, AI, robotics, mechatronics, IOT, 3D printing, drones, and soft skills.

The skilling programme will include on-job training, industry partnership, and alignment of courses with the needs of the industry.