By Dr AK Srivastava
“The entire Nation has joined hands to make the dream of a Digital India into a reality. Youngsters are enthusiastic, industry is supportive, and the government is proactive. India is yearning for a digital revolution”. – PM Modi
The Government of India launched an ambitious and revolutionary scheme of transforming the nation into a digital era where knowledge is power. Science and computing innovation will take the country to the next level of progress and advancement. The scheme was started in 2015 by the Prime Minister with numerous aims like curtailing corruption, bringing a new revolution in agriculture, promoting the banking sector, introducing new trends in education and making life progressive and hassle-free.
“I dream of a Digital India where knowledge is strength – and empowers the People.” – Narendra Modi
India is a massive nation of 1.4 million people who have different levels of education and standard of living; they live in remote villages, small towns and metropolitan cities. Diversity and plurality are the hallmark of our nation. But it is certainly progressing fast and is ready to join the club of developed nations. In the last couple of decades, the country has produced the maximum computer experts, space scientists and entrepreneurs in a variety of fields.
Now it is time to enhance the infrastructure of the nation through digitalisation, artificial intelligence and other scientific advancements. It is time to remove the middleman culture and reach the common person directly. The nation has to be digitally equipped to bring the desired transformation in government and private sectors. The first requirement of a digital campaign is availability of internet service in all villages and cities. This will create plenty of IT jobs and create awareness among people in almost all fields of life.
Digitalisation has an enormous impact on education. During the Covid 19 period, the concept of online education took the world by storm. It was the only method to educate students and keep them indoors. Since then, numerous online institutions have come onto the scene. The era of postal courses has ended, and it has been replaced by online classes. Today, the scenario has changed to such an extent that all courses of all classes are available on the internet and students are immensely benefitted. Teachers are sending lessons, homework, and getting feedback from parents online. All this has been possible through digitalisation.
The banking system has also witnessed a sea change in its functioning. There is hardly any need to go to the bank. One can do all sorts of transactions online. E-commerce, PayTM, UPI and many other apps are functioning. Digital payments have really helped business and all worldwide transactions promote import and export trade and commerce. Sending orders and clinching sales are a matter of seconds. Digital currencies make transactions in no time with one hundred percent accuracy. The possibility of human error is highly reduced.
Digitalisation has opened a new window in the field of communication. International calls, video networking, emails and many other fastmoving methods have made the world a global village where distance does not matter. Cameras are installed everywhere in order to reduce the crime rate and monitor big business houses. Now official meetings are held online, and this has saved time and money.
The concept of ‘working from home’ is another new attraction. It has proved to be a boon for many employees and employers. It is both money and time effective. It gives us the liberty to complete our work sitting at home. Numerous housewives, pregnant ladies and elderly men find it convenient. At the same time, employers don’t need to provide housing facilities for their employees. It is a flattering situation for the new generation.
This dream project of our government will be instrumental in improving our GDP and the ambitious dream of achieving an economy of five trillion dollars will also be accomplished. The whole world is amazed to see the digital revolution so successful in India in a few years.
Digitalisation has some negative points also. Sometimes our personal information is known to undesirable elements that may use it against our interest. Cybercrime, bullying and bank frauds are illustrations of the misuse of digitalisation. It is necessary to be extremely careful and not share vulnerable information with anyone. We get repeated reminders from banks, government officers and other agencies in this connection.
Since digitalisation is a new approach in business, it has made us deviate from many traditional and time-tested methods. In the absence of international standards in several business modules, it causes more apprehensions and mental tension.
Digitalisation has hampered our social life. It has reduced opportunities of social gathering and personal interaction as most of the time we communicate through devices and don’t meet personally. The fast-moving world has stolen the ease of life.
In fact, every coin has two sides. Much depends on how we deal with it.
(Dr AK Srivastava is Principal, DAV Inter College, Dehradun)
