Paper: GS – III, Subject: Indian Economy, Topic: Technology Mission, Issue: India’s Digital Sovereignty.
Context:
India must build from within to protect itself in a fractured world India building its own digital infrastructure to ensure sovereignty and resilience in an increasingly fragmented world.
Key Highlights:
Why Digital Self-Reliance Matters:
- Rise of Digital Nationalism: Countries across the world, including China and the U.S., are increasingly restricting foreign technology and promoting domestic alternatives, driven by both security concerns and nationalist sentiment.
- Resurgence of Protectionism: Trade barriers, tariffs on technology, export restrictions, and local procurement rules have proliferated, threatening global supply chains.
- Power of Digital Infrastructure: Control over foundational digital systems identity (Aadhaar), payments (UPI, RuPay, IMPS), and document repositories (DigiLocker, PAN, NPS, CKYC) enables India to guard its operations even as external links are threatened.
Key Points Supporting India’s Advantage:
- Population-Scale Solutions: India’s digital public infrastructure was built for a billion-plus users, with platforms like Aadhaar, PAN, NPS, DigiLocker, UPI, and RuPay ensuring inclusion, speed, and resilience at scale.
- Institutional Expertise: Agencies like UIDAI, NPCI, and Protean eGov have developed technical and regulatory capabilities for building and managing vast, secure, and reliable systems that serve as the backbone of India’s digital economy.
- Strategic Autonomy: By relying on homegrown technology, India reduces dependence on foreign providers, insulating itself from external shocks like export bans, blacklists, or geopolitical Disruption.
- Global Recognition: India’s payment and identity systems are not only robust domestically but are also being studied and, in some cases, adopted by other nations a testament to their quality and strategic foresight.
India’s experience demonstrates that sovereignty in the 21st century hinges on the ability to innovate, scale, and secure critical infrastructure at home making “building from within” not just an option, but a strategic necessity.
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