By Slidertech
Cisco CEO, Chuck Robbins, says that India’s latest, impressive growth of 7.2% GDP, transforms it into one of the world’s most rapid growing economies. Also, initiatives by the government, such as Make in India and Digital India, plus FDI limits, are similarly creating enormous opportunity. The country’s impetus is developing enormously — and the reason behind it is technology making way for even greater prospects for inclusion, more investment, and expansion.
Thanks to Indian mobile network operator, Reliance Jio, for example, that offers customers throughout India broadband services, the country now uses more data than any other worldwide. This unbelievable hike occurred within just one year of the company’s launch, and was enabled by cost-effective data plans at only 40c per GB.
Another example is Bandhan Bank Ltd. — an Indian financial and banking services company. The bank, which went from a micro-financing enterprise into a real bank with around 900 branches, has affected the lives of millions of rural Indian women offering 2,700 doorstep servicing points throughout the country. Another great success is the BHIM app. Based on UPI, the app enables ePayments and has above 16 million users welcoming cash-free transactions for paying groceries, rent, bills, and more.
Furthermore, nearly a fourth of Indians are using ride-hailing (also called “ride-sharing” services) apps, similar to Ola. The government’s demonetization move in 2016 was a noteworthy push towards a digital revolution, fast-tracked the use of apps for digital transactions, and kicked off a simple way to conduct business in the country.
Still, a lot is yet to be done as far as tech in concerned. According to Robbins, for example, 12 million young people join India’s workforce annually. The government is dealing with this by delivering broadband access and, by 2022, aims to enhance the digital abilities of 400 million people through training.
To hasten India’s digital change, Cisco is expanding its Networking Academy programme to increase India’s pool of expert tech mavens and inflate its access to research, technology, and education. Its goal is to have 2,50,000 trained students in the country by 2020 and to develop a marketplace for viable, tech-based professions.
To propel education even more, India can competently resolve the lack of qualified educators by adopting eLearning — like Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, and video learning.
Tech can also improve healthcare. In its 2018 to 2019 budget, the government initiated the world’s largest healthcare protection plan that will influence 500 million Indians.
A Nasscom Startup Report says India also has the world’s third leading startup ecosystem. There are 5,200 startups, of which over 1,000 new ones were launched in 2017. Moreover, the launch of the Goods & Services Tax (GST) will speed up India’s position as a business center. India has never had more opportunity.
