India is now the third-largest country in the world in terms of economy-wide digitalization. The first decade of the Digital India Mission can aptly be called India’s ‘Digital Decade’ as we have witnessed an unprecedented digital transformation and emerged as a global leader in digital adoption, assimilation and innovation.
The phenomenal growth in embracing the digital way of life by India’s government, industry and citizens would testify to this.
It has been of benefit to India’s multitudes, particularly in remote regions. We have not only witnessed the fastest 5G rollout in the world but also recorded over 300% growth in the number of internet subscribers—to above 1 billion—in the last 12 years.
India has among the world’s most voracious consumers of wireless data, with its average at 24GB per subscriber. The country also has among the lowest data costs, with 1GB of mobile data available for $0.16. The urban-rural digital divide has also reduced. From 10% internet penetration in 2015, rural areas now account for 56% of the total base of active internet users in the country.
Transforming citizen service delivery: India’s indigenously developed digital public infrastructure (DPI) has enabled it to achieve citizen service delivery targets in less than a decade, which would have taken nearly half a century by traditional means.
It has fundamentally changed how the government interacts with 1.4-billion-plus citizens through the world’s largest digital identity programme (Aadhaar), largest digital health platform (ABDM) and the largest educational platform (Diksha).
One of the most impactful uses of DPI has been the implementation of direct benefit transfers through the Public Financial Management System (PFMS), which has enabled real-time and transparent fund transfers for over 966 Central and state schemes.
In the last 11 years, over ₹44 trillion in social benefits have reached about 1 billion Indians, generating savings of nearly ₹4.31 trillion for the exchequer by eliminating intermediaries and reducing leakages.
The power of digital technology was evident at the peak of the pandemic when stringent lockdowns did not slow disbursements in cash and kind to millions of beneficiaries. During that time, the integration of DPI into healthcare through the CoWin platform revolutionized vaccination drives across the country.
Over 2.2 billion vaccine doses were administered in about two years. By leveraging data analytics and real-time monitoring, these platforms have ensured that healthcare services are delivered efficiently.
Catalysing financial access and inclusion: A DPI success story known globally is the UPI platform that has brought digital technology into the daily life of common citizens and revolutionized financial access. In less than a decade, it has emerged as the world’s largest digital payment system, accounting for 50% of all global real-time digital transactions.
March 2026 witnessed an all-time high of 22.64 billion transactions with a value of over ₹29.5 trillion. This has also transformed remittances and credit access, and brought in transparency and traceability in a formerly cash-heavy system.
Further, the Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile (JAM) trinity synergized three systems to bring millions within the reach of formal banking and mobilize the collective power of micro savings, a goal that had proven difficult for decades. By April 2026, India had over 581.6 million Jan Dhan bank accounts, of which over 55% belonged to women.
DPI for empowering the economy: The Indian government’s ‘Digital Public Good’ approach of investing directly in foundational technology and creating interoperable and open-standard platforms at population scale has led to the successful integration of DPI across sectors.
These include agriculture (AgriStack), digital commerce (ONDC), aviation (DigiYatra), mobility (FasTag) and governance (DigiLocker), among many others.
Consequently, India’s digital economy has emerged as a significant contributor to its economic growth, accounting for 11.7% of GDP in 2022-23. This share could rise to 20% by 2029-30.
An enabling policy ecosystem: The government has created an enabling policy ecosystem to build on its digital success and create indigenous capabilities across frontier technologies.
Be it the Semiconductor Mission or the National Mission on AI, the Anusandhan National Research Foundation or the Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) Scheme, concerted policy focus is accelerating India’s technological march.
The recently passed Shanti Bill for nuclear power will also play a vital role in meeting India’s energy requirements.
The way forward: India is committed to achieving the Viksit Bharat goal by 2047. To this end, it is essential that the government, corporations, universities, R&D centres and think-tanks work together to develop human and tech capabilities.
India’s higher education and research ecosystems must converge and be brought centre-stage in our development discourse.
They must be empowered to create a talent pipeline of multidisciplinary experts who will not only create cutting-edge knowledge but also nurture world-class human capital for institutions that will run on cutting-edge systems.
To build on the success of India’s ‘digital decade,’ we must ensure that all citizens possess digital skills so that benefits from tech advancements reach the masses; expand connectivity and digital infrastructure to further bridge gaps between urban and rural areas; and foster innovation and entrepreneurship by investing in R&D and building a world-class ecosystem of higher education and research.
India’s digital journey is a testament to the power of strategic foresight, technological ingenuity and collaborative spirit. It has not only set new global benchmarks of a digitally empowered society, but also laid a strong foundation for achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047.
The authors are, respectively, former CEO and senior specialist, Niti Aayog.