It is a critical time for India to prioritize nutrition in its health and development agendas. While dismal nutrition indicators persist, and the country's levels of hunger are considered ―alarming on an international index. On the Global Hunger Index 2018, India is home to one-third of the world's stunted children. Around 25.5 million children in the country are wasted. Under-nutrition is higher in rural areas compared to urban. Without a targeted, multi-sectoral approach to nutrition, India will continue struggling to deliver evidence-based interventions during the most important windows of opportunity. This paper explores the current situation of nutrition in India, India's nutritional challenges and major national initiatives undertaken by the Government of India to improve the situation over the decades. A detailed account of National Nutrition Mission (Poshan Abhiyaan) undertaken by the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD), Government of India to address the burden of malnutrition in the country is examined. Further, we propose a pilot study to explore the status of implementation of National Nutrition Mission and the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) programmatically and on the ground.
India could not insulate itself from the adverse developments in the international financial markets, despite having a banking and financial system that had little to do with investments in structured financial instruments carved out of subprime mortgages, whose failure had set off the chain of events culminating in a global crisis. Economic growth decelerated in 2008-09 to 6.7 percent. This represented a decline of 2.1 percent from the average growth rate of 8.8 percent in the previous five years. To counter the negative fallout of the global slowdown on the Indian economy, the federal Government responded by providing three focused fiscal stimulus packages in the form of tax relief to boost demand and increased expenditure on public projects to create employment and public assets. India's central Bank — the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) took a number of monetary easing and liquidity enhancing measures to facilitate flow of funds from the financial system to meet the needs of productive sectors. From all accounts, except for the agricultural sector initially as noted above, economic recovery seems to be well underway. Economic growth stood at 8.6 percent during fiscal year 2010-11. GDP growth for 2009-10 was placed at 8 percent. When compared to countries across the world, India stands out as one of the best performing economies. Although there was a clear moderation in growth from 9 percent levels to 7+ percent soon after the crisis hit, in 2010-11, at 8.6 percent, GDP growth in nearing the pre-crisis levels and this pace makes India the fastest growing major economy after China. Considering the current inflationary strains, the as yet excessive pre-emption of the community's savings by the government, the potential for crowding out the requirements of the enterprise sector, and rising interest payments on government debt, it is extremely essential to reduce the fiscal deficit, and more aggressively, mainly by lowering the revenue deficit. Correction of these deficits would, inter alia, require considerable refocusing and reduction of large hidden subsidies associated with under-pricing in crucial areas, such as power, irrigation, and urban transport. Food and fertilizer subsidies are other major areas of expenditure control. Be that as it may, the process of fiscal consolidation needs to be accelerated through more qualitative adjustments to reduce government dissavings and ameliorate price pressures. The step-up in India's growth rate over much of the last two decades was primarily due to the structural changes in industrial, trade and financial areas, among others, over the 1990s as the reforms in these sectors were wide and deep and hence contributed significantly to higher productivity of the economy. Indeed, there is potential for still higher growth on a sustained basis of 9+ percent in the years ahead, but among other things, this would require the following: 1) revival and a vigorous pursuit of economic reforms at the center and in the states; 2) a major effort at raising the rate of domestic savings, especially by reducing government dissavings at the central and state levels through cuts in, and refocusing of, explicit and implicit subsidies, stricter control over non-developmental expenditures, improvements in the tax ratio through stronger tax enforcement, and strengthening incentives for savings; 3) larger investments in, and better performance of, infrastructural services, both in the public and private sectors; and 4) greater attention to, and larger resources for, agriculture, social sectors and rural development programs to increase employment, reduce poverty and for creating a mass base in support of economic reforms.
All over the world, FDI is seen as an important source of non-debt inflows, and is increasingly being sought as a vehicle for technology flows, and as a means of building inter-firm linkages in a world in which MNCs are primarily operating on the basis of a network of global interconnections. In the current global scenario, it is possible for India to achieve very dynamic growth based upon labor-intensive manufacturing, which combines the vast supply of Indian labor, including skilled managerial and engineering labor, with foreign capital, technology, and markets In this paper, we plan to study the FDI experiences of the Chinese provinces, especially the coastal ones. The lessons from these regions have been analyzed in the context of Gujarat, thereby helping develop some recommendations. We have also undertaken a case study of the Chinese province of Guangdong, which has attracted large sums of FDI in China. Gujarat is not rated as one of the most attractive destinations for FDI in India, perhaps ranked around 5th or 6th in the country. It is interesting to note that while Gujarat is perhaps next only to Maharashtra as far as attracting domestic private investment is concerned, it does not do as well when it comes to foreign direct investment. Gujarat is one of the front runner states of India as far as some of the manufacturing sectors, such as engineering goods, chemical and petrochemical products, drugs and pharmaceuticals, and fertilizers, among others are concerned. However, it is essential that the state focuses much more than in the past on labor-intensive manufacturing production for exports. The potential for attracting much higher volumes of FDI, especially in Gujarat's SEZs is enormous. This will not only bring in greater FDI flows, but will also raise exports from Gujarat and create large-scale employment opportunities. We conclude with a number of lessons for Gujarat for attracting higher levels of FDI. These are in the areas of legislative and policy reform, government processes and machinery, infrastructure, special economic zones, networking with Gujarati non-resident Indians, and finally, the idea of setting up an FDI council comprising of state civil servants and representatives of large and medium scale foreign invested companies.
The Government of India released its 2022 Union Budget on February 1, 2022. The new budget has drawn substantial attention for, among other things, its emphasis on programs in the domain of ICT-driven development. If the ambitions described within the budget are fully realized, they would allow India to make substantial progress in equitable human development. However, the budget does not detail the funding mechanisms that would support these ambitious programs, and similar efforts have floundered in the past due to this lack of specificity. If India intends to promote ICT-driven development at the central level through its budget, then these documents should provide states and ministries concrete information on the dedicated revenue flows they will have at their disposal so that they can proceed with these initiatives in a timely and efficient manner.
The Government of India released its 2022 Union Budget on February 1, 2022. The new budget has drawn substantial attention for, among other things, its emphasis on programs in the domain of ICT-driven development. If the ambitions described within the budget are fully realized, they would allow India to make substantial progress in equitable human development. However, the budget does not detail the funding mechanisms that would support these ambitious programs, and similar efforts have floundered in the past due to this lack of specificity. If India intends to promote ICT-driven development at the central level through its budget, then these documents should provide states and ministries concrete information on the dedicated revenue flows they will have at their disposal so that they can proceed with these initiatives in a timely and efficient manner.
Modern smartphones come with high computing power, a variety of sensors and customization abilities that allow creation of a range of practical applications (apps). These features, coupled with the mobility and accessibility in terms of cost that smartphones offer, make them a potential game-changer for smallholder farmers in developing countries, particularly for these farmers' information needs. Smartphones can also make accessing government benefits, land records and crop survey requirements etc. more convenient for farmers. This paper explores how smartphones can be used in different ways, right from production planning to eventual sale of crop. Advanced applications like IoTs, drone use in conjunction with smartphones and design and willingness to pay aspects have also been covered. We believe that given the contemporary trends of robust low-cost devices (e.g., the JioPhone Next etc.) coupled with competitive data tariffs, smartphone use in agriculture will be beneficial for Indian farmers. In fact, the Indian experience can boost similar developments in the developing world, particularly in Africa.
India being the second-highest producer of smartphones in the world, has been exploring ways to make the digital tool reach everyone. With the availability of a variety of low-cost smartphones and affordable internet data plans, the country has witnessed a substantial increase in the ownership of smartphones. This penetration has not been limited to the urban peripherals of the country but the rural areas as well. India's rural internet user base has grown over three times faster and is quickly catching up to surpass the urban user base. The opportunity must be utilized well by the government, as the growth and familiarity of rural India with smartphones make it an ideal platform to deliver information and services that encompass the ecosystem of the digital divide. Smartphones in the field of education have already been widely disseminated, with enormous potential for future growth. Low-cost smartphones with the features like high speed, affordable internet, pre-installed applications, and audio-assistant features, can prove revolutionary in the transformational journey. The digital tool is foreseen to bring the latest ed-tech advancements in the education sector, especially in rural India. Smartphones hold the potential to support the Anganwadi workers, teachers, and school nutrition program, by introducing new and effective ways of functioning. This will play a big role in supporting early education, primary & secondary education, and teachers' continuous development, especially at the grass-root level. This paper explores how smartphones have been and can further support the public school system in the country
India being the second-highest producer of smartphones in the world, has been exploring ways to make the digital tool reach everyone. With the availability of a variety of low-cost smartphones and affordable internet data plans, the country has witnessed a substantial increase in the ownership of smartphones. This penetration has not been limited to the urban peripherals of the country but the rural areas as well. India's rural internet user base has grown over three times faster and is quickly catching up to surpass the urban user base. The opportunity must be utilized well by the government, as the growth and familiarity of rural India with smartphones make it an ideal platform to deliver information and services that encompass the ecosystem of the digital divide. Smartphones in the field of education have already been widely disseminated, with enormous potential for future growth. Low-cost smartphones with the features like high speed, affordable internet, pre-installed applications, and audio-assistant features, can prove revolutionary in the transformational journey. The digital tool is foreseen to bring the latest ed-tech advancements in the education sector, especially in rural India. Smartphones hold the potential to support the Anganwadi workers, teachers, and school nutrition program, by introducing new and effective ways of functioning. This will play a big role in supporting early education, primary & secondary education, and teachers' continuous development, especially at the grass-root level. This paper explores how smartphones have been and can further support the public school system in the country.
Modern smartphones come with high computing power, a variety of sensors and customization abilities that allow creation of a range of practical applications (apps). These features, coupled with the mobility and accessibility in terms of cost that smartphones offer, make them a potential game-changer for smallholder farmers in developing countries, particularly for these farmers' information needs. Smartphones can also make accessing government benefits, land records and crop survey requirements etc. more convenient for farmers. This paper explores how smartphones can be used in different ways, right from production planning to eventual sale of crop. Advanced applications like IoTs, drone use in conjunction with smartphones and design and willingness to pay aspects have also been covered. We believe that given the contemporary trends of robust low-cost devices (e.g., the JioPhone Next etc.) coupled with competitive data tariffs, smartphone use in agriculture will be beneficial for Indian farmers. In fact, the Indian experience can boost similar developments in the developing world, particularly in Africa.
Artificial Intelligence (AI), also referred to as the new electricity, is the emerging focus area in India. AI refers to the ability of machines to perform cognitive tasks like thinking, perceiving, learning, problem solving and decision making. Most of the AI systems rely on historical large datasets for predicting future trends and outcomes at a pace which humans would not be able to match. The development of AI in India is in the initial stages and there is no regulatory body focused solely on AI. However, recently, Government of India has taken various initiatives related to AI such as establishment of Artificial Intelligence Task Force, formulation of NITI Aayog's National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence #AIFORALL, setting up of four Committees for AI under Ministry of Electronics and Information technology etc. Some of India's state governments have also taken few initiatives, such as establishment of Centre of Excellence for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (CoE-DS&AI) by Karnataka, Safe and Ethical Artificial Intelligence Policy 2020 and Face Recognition Attendance System by Tamil Nadu, AI-Powered System for monitoring driving behaviour by West Bengal, AI System to fight agricultural risks by Maharashtra etc. As with any other technology, AI brings with it a span of opportunities and challenges. In healthcare, AI could be beneficial in mining medical records; designing treatment plans; forecasting health events; assisting repetitive jobs; doing online consultations; assisting in clinical decision making; medication management; drug creation; making healthier choices and decisions; and solving public health problems etc. AI could be very helpful in areas where there is scarcity of human resources, such as rural and remote areas. AI technology has been helpful in dealing with COVID-19 in India. It has helped in preliminary screening of COVID-19 cases, containment of coronavirus, contact tracing, enforcing quarantine and social distancing, tracking of suspects, tracking the pandemic, treatment and remote monitoring of COVID-19 patients, vaccine and drug development etc. The path for adoption of AI driven healthcare in India is filled with a lot of challenges. The unstructured data sets, interoperability issues, lack of open sets of medical data, inadequate analytics solutions which could work with big data, limited funds, inadequate infrastructure, lack of manpower skilled in AI, regulatory weaknesses, inadequate framework and issues related to data protection are some of the key challenges for AI-driven healthcare. It is recommended that government should support companies to invest in AI; encourage public private partnerships in the domain of AI and Health; enact and effectively enforce laws and legislation related to AI and Health; frame policies addressing issues related to confidentiality and privacy in the AI-driven healthcare; and establish a certification system for AI-based healthcare solutions. To adopt AI-based healthcare, it is important to train workforce in AI so that they can carefully handle sensitive health information, protect data against theft and use AI systems effectively. It is also crucial that healthcare decisions based on AI solutions should have a rationale and are explainable.
India launched its National Smart Cities Mission (SCM) in 2015 with the goal of transforming urban areas into more inclusive, sustainable environments. The program was a response to the needs of a rapidly urbanizing population which requires a radical transformation of the built environment in order to realize a more prosperous and egalitarian society. A total tendered amount of 1.84 lakh crore (24.6 billion USD) has been approved under the project, with new developments receiving funding across the country. However, the SCM has so far failed to live up to its promise in a number of respects. It has disbursed its funding through a grant structure at odds with a national strategic vision for smart urbanization. Furthermore, by stretching the definition of "smart cities" nearly beyond recognition, it has become a catch-all umbrella for new government funding to urban projects, rather than a push to make India's cities digitized and more sustainable. This raises the question of whether it is appropriate for India to invest in smart cities right now, or whether this funding should instead go towards expanding the systems which provide essential basic services to the population first. Fortunately, the vision for the SCM can be modified in a way that new investments made under the program both meet the existing needs of the population and start building the foundation for a smarter, 21st century infrastructure. Indeed, this is necessary if the SCM and future urban development projects are to yield concrete benefits proportional to their costs.
The second wave of COVID-19 caused havoc across India. It was twice as severe as the first one. More than 400,000 COVID-19 cases per day were being reported. The worst affected states were Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Andhra Pradesh. The spike in cases was largely assumed to be the result of leniency in COVID-19 appropriate behaviour, such as people were not wearing masks, resumption of economic activity, gathering in large numbers e.g. in marriages, political meetings, rallies, IPL matches, religious gatherings like Kumbh Mela etc. 67 percent of India's population above the age of six years has been exposed to COVID-19 according to a national serological survey conducted by ICMR, the findings of which were revealed on July 20, 2021. The survey was conducted during June and July across 70 districts of 21 states. These are the very same districts where three earlier rounds of sero surveys were conducted during May-June 2020; August-September 2020 and December-January 2020/21. On January 16th 2021, India launched the world's largest vaccination drive and as of July 15, more than 391,340,491 vaccine doses had been administered across the country. The vaccine has been administered in a phased manner with the initial focus being on priority groups like health workers, frontline workers like the police workforce, municipal workers, defence personnel etc., people above 60 years of age and those between 45-60 years with co-morbidities. From May 1, 2021, people between age group 18-45 were also eligible for vaccination. But, until a substantial proportion of the population is vaccinated, precautionary measures like wearing masks, sanitization, regular hand washing and physical distancing must remain the mainstay. Inter-departmental coordination has been the cornerstone in dealing with COVID-19 situation in India. Various departments such as Health, Tourism, Defence, Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Finance etc. took various initiatives in collaboration with other departments to deal with the pandemic. Challenges posed by COVID-19 also sparked a wave of innovations across sectors in India. A host of new interventions were implemented by various departments, such as health, agriculture, education, police, railways etc. This document is based on secondary data collected from government documents and websites, news reporting, media interviews, newspaper articles, various national and international journals and private websites. The present paper discusses current scenario of COVID-19 in India, COVID-19 vaccination drive, innovative approaches to address vaccine hesitancy in India, inter-departmental coordination and innovation across sectors in dealing with COVID-19 situation. We also put forward recommendations to deal with the surge in COVID-19 cases in future and to scale up innovations and undertake research studies to identify gaps and address challenges.
In recent years, countries across the African continent have begun implementing solutions based on Information and Communications Technology (ICT) for challenges ranging across the spectrum of sustainable development. The programs which have been implemented so far have produced impressive results, and in aggregate, they demonstrate the potential of a digital Africa which applies ICT to accelerate the improvement of human development outcomes in the pursuit of a more prosperous, equitable society. However, for these programs to live up to their full potential, they must be coupled with comprehensive, national digital identity systems. Digital identification not only boosts the efficiency of individual ICT-driven development initiatives, they permit seamless coordination between both public and private programs at all levels. While some African countries have established digital identity systems, but there is room for improvement in order to make them fully inclusive, transparent, and effective. In this, African governments can use India's Aadhaar digital identity system as a model for how to accomplish these objectives within the framework of a universal, highly integrated system, even under constraints of limited resources.
India launched its National Smart Cities Mission (SCM) in 2015 with the goal of transforming urban areas into more inclusive, sustainable environments. The program was a response to the needs of a rapidly urbanizing population which requires a radical transformation of the built environment in order to realize a more prosperous and egalitarian society. A total tendered amount of 1.84 lakh crore (24.6 billion USD) has been approved under the project, with new developments receiving funding across the country. However, the SCM has so far failed to live up to its promise in a number of respects. It has disbursed its funding through a grant structure at odds with a national strategic vision for smart urbanization. Furthermore, by stretching the definition of "smart cities" nearly beyond recognition, it has become a catch-all umbrella for new government funding to urban projects, rather than a push to make India's cities digitized and more sustainable. This raises the question of whether it is appropriate for India to invest in smart cities right now, or whether this funding should instead go towards expanding the systems which provide essential basic services to the population first. Fortunately, the vision for the SCM can be modified in a way that new investments made under the program both meet the existing needs of the population and start building the foundation for a smarter, 21st century infrastructure. Indeed, this is necessary if the SCM and future urban development projects are to yield concrete benefits proportional to their costs.
Artificial Intelligence (AI), also referred to as the new electricity, is the emerging focus area in India. AI refers to the ability of machines to perform cognitive tasks like thinking, perceiving, learning, problem solving and decision making. Most of the AI systems rely on historical large datasets for predicting future trends and outcomes at a pace which humans would not be able to match. The development of AI in India is in the initial stages and there is no regulatory body focused solely on AI. However, recently, Government of India has taken various initiatives related to AI such as establishment of Artificial Intelligence Task Force, formulation of NITI Aayog's National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence #AIFORALL, setting up of four Committees for AI under Ministry of Electronics and Information technology etc. Some of India's state governments have also taken few initiatives, such as establishment of Centre of Excellence for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (CoE-DS&AI) by Karnataka, Safe and Ethical Artificial Intelligence Policy 2020 and Face Recognition Attendance System by Tamil Nadu, AI-Powered System for monitoring driving behaviour by West Bengal, AI System to fight agricultural risks by Maharashtra etc. As with any other technology, AI brings with it a span of opportunities and challenges. In healthcare, AI could be beneficial in mining medical records; designing treatment plans; forecasting health events; assisting repetitive jobs; doing online consultations; assisting in clinical decision making; medication management; drug creation; making healthier choices and decisions; and solving public health problems etc. AI could be very helpful in areas where there is scarcity of human resources, such as rural and remote areas. AI technology has been helpful in dealing with COVID-19 in India. It has helped in preliminary screening of COVID-19 cases, containment of coronavirus, contact tracing, enforcing quarantine and social distancing, tracking of suspects, tracking the pandemic, treatment and remote monitoring of COVID-19 patients, vaccine and drug development etc. The path for adoption of AI driven healthcare in India is filled with a lot of challenges. The unstructured data sets, interoperability issues, lack of open sets of medical data, inadequate analytics solutions which could work with big data, limited funds, inadequate infrastructure, lack of manpower skilled in AI, regulatory weaknesses, inadequate framework and issues related to data protection are some of the key challenges for AI-driven healthcare. It is recommended that government should support companies to invest in AI; encourage public private partnerships in the domain of AI and Health; enact and effectively enforce laws and legislation related to AI and Health; frame policies addressing issues related to confidentiality and privacy in the AI-driven healthcare; and establish a certification system for AI-based healthcare solutions. To adopt AI-based healthcare, it is important to train workforce in AI so that they can carefully handle sensitive health information, protect data against theft and use AI systems effectively. It is also crucial that healthcare decisions based on AI solutions should have a rationale and are explainable.
