On July 1, 2015, a digital revolution began. From the forecourt of Vigyan Bhawan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Digital India—a transformative vision to harness the power of technology to bridge India’s digital divide, empower citizens, and build a transparent, inclusive, and innovation-driven society. Ten years later, what began as a bold ambition has grown into one of the world’s largest and most successful digital governance transformations, touching every facet of life in Bharat.
From BharatNet to BHASHINI, Aadhaar to AI, UPI to UMANG, and 5G to Semiconductors, Digital India has not only connected citizens with the government and global markets—it has redefined the meaning of empowerment in a modern democracy.
Prime Minister Modi marked the occasion with a post on X :
“Today is a historic day as we mark #10YearsOfDigitalIndia! A decade later, we stand witness to a journey that has touched countless lives and ushered in a new era of empowerment. India has made many strides in digital payments, powered by the collective resolve of 140 crore Indians.”
Today is a historic day as we mark #10YearsOfDigitalIndia!
Ten years ago, Digital India began as an initiative to transform our nation into a digitally empowered and technologically advanced society.
A decade later, we stand witness to a journey that has touched countless… https://t.co/gbngf6HcEk
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 1, 2025
He praised the role of digital tools in transforming sectors like health, education, and governance, highlighting how Digital India has become the bridge between people and opportunity.
Building the Infrastructure: From Connectivity Deserts to Digital Corridors
In 2014, India was a digitally divided country, with only 25.15 crore internet connections, limited broadband access, and expensive data. Fast forward to June 2024, and that number has skyrocketed to 96.96 crore connections—a staggering 285.53 per cent increase in just over a decade. Broadband alone has witnessed a 1452 per cent surge, growing from 6.1 crore connections in March 2014 to 94.92 crore by August 2024.
This transformation wasn’t accidental. Under Digital India, the government made massive investments in last-mile digital infrastructure:
- 6.15 lakh villages now have 4G mobile connectivity.
- 5G rollout, which began in October 2022, reached 99.6 per cent of India’s districts in under 22 months.
- A record 4.74 lakh 5G towers were installed by April 2025, making India one of the world’s fastest adopters.
- Data prices plummeted from Rs 308/GB in 2014 to Rs 9.34/GB in 2022, making the internet truly democratic.
The BharatNet initiative laid the foundation for this success. By January 2025, 2.18 lakh Gram Panchayats were connected with high-speed fibre optic internet, and over 6.92 lakh km of optical fibre cable was laid—linking even the remotest villages to the digital world.
The Economic Upswing: Digital Bharat Means Big Business
India’s digital economy has become a new growth engine, contributing:
- 11.74per cent of the GDP in FY 2022–23
- Expected to touch 13.42 per cent by FY 2024–25
- Projected to cross 20 per cent by 2030, according to the ICRIER State of India’s Digital Economy Report 2024.
This positions India as third globally in digital economic depth—behind only the US and China. Digital commerce, fintech, startup ecosystems, and online public procurement have flourished due to platforms like:
1. UPI – The Game Changer in Global Fintech
- 1,867.7 crore UPI transactions worth Rs 24.77 lakh crore in April 2025 alone.
- 460 million users and 65 million merchants onboarded.
- Recognized globally—India accounted for 49 per cent of global real-time digital payments in 2023 (ACI Worldwide).
- UPI is now operational in seven countries, including UAE and Singapore.
2. Aadhaar and DBT – Trust Through Technology
- Over 142 crore Aadhaar IDs generated.
- Rs 44 lakh crore transferred through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) by May 2025.
- Rs 3.48 lakh crore in savings by removing fake beneficiaries.
- Eliminated 5.87 crore ineligible ration cards and 4.23 crore duplicate LPG connections.
Digital Governance at Your Fingertips
What once took hours at government offices can now be done in seconds through a smartphone.
1. DigiLocker: Your Documents, Your Phone
- 53.92 crore users by June 2025.
- From driving licenses to degrees, citizens can access official documents digitally—anytime, anywhere.
2. UMANG: One App for All Governance Needs
- Over 8.34 crore registrations.
- Offers 2,300+ services from Central to Local Government.
- Supports 23 Indian languages, ensuring inclusivity.
3. BHASHINI: Breaking the Language Barrier
- Supports 35+ Indian languages with 1,600+ AI models.
- Integrated into IRCTC, NPCI IVRS, and law enforcement systems.
- Over 8.5 lakh mobile downloads, revolutionizing access for non-English speakers.
4. Mission Karmayogi and iGOT
- 1.21 crore government officials onboarded.
- 2,588 courses delivered; 3.24 crore learning certificates issued.
- Trains bureaucracy with next-gen skills in digital governance and administration.
- Empowering MSMEs and Startups: Platforms for Prosperity
Empowering MSMEs and Startups
1. Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC)
- Launched in 2022.
- Over 7.64 lakh sellers and service providers onboarded across 616+ cities.
- Helps small kirana stores and artisans access digital markets without dependence on big tech platforms.
2. Government e-Marketplace (GeM)
- Facilitates online procurement by government departments.
- In FY 2024–25 (till January), Rs 4.09 lakh crore in GMV—nearly 50 per cent growth YoY.
- Hosts 1.6 lakh government buyers and 22.5 lakh+ sellers.
Future-Ready Technologies: India’s Bet on AI and Semiconductors
- IndiaAI Mission: Launched March 2024
- Budget: Rs 10,371.92 crore over 5 years.
- Focus: Indigenous Large Multimodal Models, AI compute infrastructure, startups, ethical AI.
- As of May 2025: Over 34,000 GPUs deployed—a leap in compute power.
Initiatives include:
- IndiaAI Innovation Centre
- AIKosh (Unified Dataset Hub)
- Startup Financing Framework
- AI FutureSkills Labs in Tier 2 & Tier 3 Cities
India Semiconductor Mission (ISM)
- Budget: Rs 76,000 crore
- Six projects worth Rs 1.55 lakh crore approved.
- Five fabs under construction.
- Latest: Foxconn-HCL display chip unit near Jewar Airport, UP.
- India is building trust as a reliable chip partner amid global supply chain realignments.
SEMICON India 2025
To be held under the Prime Minister’s leadership, this flagship event will mark India’s rise in the global semiconductor race—offering partnerships, showcasing indigenous design, and building resilience in global electronics.
As the country celebrates #10YearsOfDigitalIndia, the numbers tell one part of the story. But the true narrative lies in how a billion people have been uplifted by access, opportunity, transparency, and trust—fueled by the digital backbone meticulously laid over a decade.
Comments