In 2020, a global acceleration in areas of technology such as Cloud, OTT, Work From Home, and online education took giant developmental strides, placing them within the scope of common daily use. An atmosphere of anticipation exists for tech advancements to make further inroads into alternative fields during this and following years in the near future.
Agritech: According to common teachings during the 1980s approximately 80% of the population in India inhabited rural areas. During the ensuing years, increasing levels of urbanization saw the balance shift closer to a 50:50 rural to urban ratio. While tech developments commonly pervade urban city life, a conscious drive is required for tech to reach rural zones. While smartphone technology is readily available throughout most villages, history has shown that these same villages escaped the global performance revolution in PC and laptop hard & software systems.
Emerging tech economies such as India and China established themselves as global leaders in mobile development, both investing heavily on expanding mobile availability to rural areas. The tech giants continue to push the performance envelope in fields such as user-friendliness as well as intuitive navigation and usage. Rural populations now commonly use mobile communications, social media, and entertainment applications such as WeChat, WhatsApp, Renren, YouTube, Tudou, as well as TikTok, prior to its current uncertain future. The entry of Reliance’s Jio Infocomm revolutionized India’s mobile broadband network, causing it to evolve into one of the world’s most affordable telecoms systems. Widespread rural coverage and affordability ensured cutting-edge mobile tech would integrate easily into the average Indian farmer’s daily life.
Similarly internet technologies have also come of age, capable of integrating hordes of small affordable devices to link them into a cohesive, powerful networked system. Specialized small devices integrated into farm implements like water pumps, tractors, crop dryers, irrigation systems, and numerous other devices will allow farmers to maximize profit margins on even the smallest of farms.
Specialized apps offer greater control via monitoring of farming activities which if used in tandem with agricultural drones allow farmers to operate more efficiently. Maximum efficiency is ultimately achieved by monitoring and controlling to build a detailed database of each implement’s operational activities, maintenance costs, and state of readiness. These apps can also help farmers determine optimal times and quantities to sow, irrigate, apply pesticides, reap, and offer more efficient distribution of products.
A survey revealed India’s current farming industry barely delivers 1% of the country’s potential agricultural yield, the data reveals the vast untapped potential still hidden by India’s low-tech farming industry. The country would benefit hugely if it provided the financial and educational encouragement to generate the mass of startups required to shift the agritech space into high gear during the mid and latter parts of this decade.
Integration of Regional Languages: Google invested $10 billion into India, part of which also provided for the integration of a BERT base software architecture called Multilingual Representations for Indian Languages or MuRIL. MuRIL is an AI driven language model created for addressing interoperability issues via the assimilation of 17 pre-trained Indian languages into the country’s national internet service network. One of its features allow users to switch between languages during all Google app searches including Maps, Play Books, Google Drive, and others included in Google’s comprehensive suite of apps.
A revised and remodeled Instagram Lite now offers full support for 17 of the most widely used languages in India. As a nationally integrated system OTT is proving increasingly popular since it provides comprehensive support for 17 of the country’s various regional languages.
In September 2014, the then Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, launched a Make in India initiative which kept gaining momentum over the years, especially so during 2020. The initiative acquired new impetus since the recent escalation between India and China. The key purpose of any such app is the full integration of commonly used Indian languages into all Indian apps. The country will only achieve full language integration if major operators in India encourage further development of the initiative. Success will enable all Indian speaking individuals to participate in the country’s tech advances during the remaining part of this decade.
India’s Urbanization: Trends tracked over the past two decades showed continued urbanization and its resultant megacities became the country’s two most formative influences until 2010. New socio-economic development curves may see Work From Home and Work From Anywhere initiatives may balance out the effects of the two previous trends. Current improvements in online remote study methods offer small-town students the opportunity to participate in the latest educational course studies.
Various socio-economic factors encourage employers to offer workers the option of performing their work outside a formal office environment. In turn this makes it ever more appealing for people to live in and work from smaller towns since the associated lower cost of living offers them a substantial improvement in standard of living at similar remuneration packages. Technological modernization of the nation’s towns may make a meaningful contribution towards reducing high population densities in India’s megacities during the latter half of this decade.
Smart education for rural areas: smaller children learn better via constant personal interaction which lessens the efficacy of current online learning methods for that age group. College students in rural regions, without access to personal computers connected to the internet via reliable broadband, also suffer similar difficulties when attempting to educate themselves.
However, now might be the correct time for current government education centers to undergo a conversion and become smart government education facilities. The move will require interested parties to make a singular investment to facilitate producing a large crop of well-educated youths who in future will lead a successful India to better participate in an increasingly competitive global economy.
One can attribute China’s current levels of success to a series of educational reforms instituted during the 1980s. China’s investment into improving education delivered great dividends during the ensuing decades, once again proving the age-old adage, “It’s never too late to start”. Especially when it comes to investing in a country’s youth, considering they will become its future leaders of business and industry. It is not too late for India to institute a Smart Government Schools reform initiative. A process made notably easier and cheaper if piggybacking off its well-developed broadband penetration that caterers so well for the smart mobile market in rural regions.
Industry 4.0 for Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises: The small to medium business industry suffered badly and still struggles to recover from a lingering recession after the Corona pandemic lockdown crisis. Factories had a tough time introducing and implementing no touch technologies and social distancing protocols amongst workers, as a direct result, many failed to reopen their doors once the coast was relatively clear of the effects Corona. Fortunately, a singular investment into Industry 4.0 practices can easily remedy the situation.
Governmental Investment into Deep Tech: India’s government can employ the aid of Deep Tech to further strengthen the country’s economy by managing and administering the vast treasure trove of data generated by the country’s 1.3 billion residents. Aside from Contact Tracing and Aadhaar there are many additional digital systems India could incorporate and deploy to aid its people.
However, India hardly scratches the surface of its digital potential, and there are many ways that artificial intelligence will change the future of business. The government and large corporates should place greater emphasis on investing in desirable target markets. It would attract the desired software expertise and training to grow fields such as artificial intelligence (AI) and extended reality (XR). Companies such as Digital India are perfect candidates to start developing the needed expertise in both fields. Both fields, earmarked globally as future boom industries, will assist with developing systems such as training simulations, higher education, and creating an intelligent central data depository. This will improve police efficiency to reduce crime, assist with the early prediction of natural disasters and improve disaster management efficiency.
High-quality simulations and other immersive technologies will assist the state with establishing an early form of e-governance to identify and involve qualified citizenry with large-scale project planning for cities and industry. Approved citizens can then link in from their office or home via VR during their free time to participate and assist with the drawing up and evaluation of plans and legal documents. VR tech in knowledge repositories such as museums would allow tourists and residents in rural regions to experience, learn, and share in the multitude of wonders belonging to a country so rich in culture and natural history.
State and Central government can improve services and efficiency across all their websites with the adoption of AI chatbots to assist visitors and provide vastly improved or immediate responses to the myriad of time-consuming queries. Ideas seem to head in the right direction considering a 2019 Union Budget proposal suggested the incorporation of data centers across India.
Digital Entertainment: Across the globe entertainment and media consumption shifts increasingly towards digital formats and India is no exception. The country’s proliferation of digital smart devices and ever-improving internet access speeds bears testimony to the fact. By popular demand, it allows local consumers on-demand access to new forms of entertainment and media such as video streaming services, online casinos, and news.
Across the world the online casino entertainment has boomed since its earliest days and for many forward-thinking countries have become a reliable source of income via taxes if intelligently regulated. Moreover, if correctly legislated and regulated the online casino industry could also provide a huge influx of foreign currency.
The online casino industry in the US serves as a perfect example of the potential benefits offered by an emerging market, while the UK offers a similar glimpse of an efficiently regulated mature industry. If supported by an interested, positive government via cooperative efforts aimed at correctly incentivizing their growth, online casinos can attract millions of money spending members to a country over a very short time period due to their massive popularity.
To increase their attraction and convince visitors to join as new members, online casinos have numerous suitable tools and can target specific markets, regions, or socio-economic groups. Serving as a good example Bovegas is now offering frequently offers an exciting no deposit bonus for players from the US.
Similarly, many other online casinos are offering a $10 free bonus for US players. These offers provide an easy way for players to try out new sites without worrying about losing money. It’s possible to try a wide range of games, from classic table games like blackjack and roulette, to the latest slots from leading software providers like Real Time Gaming.
For a huge variety of reasons people regularly require distraction from the monotony of daily life to continue functioning at their peak. Some prefer expensive toys or cars, many find their escape in streaming video, others require regular news updates. For such purposes, the most preferred interface is via a television or computer screen. Irrespective of their escape medium or activity people love to play which has turned toys into must-have luxury items. One interesting trend we’ll be seeing a lot more of is transparent screens which consumers are already spending millions on.
The effects of 5G’s arrival: All the technologies, systems, ideas, and concepts proposed and discussed above offer workable but distributed solutions via current connectivity options. However, the implementation of 5G offers the potential to effectively give rise to the first smart cities by fully integrating all solutions. Perhaps 5G may offer a new, better, more healthy, cleaner way of living in an improved symbiosis with our planet.
Mukesh Ambani, Reliance Chairman, revealed that his company could realize the implementation of 5G during 2021s third & fourth quarters. India’s government ought to summarily implement 5G licensing. Its deployment need not be nationwide with immediate effect. Various enterprises can deliver service throughout the different areas which will impart a major boost to this decade.
