When was the last time you had to stand in a long queue to pay your electricity or phone bill? Or had to go looking for an old reference book in various stores and libraries? Or fill up form after form to get any kind of government or banking task done?

Hard to remember, right? That’s because almost all these routine tasks, right from banking to paying utility bills, to topping up your phone’s balance to even getting an educational certificate from a foreign university have been brought right to your fingertips through digitalisation.

The world is getting smaller thanks to technological advancements and the power of the internet. And India is vying for a front spot on this journey into the tech age.

The Vision of Digital India:

Indian engineers have been a part of the global technological transformation for many years now. In fact, at the moment, Indian engineers are at the top positions of some of the biggest IT firms in the world. The vision for an advanced Digital India has opened up new avenues within the country for the tech talent pool that had gone abroad due to limited growth opportunities.

The Digital India initiative aims to bring the use of technology and digitalisation into every field and sector of life. Its ambition is to not only make the lives of Indian citizens more comfortable with digital access to everyday requirements such as banking, shopping, education, insurance, etc. but also empower the various government departments and firms with the latest in technological innovation to help the country progress.

The world is moving and growing at a fast pace, and the Digital India campaign is the catalyst that can push India to be not just a participant or onlooker, but a leader in the growing digital world.

Aims of Digital India for its citizens:

The government has chalked out a detailed roadmap and checklist for the Digital India programme. This roadmap encompasses the needs of the citizens, corporate sector, public enterprises and international associates.

Beginning with the aim to bring mobile and broadband connectivity to every part and every individual citizen of India, the government is working on building a robust, reliable and high-speed digital infrastructure that gives affordable access to the internet. This will enable citizens to gain access to government services, e-commerce and e-banking. It can also help students to gain better access to a wide variety of educational courses, while senior citizens and others can use online tools for their professional or personal pursuits securely.

On a larger scale, the government plans to use digital portals for e-governance to help solve citizens’ problems in an efficient and transparent manner. This direct communication between government agencies and the people can also aid in dissemination of correct and authentic information regarding new policies, achievements and other important information.

But most importantly, it will give a push to India on the economic front.

The Economic Impact of Digital India:

By empowering its own agencies and citizens with digitisation, the Digital India initiative can actually open up a host of investment and employment opportunities in the country. India’s growth story is already being further fuelled by tech innovations from startups. Giving them access to better digital instruments can support new entrepreneurs and innovators, who in turn can give a leg up to India’s growth.

Moreover, the government is giving a boost to manufacturing in India with several schemes and Production Linked Incentives (PLI). According to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, there is a $10 billion PLI for semiconductor manufacturing, and another for IT Hardware manufacturing such as laptops, mobiles, and servers in India which can further help India’s digital ambitions.

It is also setting up a master framework for industries like manufacturing, healthcare, logistics, retail, BFSI, and even agriculture.

All these efforts and investments by the government, in collaboration with the private sector, are expected to create many job opportunities in the country. Furthermore, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told media in August 2023 that the Digital India project plans to upskill and reskill 5.25 lakh IT professionals and train another 2.65 lakh individuals on IT!

The scope for India’s growth looks favourable and has the potential to create sustainable investment opportunities.

Investing in India’s digital revolution:

With India already on the progress path, this digital transformation can push India into the big league on an international scale. India is on a forward-thinking, futuristic path. The Aditya Birla Sun Life Digital India Fund gives you the chance to be a part of this transformative journey.

The fund invests in big and small companies contributing to India’s digitization, such as hardware, software, e-commerce, telecom, media, gaming companies. It is tapping the digitisation theme to generate capital appreciation in the long term. The fund manager carefully studies every company’s business model, competitive position and management before investing in it.

If you are bullish on India’s digital revolution, Aditya Birla Sun Life Digital India Fund can give you a good start and help you diversify your portfolio into niche concepts and themes.

Mutual Fund investments are subject to market risks, read all scheme related documents carefully.