Old Suman Bery Niti Aayog Unveils Strategy for Digital Based Economy for Viksit Bharat

· NITI Aayog launched the DPI@2047 for Viksit Bharat roadmap to guide the next phase of India’s Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) journey.

· Unveiled by Suman Bery and Ajay Kumar Sood, the roadmap positions DPI as a driver of inclusive, non-linear and productivity-led growth.

· Developed with EkStep Foundation and Deloitte, the strategy outlines a two-phase transformation path:

o DPI 2.0 (2025–2035): Focused on livelihood-led growth at scale

o DPI 3.0 (2035–2047): Aimed at broad-based prosperity

· DPI 2.0 identifies eight sectoral transformations spanning MSMEs, agriculture, education, health, credit, decentralised energy and benefit delivery.

· The roadmap sets out four execution imperatives:

o District-led demand aggregation

o Scaling technology entrepreneurship

o Leveraging AI

o Cross-sector productivity unlocks through data, digital transactions and human capacity building

· It seeks to extend India’s digital rails beyond identity, payments and welfare into engines of livelihoods, productivity and market access.

· A central theme is the integration of AI with open, interoperable digital infrastructure, enabling large-scale, inclusive technology diffusion across citizens and small enterprises.

· Officials emphasized a shift in policy focus from GDP growth to productivity growth, linking higher productivity to employment, incomes and living standards.

· The roadmap also stresses state-level implementation, trust, interoperability and safeguards, positioning DPI as a key enabler for Viksit Bharat 2047.

· The initiative reinforces India’s ambition to leverage DPI, AI and entrepreneurship as structural advantages in the evolving global technology landscape.

<DPI@2047 for Viksit Bharat roadmap…>

[ABS News Service/29.04.2026]

The rules of competition in technology are changing. Advantage today no longer comes from innovation alone. It increasingly depends on the ability to connect innovation across sectors, institutions, and ecosystems, and then diffuse it rapidly at population scale. In this new paradigm, digital rails matter more than ever. They are what allow ideas, applications, and services to move from pilots to nationwide impact.

It is in this context, NITI Aayog launched DPI@2047 for Viksit Bharat on 27th April 2026, a strategic roadmap that charts the next phase of India’s Digital Public Infrastructure journey as a driver of inclusive, non-linear, and productivity-led growth.

The roadmap was unveiled by Suman Bery, Vice Chairman, NITI Aayog and Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, in the presence of Ms. Nidhi Chhibber, CEO, NITI Aayog; Dr. V. Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor; Ms. Debjani Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow, NITI Aayog; Mr. Shankar Maruwada, Co-Founder and CEO, EkStep Foundation; and other distinguished guests and dignitaries. Industry leaders, start-ups, and development partners participated enthusiastically, underscoring a strong collective commitment to India’s next phase of digital transformation.

The roadmap, developed in partnership with EkStep Foundation and Deloitte, sets out a two-phase path for India’s digital transformation: DPI 2.0 (2025–2035) to drive livelihood-led growth at scale, followed by DPI 3.0 (2035–2047) to enable broad-based prosperity. The immediate focus is DPI 2.0.

Under DPI 2.0, the roadmap identifies eight sectoral transformations to address structural bottlenecks across MSMEs, agriculture, education, and health, while strengthening systemic enablers such as credit, decentralised energy, and benefit delivery. To translate intent into outcomes, it outlines four execution imperatives: district-led demand aggregation, scaling technology entrepreneurship, leveraging AI, and deploying cross-sector unlocks through better data use, digital transactions, stronger human capacity, and the democratisation of AI.

At its core, DPI 2.0 is about extending India’s digital rails beyond identity, payments, and welfare into the engines of livelihoods, productivity, and market access. It reflects a larger shift in how growth will be created in the years ahead: not simply by inventing new technologies, but by building the connective infrastructure that allows innovation to work together, travel faster, and reach more people. By combining open digital infrastructure with trusted data flows and ecosystem-led innovation, the roadmap creates the conditions for technologies such as AI to diffuse at scale across citizens and small enterprises.

This marks an important evolution in India’s digital journey - from digital inclusion alone to enabling capability, productivity, and opportunity at scale.

The priority now is execution. Grounded in district-level adoption and local realities, and anchored in trust, interoperability, and safeguards, DPI 2.0 offers a practical pathway for technology adoption to drive broad-based growth across India and support the country’s transition to a non-linear, productivity-led growth trajectory towards Viksit Bharat 2047.

Speaking on the occasion, Suman Bery stated that the focus has shifted from GDP to productivity. Higher quality employment, stronger incomes, and better living standards depend on rising productivity. DPI 1.0 has shown that harnessing networks is the secret of where we have reached. This roadmap makes that shift clear. The next phase of India’s development will be shaped by how AI and DPI raise productivity at scale, placing it at the centre of India’s development journey and helping lay the foundation for Viksit Bharat 2047.

Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood highlighted that technology leadership will increasingly be defined by our ability to translate science and innovation into scalable, trusted public outcomes. India’s DPI has demonstrated the power of open, interoperable systems at population scale. The next phase must build on this foundation, integrating frontier technologies with strong scientific rigour and safeguards. This roadmap reflects that direction, focusing on responsible deployment and real-world impact. India has the scientific depth and digital foundations to lead by example.

Ms. Nidhi Chhibber emphasised that a significant part of the NITI FTH roadmap focuses on supporting States in their transformation journeys. The intent is to equip them with practical pathways they can adapt and implement. Our perspective is simple: when States grow fast, India grows faster. DPI can become a significant enabler in accelerating inclusive growth for states.

Ms Debjani Ghosh remarked that the roadmap sets out how DPI 2.0 can move India from digital inclusion to productivity-led, livelihood-centred growth on the road to Viksit Bharat 2047. The global AI race is no longer only about frontier models, chips and capital; it is increasingly about a country’s ability to connect digital infrastructure with economy-wide diffusion and impact. India enters this next phase with a powerful structural advantage: its Digital Public Infrastructure. By combining DPI, AI and entrepreneurship, India can build an inclusive, vernacular and population-scale model of AI adoption that improves lives, strengthens livelihoods and unlocks productivity across critical sectors.

About NITI Frontier Tech Hub:

The NITI Frontier Tech Hub was created as an action tank for Viksit Bharat to anticipate emerging mega-technology shifts and shape India’s preparedness to unlock their potential for faster economic growth, inclusive societal outcomes, and strategic resilience—advancing the country’s journey towards becoming a frontier-technology nation. Collaborating with over 100 experts from government, industry, and academia, the Hub is shaping a 10-year roadmap across 20+ sectors to harness frontier technologies for economic growth, societal outcomes, and strategic resilience.