It’s hard to overstate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in changing the trajectory of digitisation in India. As we discuss later in the book, India has been on an upward curve for much of the last decade in terms of internet penetration, adoption of Aadhaar, shift to 4G, smart phone adoption, and public infrastructure rails such as UPI for payments.
While there was a lot of optimism on the pace of digitisation prior to the pandemic, it was tempered by legitimate concerns regarding the digital divide – an idea that essentially describes the drawback suffered by citizens who are not digitally savvy, or the unfair advantage reaped by those that are.
The digital divide runs along multiple dimensions – those living in metros versus those living in tier 2 and tier 3 cities; tech savvy millennials versus older Indians; English speaking Indians versus those who are unfamiliar with the language; and above all the limited adoption of digital solutions by the real masses of India.
The speed and ferocity of the Covid-19 crisis overwhelmed hundreds of millions of Indians. Governments across the world struggled to cope, and India was no different with outcomes magnified by its vast population and a frail healthcare infrastructure….
