Technology to accelerate development of India going forward: Kant

India is witnessing digital disruption in areas like digital payments and going forward, technology can accelerate the development of rural India, Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said on Thursday.

Addressing a virtual event organised bySterlite Technologies Ltd (STL), Kant said that before the COVID-19 pandemic hit India, the country was not producing ventilators and PPEs but now, it is exporting them also.

"When the lives of people get transformed, that is when a nation is transformed. India is witnessing digital disruption in areas like payments, education and healthcare, and going forward, technology can accelerate the development of India, especially rural India," he said.

STL Chief Executive Officer Anand Agarwal said that to connect villages with urban services and educate people to utilise internet connectivity in meaningful ways, the company started project 'STL Garv'.

In our pilot phase, we have successfully touched over 54,000 lives across villages in Maharashtra, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh, he said.

STL Garv is a rural digital platform that will work to bridge the digital divide in Indian villages.

Sterlite Technologies started the design of the Garv ecosystem in 2018 and is now piloting it in 11 villages, impacting over 54,000 lives across Maharashtra, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh, according to the company statement.