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Misaligned incentives threaten to upset India's digital infra apple cart

Passing digital costs to users sends the wrong signal--cash is cheaper. India must align economics with policy to realise its DPI vision

digital public infrastructure
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This growing mismatch between policy objectives and ground-level incentives requires urgent correction. Here’s a pragmatic road map:

R S Sharma-

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India’s digital journey has been nothing short of transformational. The country has built world-class digital public infrastructure (DPI) in areas such as identity (Aadhaar), payments (Unified Payments Interface), and financial inclusion (the Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile trinity). These foundational platforms have reduced friction across sectors and empowered citizens across socio-economic strata. Now, with the emergence of domain-specific digital public infrastructures such as the Open Network for Digital Commerce, the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission in healthcare, and digital agriculture initiatives, India is set to redefine how markets, services, and innovation scale in an inclusive manner.
 
But while the infrastructure is robust, misaligned incentives
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