India’s Digital Public Infrastructure

Syllabus: GS3/Economy; Science and Technology 

In Context

• India is transforming from a major user of digital systems to a builder of population-scale digital infrastructure, distinguished by its scale, openness, and integration. 

Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) 

• It refers to foundational digital systems that are accessible, secure, and interoperable, supporting essential public services. 
• India’s Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) supports welfare delivery, economic activity, and state capacity by connecting identity, payments, and data exchange through interoperable public rails.
• Its model demonstrates that digital systems can be designed as public goods, promoting both inclusion and efficiency, and is increasingly influencing the global conversation on building and governing digital infrastructure in the twenty-first century.

Foundations of India’s DPI

• India’s digital public infrastructure grew from the deliberate integration of identity, banking, and connectivity—known as the JAM trinity: Jan Dhan bank accounts, Aadhaar, and mobile phone penetration. 
• India’s JAM trinity laid the foundation for its Digital Public Infrastructure.
  • Aadhaar provided a biometric digital identity with over 144 crore numbers issued and 2,707 crore authentications in 2024-25, enabling secure, portable, and near-instant verification.
  • Jan Dhan Yojana expanded financial inclusion, growing bank accounts from 14.72 crore in 2015 to 57.71 crore by March 2026, with deposits rising to ₹2.94 lakh crore and nearly 40 crore RuPay cards issued.
  • Widespread mobile connectivity, with 85.5% of households owning smartphones and 5G coverage in 99.9% of districts, ensured access to banking, education, and public services across urban and rural areas. 

Progress across various sectors

• Digital Economic Infrastructure: India’s digital economic infrastructure includes UPI, facilitating 21.7 billion real-time transactions in January 2026 and handling 81% of India’s retail payments;
  • Public Financial Management System (PFMS), enabling transparent welfare payments with ₹49.09 lakh crore transferred via Direct Benefit Transfer;
  • Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), connecting 1.16 lakh+ sellers across 630+ cities to democratize e-commerce; and Government eMarketplace, processing 3.27 crore orders worth ₹16.41 lakh crore, with strong participation from Micro and Small Enterprises.
    •  These platforms collectively enhance commerce, transparency, and inclusion.
• India’s citizen service delivery platforms: It includes DigiLocker, a secure digital document wallet with 67.63 crore users and over 950 crore documents issued;
  • UMANG, a unified mobile app offering 2,400+ government services with 10.25 crore users and 723.36 crore transactions; and
  •  e-Courts, a pan-India ICT initiative modernizing judicial processes through digital filing, online payments, video conferencing, and AI-enabled case management, with Phase III (2023–2027) advancing paperless courts and comprehensive digitisation.
• Health & Nutrition Ecosystem: India’s digital health infrastructure includes
  • CoWIN, managing 220 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses with real-time tracking;
  • eSanjeevani, providing telemedicine to 45.42 crore patients via 2.3 lakh providers; eHospital and ORS, digitising hospital workflows, diagnostics, and blood bank management; 
  • Aarogya Setu, evolving into a national health app for lab reports, prescriptions, and online consultations;
  •  National Non-Communicable Diseases Platform, tracking 74.97 crore beneficiaries for lifestyle disease management; and
  • POSHAN Tracker, monitoring nutrition for 8.9 crore children across 14.03 lakh Anganwadi Centres.
    • These platforms enhance access, efficiency, and data-driven healthcare delivery.
• Education and Skilling: India’s digital education and skilling platforms include
  • DIKSHA, delivering 566 crore learning sessions to 2.11 crore users with 12.69 crore certificates issued, supporting students, teachers, and administrators across states and boards; and
  • the Skill India Digital Hub, launched in 2023, which integrates training, certification, job discovery, and government portals to connect learners with employers and align skills with industry demand, strengthening India’s human capital ecosystem.
• Digital Systems for Governance Capacity & Coordination: India’s digital governance platforms include e-Office, enabling paperless administration and streamlined decision-making;
  • API Setu :MeitY initiated API Setu, also known as the Open API Platform project, in March 2020.
    • API Setu, hosting 8,036 APIs to facilitate secure, standardized data sharing across 10,530 organizations; and 
  • PM GatiShakti, a GIS-based platform coordinating infrastructure projects, with 352 projects worth ₹16.10 lakh crore evaluated.
    • Together, they form an integrated digital backbone enhancing governance, coordination, and transparency at scale.

India’s DPI Diplomacy

• India’s approach to Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) extends globally, guided by the ethos of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam—the world is one family—treating technology as a public good for inclusive development.
• Internationally, India has signed agreements with 24 countries to share expertise on digital identity, payments, data exchange, and service delivery, positioning itself as a partner in building population-scale digital systems. 
• Initiatives like India Stack Global provide technical resources for partner nations, while the Global DPI Repository, launched during India’s 2023 G20 Presidency, shares lessons and best practices. 
• India has also offered CoWIN as open-source software and developed MOSIP, an open-source framework for sovereign digital identities, adopted by over 25 countries.

Source :PIB