The Digitalization Conundrum in India: Applications, Access and Aberrations

This book examines the nature, extent and implications of rapid strides digitalization has made in India since the turn of the millennium. These have been examined not merely in the sphere of information and communication technology (ICT) but its multifarious applications spreading across almost all aspects of production, services and institutions which have profound repercussions for the transformation of the society and economy at the micro, meso and macro levels. With contributions from both ICT scholars and social scientists, this book presents diverse scenarios and unravels challenges faced in the process of technical applications, access by the users of these disruptive technologies (automation, e-commerce, big data analytics & algorithms, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, etc.) which, unlike heavy machines (embodied technology), mostly defy physical space, pace of mobility and inoperability between technologies. Chapters in this volume address challenges and possibilities in establishing and operating intricate engineering infrastructure, technical and societal constraints encountered in broad-basing digitalization across layers of educational and social skills conducive to difficult geographies. Issues dealt within this book include farming, healthcare, education, food processing, e-commerce, labour, rural community development, open source data and information democracy. The chapters also reflect upon implications on local economy and society, of the very global nature of these seamless technologies where inter-operability remains the quintessential advantage of digitalization whether promoted or spearheaded through the state, private sector or global capital. The book critiques policy inadequacies and suggests plausible policy approaches to reduce the adverse impacts of fast digitalization and broad-base potential benefits across space and levels of socio-economic development of regions and society. This book would be of interest to scholars, practitioners, technocrats, industry analysts, policy makers and civil society agencies.

Keshab Das is a Professor at the Gujarat Institute of Development Research, Ahmedabad, India. He holds M.Phil. (Applied Economics) and Ph.D. (Economics) degrees from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi (through the Centre for Development Studies, Trivandrum). A recipient of the VKRV Rao Prize in Social Sciences (Economics), he has been a Visiting Research Fellow/Faculty at the Tshwane University of Technology, South Africa; University of Insubria, Italy; International Institute of Social Studies, Netherlands; University of Manchester, UK; Institute of Developing Economies, Japan; CNRS-REGARDS, France; Maison des Sciences de l’Homme, France; and Institute of Development Studies, UK. Having published extensively, his research focuses on issues in local and regional development; industrialization strategies; informal sector; MSMEs; innovation; labor; and infrastructure.

Bhabani Shankar Prasad Mishra has been an Associate Professor at the School of Computer Engineering, KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, since 2006. He holds a Ph.D. degree in Computer Science from the F.M. University, Balasore, Odisha. He completed his Postdoctoral Research at the Soft Computing Laboratory, Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea. His research interests include evolutionary computation, neural networks, pattern recognition, data warehousing and mining, and big data. In addition to having published or contributed to more than 40 research papers in peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings, he has authored one book and co-edited four more. He also serves as an editorial board member for various journals.

Madhabananda Das is a Senior Professor at the School of Computer Engineering at KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, with 38 years of working experience including 23 years of teaching and research experience and 15 years in the industry. He holds Ph.D. (KIIT University), M.Tech. (Sambalpur University) and M.B.A. (Xavier Institute of Management) degrees in Computer Science. He has been a faculty member at the University College of Engineering, Burla, and worked at Orissa State Electronics Development Corporation Limited. His research interests include artificial intelligence, soft computing, machine learning, deep learning and natural language processing. He has published or contributed more than 50 research papers in peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings.