**Executive Summary**
The BHASHINI Sanchalan/Seva Workshop, held on 10 April 2026 at the University of Delhi, focused on preserving the Pali language through AI-led innovation and digital model development. Organized by the Digital India BHASHINI Division (MeitY) and the Centre for Advanced Studies in Buddhist Studies, the initiative aims to digitize low-resource heritage languages and create high-quality datasets. Key action items include leveraging the BhashaDaan platform for community-driven data validation and integrating AI translation tools across digital public infrastructure.
**Key Points / Main Content**
**Workshop Objectives and Context**
* **Minority Language Preservation:** The workshop aimed to strengthen the AI ecosystem for minority and heritage languages, specifically focusing on Pali.
* **Institutional Collaboration:** The event was a joint effort between the Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD) under MeitY and the University of Delhi's Centre for Advanced Studies in Buddhist Studies.
* **Policy Alignment:** The initiative supports the Ministry of Minority Affairs’ mandate to preserve and promote heritage languages.
**Significance of the Pali Language**
* **Cultural Importance:** Pali is the primary medium for early Buddhist texts (Tripitaka) and is central to India’s Buddhist heritage.
* **AI Classification:** Recognized as a "low-resource language" in the AI context, Pali requires structured efforts in digitization, dataset creation, and linguistic validation.
**Data and Model Development Strategies**
* **Dataset Requirements:** Discussions focused on collecting text corpora, audio recordings, and the digitization of ancient manuscripts.
* **BhashaDaan Platform:** This platform was highlighted as the primary tool for structured data contribution and community-led validation by proficient speakers.
* **Quality Frameworks:** Emphasis was placed on using structured data quality frameworks to ensure linguistic accuracy and cultural contextualization.
**AI Technology Demonstrations**
* **Translation Tools:** The BHASHINI team demonstrated several tools, including *Anuvaad* (text-to-text), *Vaanianuvaad* (speech-to-speech), *Lekhaanuvaad* (document translation), and *Chitraanuvaad* (video translation).
* **Accessibility Interfaces:** The BHASHINI Mobile App and Translation Plugin were showcased for real-time multilingual enablement of digital platforms and websites.
* **Institutional Content:** The *Granthika* platform was introduced for processing and making parliamentary and institutional content accessible in multiple languages.
**Impact Analysis**
**Academic Institutions**
**Impact**
They serve as essential knowledge partners, providing the scholarly expertise required for linguistic accuracy and cultural context in AI models.
**Action Required**
Must actively participate in research, knowledge development, and the creation of high-quality datasets to support low-resource languages.
**Language Communities and Proficient Speakers**
**Impact**
They are the primary drivers of community-led validation, ensuring that AI models are robust and linguistically authentic.
**Action Required**
Engage with the BhashaDaan platform to contribute structured data and participate in validation frameworks.
**Digital India BHASHINI Division (MeitY)**
**Impact**
Acts as the national platform for enabling multilingual access, inclusion, and digital empowerment across various sectors.
**Action Required**
Continue strengthening collaborative ecosystems with academic and domain communities to scale AI innovation and real-world deployment.
**Government and Governance Platforms**
**Impact**
BHASHINI technologies enable seamless integration of multilingual capabilities into digital public infrastructure and education.
**Action Required**
Leverage API-based integration and scalable deployment of BHASHINI’s technology stack to improve inclusive access to digital services.
Key Entities Referenced
Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD): The primary division under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology responsible for the implementation of the National Language Translation Mission and organizing the Pali language workshop.
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY): The central government ministry leading the initiative to strengthen minority language preservation through AI-led innovation and digital model development.
University of Delhi: The central academic partner and venue, specifically involving its Centre for Advanced Studies in Buddhist Studies, providing the domain expertise for the Pali language.
BhashaDaan: A digital platform and crowdsourcing initiative used to enable community-led data contribution and validation for building AI language models.
Amitabh Nag: The Chief Executive Officer of the Digital India BHASHINI Division who led the workshop and emphasized the role of AI in inclusive access to knowledge systems.
Ministry of Electronics & IT
BHASHINI Sanchalan/Seva Workshop on Pali
Language Held at University of Delhi to Advance
Minority Language AI Ecosystem
Posted On: 10 APR 2026 8:32PM by PIB Delhi
In a significant step towards strengthening minority language preservation through AI-led innovation, the
BHASHINI Sanchalan/Seva Workshop on Pali Language Preservation and Digital AI Model Development
was conducted on 10 April 2026 at the Faculty of Arts, University of Delhi. The workshop was organised
by the Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information
Technology (MeitY) in collaboration with the Centre for Advanced Studies in Buddhist Studies,
University of Delhi.
The workshop placed focused emphasis on the Pali language, an ancient Middle Indo-Aryan language that
serves as the primary medium of early Buddhist texts and the Tripitaka, forming the foundation of
Buddhist knowledge systems and philosophical traditions. Recognised for its historical, literary, and
cultural significance, and regarded as a classical language in the academic and literary sense, Pali remains
central to the preservation and understanding of India’s Buddhist heritage. As a low-resource language in
the context of AI, it requires structured efforts in digitisation, dataset creation, and linguistic validation.
The initiative aligns with the broader mandate of the Ministry of Minority Affairs in supporting the
preservation and promotion of minority and heritage languages.The Centre for Advanced Studies in
Buddhist Studies, University of Delhi, contributed as a key academic and knowledge partner, providingdomain expertise and scholarly inputs essential for ensuring linguistic accuracy and cultural
contextualisation in language AI initiatives. This collaboration reflects ongoing efforts to support research,
knowledge development, and the broader ecosystem for low-resource and heritage languages.
During the workshop, Shri Amitabh Nag, Chief Executive Officer, Digital India BHASHINI Division,
emphasised the importance of leveraging AI to enable inclusive access to knowledge systems and digital
services through Indian languages, and highlighted the need for active participation from academic
institutions and language communities in building high-quality datasets and robust language models. The
workshop focused on the development of AI models for the Pali language through targeted data collection,
validation frameworks, and community-driven participation. The programme included sessions on the
linguistic and literary relevance of Pali, along with detailed discussions on dataset requirements such as
text corpora, audio recordings, and manuscript digitisation, supported by structured data quality
frameworks. A comprehensive overview of the BhashaDaan platform was presented to enable structured
data contribution and community-led validation by proficient speakers.
As part of the workshop, the BHASHINI team conducted extensive live demonstrations of its core
language AI technologies and applications, showcasing its end-to-end multilingual capabilities across text,
speech, document, and multimedia domains. Demonstrations included Anuvaad for seamless text-to-text
translation across multiple Indian languages; Vaanianuvaad for real-time speech-to-speech and speech-to-
text translation; Lekhaanuvaad for document translation and digitisation across languages; and
Chitraanuvaad, enabling AI-based video translation and multilingual content adaptation. The BHASHINI
Mobile App was demonstrated as a user-facing interface for real-time speech, understanding, and
translation in Indian languages, while the BHASHINI Translation Plugin showcased multilingual
enablement of websites and digital platforms through dynamic, scalable translation capabilities. Granthika
was also demonstrated as an advanced platform enabling multilingual processing and accessibility of
parliamentary and institutional content, reflecting the applicability of BHASHINI technologies in high-
value, knowledge-intensive domains.
Use cases across digital public infrastructure, governance platforms, and education and knowledge
ecosystems were also demonstrated to highlight real-world deployment, scalability, and seamless
integration of BHASHINI’s technology stack across diverse domains.
These demonstrations highlighted real-time inferencing, API-based integration, and scalable deployment
capabilities, reinforcing BHASHINI’s role as a national platform enabling multilingual access, inclusion,
and digital empowerment across sectors, while continuing to strengthen collaborative ecosystems with
academic institutions and domain communities for language data creation and AI innovation.****
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