Parliament Question: Inclusive Development of Artificial Intelligence

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1770 TO BE ANSWERED ON: 29.07.2026 INCLUSIVE DEVELOPMENT OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE 1770. DR. AMAR SINGH: Will the Minister of ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state: (a) the details of measures taken by the Government to strengthen research, innovation, entrepreneurship and skilled workforce development in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI); (b) the initiatives undertaken to promote greater participation in AI-related higher education, advanced research, start-up incubation and digital innovation particularly among underrepresented groups; (c) the institutional mechanisms introduced to minimise gender, linguistic and socio- economic bias in AI models, datasets and citizen-centric digital platforms especially those serving regional language users; (d) the incentives provided to support AI start-ups, research collaborations, technology incubation, venture funding and industry-academia partnerships; and (e) the expected impact of these initiatives on expanding AI adoption, promoting responsible and inclusive AI development and enhancing India's global competitiveness in artificial intelligence? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI JITIN PRASADA) (a), (b) and (d): India's AI policy is based on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of democratizing technology. It is aimed at creating economic opportunities and employment for youth, while addressing risks associated with AI. India's AI strategy builds on India's vibrant IT sector with annual revenue of 300 billion dollars and 60 Lakh strong workforce. Research and Innovation in Artificial Intelligence: The Government supports research and innovation towards state-of-the-art technology in Artificial Intelligence, as follows: IndiaAI Mission IndiaAI Mission has seven pillars including development of AI models, applications, datasets, talent development and affordable compute. AI models:The Government of India has been supporting Indian startups and institutions in the development of large language models. Pursuant to the Call for Proposals issued on 30 January 2025, against 506 applications received, 20 indigenous sovereign model proposals comprising 12 Large Multimodal Models and 8 Small Language Models have been identified for support. Notable outputs already launched include: ● Sarvam AI's 30 billion and 105 billion parameter models ● Gnani.AI's speech-to-speech model ● BharatGen's multilingual foundation models (Param2-17B, Patram-7B and Shrutam-2) ● Avataar AI's video generation model These models were launched during the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 and have since been made available on the AIKosh platform for use by the developer community. Application development: ● 11 National-level Hackathons/Innovation Challenges launched. ● 62 AI prototypes developed and 20 AI solutions deployed across public-sector institutions; three in-house AI development projects executed. Talent development: ● 686 fellowships awarded across undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral programmes in 178 institutions. ● YUVA AI for All programme completed by over 26.5 lakh individuals. IndiaAI labs: ● 27 India Data and AI Labs established, supporting training for more than 3,500 students. ● 188 additional Labs have been identified for establishment across ITIs/Polytechnics. AI Centres of Excellence: Government has approved a scheme for establishment of 58 Artificial Intelligence Centres of Excellence (AI-CoEs) across States and Union Territories, in collaboration with the respective State/UT Governments and industry partners. National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS) The Department of Science & Technology is implementing the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS), approved by the Union Cabinet with an outlay of Rs. 3,660 crore. Under this Mission: ● 25 Technology Innovation Hubs (TIHs) have been established at academic institutions across the country, each specializing in domains including AI & Machine Learning. ● The TIHs undertake technology development and translational research towards prototypes and products in Cyber-Physical Systems. ● Human resource and skill development is carried out through fellowship-supported UG/PG, PhD and post-doctoral programmes, faculty development programmes and short-term training courses. ● Innovation, entrepreneurship and deep-tech startups are supported through funding, incubation and mentoring, along with technology transfer to Government organizations and industry.International collaborations are undertaken with overseas academic institutions, research organizations and industry for knowledge exchange and adoption of global best practices. Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), through Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) 4.0, is promoting the development of a skilled workforce in emerging technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI). Under this initiative: ● It emphasizes training in AI, Machine Learning (ML), Data Analytics, Internet of Things (IoT), Cloud Computing, Cyber Security, Robotics, and other Industry 4.0 technologies to prepare youth for emerging job roles. ● The scheme offers training in multiple AI-related job roles, including AI-Machine Learning Engineer, AI-Data Scientist, AI-Data Engineer, AI-DevOps Engineer, AI- Business Intelligence Analyst, AI-Solution Architect, Artificial Intelligence Assistant, Artificial Intelligence Associate, AI Development Associate, AI Foundation, AI & ML- Junior Telecom Data Analyst, AI Devices Installation Operator, Foundation of Artificial Intelligence Technology, and Pharmacovigilance Case Processing using AI- enabled software. ● The training is delivered through AICTE-affiliated colleges, engineering colleges, institutes of national importance, private universities/colleges, Skill Universities, NIELIT, Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), PMKKs, State Skill Development Missions (SSDMs), Sector Skill Councils (SSCs), Government institutions, and other training partners. ● As per the Skill India Digital Hub (SIDH), as on 30.06.2026: ● 39,104 candidates have been trained/oriented, and 25,466 candidates have been certified in AI-related job roles under PMKVY 4.0. (c): The Government has undertaken the following steps to minimise gender, linguistic and socio-economic bias in AI models, datasets and citizen-centric digital platforms, especially those serving regional language users: ● AIKosh, IndiaAI's datasets platform, hosts more than 13,445 datasets across 22 sectors from over 578 organisations, along with 329 AI models, 35 toolkits and 202 documented use cases. ● For regional language users, the Digital India Bhashini programme (National Language Translation Mission) curates annotated datasets in 22 scheduled Indian languages through the BhashaDaan platform, in collaboration with over 70 research institutions. ● Under the Safe & Trusted AI pillar of the IndiaAI Mission, 13 Responsible AI projects have been selected across themes including AI bias mitigation, algorithm auditing, explainable AI, privacy-preserving AI and deepfake detection, being implemented by academic institutions, start-ups, industry and civil-society organisations to develop indigenous tools and frameworks including tools for assessing model fairness and an open-source framework for participatory algorithmic auditing. ● An lndiaAl Safety Institute is being established as a hub for indigenous research and development on AI safety, to support India's technical and institutional infrastructure for AI governance. (e): Safe and Trusted AI Pillar This pillar focuses on enabling the responsible development, deployment, and adoption of AI through indigenous governance frameworks, tools, and standards tailored to India’s socio- economic and cultural context.India AI Governance Guidelines The India AI Governance Guidelines were released on 5th November 2025, providing a comprehensive national framework for the safe, responsible and inclusive development and deployment of Artificial Intelligence in the country. Pursuant to the Guidelines, the following institutional mechanisms have been initiated: ● AI Governance and Economic Group (AIGEG), to provide strategic oversight and coordination across Ministries and sectoral regulators; ● Technology and Policy Expert Committee (TPEC), to support technical and policy recommendations; and ● AI Safety Institute (AISI), to undertake safety research, develop standards, test AI systems and evaluate emerging risks. Global dialogue India hosted the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi from 16th to 21st February 2026. ● Over 100 countries participated, including 22 Heads of State/Government. ● The India AI Impact Summit Declaration was endorsed by 92 countries and international organizations. ● The New Delhi Frontier AI Impact Commitments were signed by 13 leading model providers. ● India joined the Pax Silica coalition to secure the global silicon supply chain. ● India signed a Statement of Intent with Sweden on bilateral AI cooperation. ● As founder Chair of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI), India has continued to play a leading role in shaping global norms on the development, usage, and safety of AI. *****