Context:  Addressing the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2020, the Prime Minister of India held that the Digital India mission has now become a way of life, especially for the poor and marginalised and those in the government. 
Key Points

• With ‘technology first’ as their governance model, India is uniquely positioned to leap ahead in the information era. 
• Addressing the summit, Australian Prime Minister said India and Australia have unlimited possibilities of working together in space research, critical minerals, 5G, Artificial Intelligence, quantum computing and much more.

Technology in recent times
During COVID-19 - Empowering people

• Technology ensured that the poor received proper and quick assistance. 
• Technology gave confidence that India could vaccinate its large population in a short period of time. 
• Technology has also played a vital role in the success of the world's largest healthcare scheme Ayushman Bharat.
• The government of India launched the Swamitva scheme, to give land titles to millions of people in rural areas and would be achieved through technology like drones. 

Cybersecurity solutions

• With rapid increase of tech use, data protection as well as cybersecurity became very important.
• Technology is helping youths in devising robust cybersecurity solutions which could effectively vaccinate digital products against cyber attacks and viruses.
• Technology was also setting the pace for the defence sector to evolve from software to drones to UAVs, redefining the defence sector.

Information era where changes are ‘disruptive and big’:

• Achievements of the industrial era are in the rear view mirror, and the world is in the middle of the information era. 
• In the industrial era, boundaries mattered but the information era is all about going beyond boundaries.
• The government of India had taken measures to ease the compliance burden on the IT industry.

India-Australia partnership

• Both nations would soon launch the Australia-India cyber and critical technologies partnership grant programme. 
• The two countries were working together for an open, free, safe and secure Internet. 
• Also, they have signed the landmark Australia-India Technology Framework on cyber and cyber-enabled technology.
• Technology held the key to new science, medical research, reduction of carbon emission and tackling global climate change, and it was now at the forefront of foreign policy, security and defence.

Digital India programme

• Digital India is a programme launched in 2015 to transform India into digital empowered society and knowledge economy. 
• It would also bring in public accountability through mandated delivery of government’s services electronically.

Vision areas

• Digital infrastructure as Utility to Every Citizen
• Governance and services on demand
• Digital empowerment of citizens

Objectives

• To prepare India for a knowledge future.
• On being transformative that is to realize IT (Indian Talent) + IT (Information Technology) = IT (India Tomorrow).
• Making technology central to enabling change.
• On being an Umbrella Programme – covering many departments.