Microsoft has unveiled a new generative AI-driven chatbot called 'Jugalbandi', designed for farmers and other users living in rural India.

• The chatbot is being developed in collaboration with Microsoft Research and the government-backed AI4Bharat - an open-source language AI centre based at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras - and OpenNyAI.
• According to a press release, the chatbot will operate over the WhatsApp messaging service and it aims to make information on government schemes accessible in multiple languages. 
• Microsoft has said that the bot could help bridge the language barrier in India where English is spoken by just 11 percent of the 1.4 billion population.
• It also noted that only 57 percent of Indians speak Hindi, leaving "vast numbers of the population unable to access government programs because of language barriers".