CONTEXT

• India is rapidly embracing AI and digital transformation aligned with PM Modi’s “Techade” vision.
• National policies like Digital India, NEP 2020, and NM-ICPS are driving innovation and inclusion.
• Growing focus on indigenous technologies and multilingual digital solutions for grassroots empowerment.

CONCEPT: BHARATGEN – INDIA’S INDIGENOUS MULTIMODAL AI LLM

• BharatGen: India’s first indigenously developed, government-funded, AI-based Multimodal Large Language Model (LLM).
• Developed under National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS) at IIT Bombay, supported by DST.
• Built to handle text, speech, and image modalities in 22 Indian languages—a first-of-its-kind multilingual AI model.
• Aims to create ethical, inclusive, and Indian values-driven AI, rooted in the linguistic and cultural diversity of India.

CURRENT RELEVANCE: EMPOWERING INDIA THROUGH BHARATGEN

• Sectors Impacted:
  • Healthcare: AI Doctors speaking regional languages enable telemedicine in remote villages.
  • Education: Boosts NEP 2020’s goal of interdisciplinary, tech-integrated learning.
  • Agriculture: Supports 3,000+ Agri-tech Startups, e.g., lavender farming in J&K.
  •  Governance: Multilingual feedback in CPGRAMS improves grievance redressal.
• Features & Benefits:
  • AI trained in Indian languages & cultural context.
  • Promotes inclusive tech access beyond metros.
  • Bridges language barriers for citizens in rural and tribal regions.
  • Supports entrepreneurship, R&D, and international collaboration via 25+ Technology Innovation Hubs (TIHs).
• Strategic Vision:
  • Aligns with PM’s vision of innovation-led inclusion.
  • Encourages youth participation via Generative AI Hackathon 2025.
  • Supported by major ministries (DST, MEITY, DARPG, Skill Development).
• Broader Impact:
  • Reduces dependency on foreign AI models.
  • Sets a global benchmark for ethical, inclusive AI.
  • Fuels local solutions for grassroots governance, skill development, and startups.