India must ensure AI benefits reach every citizen, prevent digital divide from widening: Scindia

Addressing the 10th edition of the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2026 and inaugurating the International Telecommunication Union's (ITU) AI for Good Lab workshop, Scindia said the success of AI would depend on its ability to deliver tangible benefits to citizens rather than technological sophistication alone.

"The real test is whether it helps a farmer make a better decision, it enables a doctor to diagnose faster, it allows a teacher to reach a child more effectively," he said.

Highlighting the need to make AI responsible, inclusive, secure and accessible at scale, Scindia said nearly 2.2 billion people worldwide remained offline, warning against allowing the digital divide of the past two decades to become the AI divide of the next two decades.

He said India's approach to AI was built on developing essential capabilities as shared infrastructure, enabling wider access to computing resources, datasets, models and connectivity.

Under the USD 10 billion IndiaAI Mission, more than 38,000 high-end graphics processing units (GPUs) have been onboarded at around Rs 65 per hour, nearly one-third of the global average cost, with another 20,000 GPUs being added, he said.

Scindia also highlighted India's expanding digital infrastructure, including 1.1 billion broadband connections and 5G coverage across 99.9 per cent of districts. He said Indian developers contributed 5.2 per cent of open-source AI projects on GitHub with at least 10 stars.

Emphasising the role of AI in public safety, the minister said around 7.2 crore fraudulent or irregular mobile connections had been disconnected through Sanchar Saathi. More than 35 lakh lost or stolen handsets had been traced, of which over 12 lakh had been recovered.

He added that the Financial Fraud Risk Indicator was helping banks and payment platforms identify suspicious mobile numbers, with around 45 lakh bank accounts restricted and potential fraud worth more than USD 500 million prevented.

Scindia said the AI for Good Lab would focus on AI readiness and policy, skills development, and public AI infrastructure, with India among 10 pilot countries participating in the initiative.

Calling for greater international cooperation, he urged researchers to develop AI systems that address diverse needs, meet safety and fairness standards, and are tested before being deployed at scale.

"The true measure of artificial intelligence will not be the size of its models, or the ROI, or the sophistication of its algorithms, but the number of human lives that it improves," he said. (ANI)