ABSTRACT
India is now among the world’s leading countries in digital knowledge creation and dissemination. There are now many sectors in India where one cannot proceed without some understanding of digital technology. Deshpande traces the brief history of the progress of the digital revolution. The most important digital application was in the field of communications. He discusses technical and economic barriers to the spread of digital technology. He is critical of ‘techno-phobia’ – an irrational fear of new technology oblivious of its vast benefits. But he also raises some basic questions and answers them cautiously. Are the digital technologies accessible to all? Will their spread create problems for the poor?. Digital technology may have boosted India’s GDP growth, but has it also slowed down job-creation in the economy? In any case, the author’s conclusion seems to be that digital technology has a vast potential for Broad-Basing, but there are barriers to overcome, and imaginative and constructive policy is needed for Broad-Basing. Deshpande welcomes demonetisation and the drive to a more cashless economy, since it has the potential to compel tax compliance and check black money.
