Our lofty goals are cued by the statecraft of aspirations

India’s developmental journey over the last decade or so has been marked by an ambitious setting of goals—defined by slogans, timelines, dashboards and often quantified targets.

- RAJAT KATHURIA

From Digital India to Smart Cities and from Swachh Bharat to Viksit Bharat by 2047, the state has enunciated an expansive vision of transformation, sometimes articulated in terms of bold national targets, such as 100% sanitation coverage, creating 20 million formal jobs, giving every gram panchayat broadband connectivity, doubling farm incomes and making 100 cities ‘smart,’ among others. These are not merely technocratic goals, but instruments of aspiration, designed to galvanize the ‘steel frame’ (our civil services), mobilize citizens and signal intent. It reflects a belief in the transformational power of political will—that somehow, through resolve, coordination and scale, India can leapfrog to become a high-income country.

The latest goal to appear on the horizon is around today’s global obsession: Artificial intelligence (AI). It is estimated that AI will add up to $600 billion to the Indian economy by 2035. That's roughly $60 billion a year. A new Niti Aayog report, AI for Viksit Bharat: The Opportunity for Accelerated Economic Growth, contends that efficiency gains from AI may not lead to unemployment because those displaced from routine jobs will be reemployed through reskilling and upskilling in the same sector.