Criticism surrounding the use of Narendra Modi’s photo for Reliance Jio advertisements is myopic and loaded. Jio has the potential to advance the Digital India scheme
Bobby Kumar is a young man with sprightly enthusiasm. After migrating from a village in Aligarh of Uttar Pradesh, he landed in Noida, for want of a better job. He leaves no stone unturned to support his family of four. Recently, by sheer chance, I learnt about a unique predicament of his. He was struggling to open a savings bank account in a nationalised bank.
Perplexed, I tried to call the bank, but to no one responded. While contemplating my next move, I took to Twitter and put out the plight of this young man by tagging the bank. Thanks to my training in social media, I was aware who else to tag — the Prime Minister's Office in India, the Finance Ministry and some senior economic journalists. In my tweets, I expressed dismay at the fact that on the one hand, the Prime Minister speaks about empowering people through financial inclusion and how the Jan Dhan Yojana was becoming a rage, on the other hand, banks were seemingly working at cross purposes. To my surprise, the bank responded within 24 hours and started working towards a resolution. In about 48 hours, Bobby Kumar had an account.
The story of Bobby Kumar is significant in view of the recent criticism on the use of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s photo in Reliance Jio advertisements. To me, this rather unfounded condemnation of Modi is both premature and problematic.
We are all aware and have witnessed a historic shift in governance in India. Himself a visionary, the Prime Minister has infused a rare dynamism in the way businesses of Government are carried out. Technology has come to acquire a pre-eminent position in day to day governance and Modi has reiterated his passion of empowering people through digital technology time and again. We have heard and read stories of how our External Affairs Minister has come to the rescue of stranded people on foreign lands. We have seen how the Railways Ministry has gone to the extent of providing milk to a hungry child on a running train after an alert on Twitter. We have also heard stories of different kinds of grievances being addressed swiftly during the train jaourney. Indian Railways Twitter Control Room is much spoken about.
Police has been one of the most efficient users of social media for grievance management. In fact, the Uttar Pradesh police has also set up a Twitter Monitoring Cell and it is only a matter of time that many other States will follow this model. I am in no way implying that the use of social media can end people's harassment on dealing with services delivery challenges, but to me, it certainly offers hope. It offers millions like Bobby Kumar, an alternative to air their grievances and coerces our institutions towards more accountable which is a good sign for a thriving democracy like ours.
Jio strengthens such possibilities. By further broadening the scope of the broadband, Jio promises to empower people like never before. It takes the dream of the Prime Minister a step further and in an era of growing public private partnership, the story of Jio allows us to advance the dream of a digitally-empowered India.
Even worst critics of Modi will agree that one of the prerequisites to growth and progress is enhanced access to information and communication technology. The ambitious digital India programme aims to transform the country into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. Digital India is transformational in nature and will ensure that Government services are available to citizens, electronically. It will also bring in public accountability through mandated delivery of Government's services electronically, a Unique ID and e-Pramaan based on authentic and standard based interoperable and integrated Government applications and data basis.
Access to non-expensive Internet-enabled phones — and with just about nine per cent of rural population having phones with Internet connections, India fares poorly on this count according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India — is a key prerequisite for the dream of digital India to come true. According to a World Bank Report, in 2014, only 18 out of every 100 Indians used Internet, and needless to mention there is a crying need to better this figure for prosperous India.
In this backdrop, Reliance has done a Jio act for millions of aspiring phone and Internet users of India, thereby advancing the vision of Prime Minister Modi of a digital India. Next time Bobby has an issue, he will possibly use a Jio phone to tweet it himself.