China has built the world’s first robotic news anchor for its Xinhua news agency which looks exactly like a human. This event can be called a milestone in artificial intelligence (AI). Similarly, many countries have been working on developing futuristic technologies like AI, internet of things (IoT), data analysis etc. With ageing populations in countries like China, Japan, USA, it has become more necessary for machines to work as a human. The entry of these technologies has been termed as 4th industrial revolution (IR) which brings many challenges and opportunities with it. Let’s see how will it impact India.
Unlike trends in other countries, India has the largest youth population which is called as “demographic dividend”. India aspires to reap this dividend for its growth and compete with others. Today, every government policy paper strives to leverage the youth’s potential in every field like health, education, research etc. But, many experts have shown concern regarding the effect of the 4th IR on employment potential. It may lead to a job crisis in the already vulnerable Indian market. Entry of computers, industrial robots have already reduced job opportunities. As per the World Economic Forum report, machines will overtake humans in 12 key sectors by 2025 in the world. It also predicts that automation will impact about 54% workforce of India by 2022. It can also lead to jobless growth.
However, this concern regarding employment is debatable. Experts have also envisaged the probability of creation of some more jobs with such technologies. Along with this, 4th IR can bring many progressive reforms in every field. Governance can be taken to grass root level with technologies like tele-medicine and tele-education. Communication infrastructure will get a boost by this. Capital output ratio (COR) of industries will decrease which will accelerate GDP. India, being a reservoir of the huge database, can use data analytics in informed policy making and implementation. It will also be beneficial for agriculture development, climate forecasting etc.
But, now the question arises – how should India tackle such a transformation to optimize its benefits? It is an undeniable fact that humans have a peculiar emotional cognition and intelligence which cannot be performed by machines. Ethical standards of humans cannot be copied in machine programs. So, India has to orient its skill development programs by considering future demand for jobs. Reskilling of the workforce should be done as per the scope of tasks which can not be performed by machines. Similarly, there are some fields like machine learning, deep learning, cybersecurity etc. which will have great potential to absorb the workforce in the world of 4th IR.
Though, it will take a long time for 4th IR to make its place in India as it is still at its nascent stage. But, Indian policymakers should have the vision to tackle such future transformation to avoid any kind of adversary. Recently, NITI Ayog has made a white paper regarding AI and strategies to capitalize on it. There is a need for such proactive steps like data protection law, better cybersecurity architecture, increased R&D in order to help India to benefit from both technologies and its demographic dividend.