The significance of Digital Literacy in today’s world

Archit Gupta.

In today’s technologically advanced era, if people have minimal or no exposure to or ability to understand the emerging technologies on the internet, then their ability to participate effectively and benefit the society as well as the economy is greatly affected. Such people are generally at a position of disadvantage in comparison to other technologically sound representatives of the society.
Unequal access to new technological developments and the internet will also deepen social gaps by allowing informed/privileged citizens who have convenient exposure to modern information technology, to gain a mileage over those who have little or no exposure to digital technologies at all. Therefore, it is important to not only analyse the proportion of people who use modern technology, but also their digital competency. This will help the policy makers in designing and enforcing policy initiatives that can ensure a more equitable spread of information, and technological awareness among the people.
Digital soundness benefits the informed citizens in various ways. Firstly, they will be able to take advantage of the simplified governmental procedures, which are readily made accessible online these days, for example : various online services such as Aadhar card services, online payment of taxes, Mobile Seva etc.
The commercial banks are also making their operations digital these days, which will help their customers save valuable time by getting everything done online, instead of sweating it out in long queues. Thus it is important to keep a record of people who are using online banking services, in order to understand the rate of digital literacy in India.
Moreover, the employers who are willing to recruit people from online platforms can also help in learning about the number of the people acquainted with online job portals, by determining if it is the most common choice for people who are looking for job prospects. The broadband service providers understand the requirements and different uses for which internet facility is used by people. Lastly, the online service providers that provide online shopping, online news, e-books, e- magazine etc. will also benefit immensely by identifying their outreach and market position.

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Findings have identified the existence and the magnitude of the digital gap among the individuals which can help the Ministry of Electronics and Information, Government of India in providing equal access to digital infrastructure. Several Government and private initiatives like National Digital Literacy Mission, Digital Udaan which aim at providing digital literacy to the people, will be able to identify the areas and the sections of the society which need special attention and adequate measures to improve.
Moreover, recognizing the frequency and the competency of people in availing various online services will help various online service providers, in identifying the sections of the society that are digitally sound and vice versa. This information can help them in improving and simplifying their services to make them more accessible and usable for people, who are not well equipped with digital knowledge. It can help them organize special campaigns or help centers to impart the required knowledge to less tech-savvy people. For example, if an online employer finds that a large number of people don’t use the internet to look for a job, then they can educate the potential employees on this matter.
To conclude, the ability to use accessible digital technology with required competency has huge implications on the economic prosperity of a nation, because increased connectivity can transform the way a generation works, collaborates, consumes and creates.

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Therefore, it is immensely important to measure the extent of the digital gap among the people. Studies and researchers can help the authorities realize the problems faced by the different sections of their society, in getting access to digital technologies. The government can also raise awareness about the digital platforms and services available to the citizens. It will not only help local service providers in identifying the opportunities available to them through online platforms, but also aid the government bodies and banking sector in identifying the problems faced by people and finding solutions to them.