Archive · 2 Aug 2026
AI‑Ready Digital Public Infrastructure Must Be Built In
Swati Meena Naik writes that governments should build AI into their digital systems from the start.
India has already made big progress by giving people digital IDs and making different services talk to each other.
These systems create a lot of data, but the real challenge is turning that data into useful knowledge for better decisions.
The Jal Jeevan Mission, which gives clean water to villages, is using a digital platform called Sujalam Bharat to link water sources, usage, and quality checks.
By connecting all this information, the system can learn and improve over time.
AI helps spot patterns and risks, but it still needs human judgment to make the best choices.
The goal is to use AI to make public services faster, smarter, and more helpful for people.
AI readiness should be a core design principle of digital public infrastructure.
India’s digital identity and interoperable platforms have enabled large‑scale innovation.
Public systems generate massive data; the challenge is converting it into institutional intelligence.
The Jal Jeevan Mission’s Sujalam Bharat platform links identities, transactions, and validation to build knowledge loops.
AI is a tool to identify patterns and improve service delivery, not a replacement for human judgment.
- Who
- Swati Meena Naik, joint secretary of the National Jal Jeevan Mission
- What
- Opinion piece on integrating AI readiness into digital public infrastructure
- Where
- India
- Why
- To argue that AI should be a core design principle, not an afterthought, in public systems
- Digital Public Infrastructure
- Foundational system enabling AI integration
- Jal Jeevan Mission
- Rural water infrastructure program
- Sujalam Bharat
- Digital platform for water infrastructure
- AI readiness
- Core principle in DPI design
- Trusted digital identities
- Key component of DPI