New Partnership Enhances Multilingual Access in Public Procurement
The Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD), part of the Digital India Corporation, has joined forces with the Government e Marketplace (GeM) to advance multilingual digital capabilities within India’s public procurement sector. This collaboration, formalized through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), aims to enhance access to government services for speakers of various languages across the country.
The initiative, dubbed ‘BHASHINI for Seva/Sanchalan – A BHASHINI Sahayogi Program,’ focuses on creating a multilingual experience across digital platforms using the BHASHINI Platform, which represents India’s National Language Digital Public Infrastructure. This program will empower stakeholders by providing the ability to access vital information and services in their preferred languages, thereby fostering inclusion in government procurement.
Strengthening Language Technologies
Through this partnership, GeM and the BHASHINI team will collaboratively develop and deploy a range of multilingual digital resources. These initiatives will encompass projects like BHASHINI Udyat and Mitra, which aim to improve translation capabilities and user interactions in multiple languages. Furthermore, they will integrate voice-enabled technologies and create multilingual glossaries to support effective communication within the GeM ecosystem.
Breaking Down Language Barriers
This collaboration is designed to minimize language barriers, ensuring a more inclusive public procurement environment. By enhancing processes such as seller onboarding and platform navigation, the initiative seeks to facilitate better communication and engagement among all stakeholders, including small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), startups, and entrepreneurs who operate in different linguistic regions. The emphasis is on making government procurement opportunities accessible to everyone, irrespective of their language.
Advancing Innovation in Language Infrastructure
Experts involved in the discussions highlighted the vital role that multilingual technologies play in expanding access to government services and improving the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) metric. By focusing on multilingualism, the initiative aims to ensure that language does not hinder economic opportunities for diverse communities across India.
The MoU will also promote language data contributions through Bhashadaan and support capacity-building initiatives that encourage the use of multilingual AI tools. This will enhance the availability of linguistic resources needed to support procurement services and facilitate the seamless integration of language technology in various public applications.
Vision for Inclusive Digital Governance
The partnership reinforces the significance of BHASHINI as a pivotal infrastructure for inclusive and AI-driven digital governance in India. With the support of GeM, the collaboration aspires to create a transparent and efficient procurement ecosystem, ensuring participation from a broad spectrum of buyers and sellers.
Shri Ajit B Chavan, ACEO and Chief Seller Officer, stated, “The collaboration aims to leverage BHASHINI’s AI-powered language technologies to break linguistic barriers in public procurement and make GeM more accessible to buyers and sellers across the country.” Meanwhile, Shri Amitabh Nag, CEO of DIBD, emphasized the commitment to ensure that the digital public infrastructure remains inclusive, allowing all citizens and enterprises to engage effectively in their preferred languages.
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