MeitY/NIXI successfully unveils BhashaNet portal at Universal Acceptance Day event
Mar 21, 2024
New Delhi [India], March 21 : The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) have announced the launch of the BhashaNet portal at the Universal Acceptance Day event held in the national capital on Thursday.
The event was held with the active support of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). The event marked a significant milestone in advancing digital inclusion and promoting Universal Acceptance across India.
The theme of the event, "BhashaNet: Impetus Towards Universal Acceptance," highlighted MeitY/NIXI's unwavering commitment towards ensuring that, regardless of linguistic or textual barriers, everyone can fully participate in the digital world. The event featured engaging panel discussions and workshops, with representatives from Bhashini, ONDC, NIC, C-DAC Microsoft, UASG of ICANN, Data Xgen, Infibeam, ZOHO and FICCI sharing insights and best practices for achieving Universal Acceptance readiness.
These sessions aimed to empower participants and the community at large in their efforts to make applications and systems Universal Acceptance compliant.
India's successful hosting of the regional Universal Acceptance Day event paved the way for the upcoming Global Universal Acceptance Day scheduled to take place on March 28, 2024, in Belgrade, Serbia.
Secretary, MeitY, S Krishnan in his keynote address highlighted that Universal Acceptance is a necessity for a truly inclusive internet to allow non-English speakers to access the internet.
He spoke of "leveraging technology and collaboration to ensure every user's needs are met, regardless of language or script."
In his address Krishnan mentioned that about 800 million ppl in india are internet users and this number is bound to grow. To make internet inclusive for these users, Universal Acceptance is absolutely necessary.
"As people use voice to communicate with their devices, even that is going to change. Internet is going to bring a huge change in the way we live. We need to make sure, it works for us. So the bases should be covered and equal opportunities should be provided to all" he said.
He further emphasised on India's potential to lead in standards for Universal Acceptance conformance.
Government officials and industry leaders gathered to commemorate this milestone, underscoring India's dedication to creating a more inclusive digital space.
