Indian business will benefit much by going digital, according to a new study which has predicted an increase in revenues by up to 27 per cent, employment by up to 84 per cent and access to international markets by up to 65 per cent for small and medium business with use of digital technologies. The study has been done by ASSOCHAM and Deloitte.
The study ‘Digital India: Unlocking the Trillion Dollar opportunity’ says that availability of digital infrastructure will accelerate business growth. It will help companies drive significant efficiencies by reducing time to market (new products, new markets).
Technologies like telepresence will reduce the need for business travel and result in cost savings. Use of digital technology is also expected to improve employee satisfaction and collaboration, leading to a more productive workforce. It is estimated that in India, employees in SMBs with advanced digital engagement are 8.7 times more likely to collaborate than offline businesses.
Indian Government has taken several measures to improve ease of doing business which has led to an improvement in country’s global ranking for ease of doing business. Services such as eBiz portal and KYC are contributing to this improvement. The vision and initiatives towards “digital India” are expected to boost investment in the digital space in the short-term and lead to rise in digital innovation, efficiency and productivity in the long-term. Currently, a number of domestic and global companies have announced investments in the digital space in the country. “Digital India is likely to have a significant impact on the profitability and operations of business. Through adoption of digital technologies, companies can consolidate docume-ntation, automate processes and have access to efficient and cheaper ICT capabilities,” said Sandeep Jajodia, President ASSOCHAM.
India has pledged to decrease its carbon emissions by 33 to 35 per cent relative to its GDP from 2005 levels by 2030. The Digital India programme is likely to have a positive contribution towards achieving these goals. Widespread implementation of telepresence and cloud computing technology under Digital India will lead to reduction in carbon emissions. For example, telepresence can eliminate 20 per cent of the business travel, leading to reduction in carbon emissions by 1.08 mn tonne globally. Use of cloud storage for documents will significantly reduce the consumption of natural resources like paper. India is the fifth-largest producer of e-waste, discarding approximately 1.8 mn tonne of e waste each year. Under Digital India, adoption of ICT solutions such as waste collection automation and waste management information and prognostics are expected to considerably reduce e-waste.
