Artificial intelligence (AI) in India needs to be multilingual and voice-enabled to provide significant public value, ensuring language diversity does not hinder healthcare access, as stated by Amitabh Nag, CEO of Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD). Nag emphasized that language AI can improve citizen engagement, grievance redressal, clinical documentation, and accessibility of digital health platforms. At an event in Bhubaneswar, senior officials from Union and state governments, technical institutions, and implementing agencies gathered to boost the adoption of digital health initiatives.
As digital health systems expand nationwide, the integration of artificial intelligence becomes a natural step forward. A key development was the signing of an MoU between the National Health Authority and Digital India BHASHINI Division to provide multilingual translation services and AI-driven language support on NHA’s digital health platforms like AB PM-JAY and ABDM. Kiran Gopal Vaska, Joint Secretary of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, highlighted the practical advantages of language AI in healthcare delivery.
Vaska pointed out that AI tools like voice-to-text and natural language processing can assist doctors by facilitating seamless patient-doctor interactions and automating electronic health records, thereby enhancing efficiency and strengthening digital health systems. The Digital India BHASHINI Division will assist the National Health Authority in implementing multilingual and voice-enabled solutions on beneficiary-facing and administrative platforms, ensuring responsible data governance, secure system integration, and continuous improvement of language models through real-world usage and feedback.
The event discussions aligned with the national goal of promoting digital health through AI-driven innovation and inclusive language access, emphasizing the importance of making digital health platforms usable, accessible, and effective across linguistic and geographic boundaries.
