I&B Ministry
I&B secy Bimal Julka stresses value of social media in reaching out to people
NEW DELHI: Information and Broadcasting Ministry Secretary Bimal Julka has said social media initiatives of the government had provided people a platform to communicate directly with the government through methods such as Crowdsourcing, which encouraged such innovations.
He stressed the need for qualitative information flow and interface of citizens with the communication strategy of the government. “This has led to people centric communication and facilitated enhanced outreach and visibility of government communication across platforms,” he said.
Julka said this in discussions with Queensland University of Technology, Australia vice chancellor Professor Peter Coaldrake, here today.
“The communication paradigm has undergone a shift with a 360 degree approach being adopted to address the communication needs and challenges,” he said.
He also referred to flagship schemes of the government namely Digital India, Skill India, Make In India, which had provided an opportunity to media units to reach out to defined target audiences.
He specifically highlighted the use and effectiveness of initiating Talkathons, which provided a direct interface with the people leading to effective citizen centric communication. “Such initiatives would encourage a culture of inclusive and participative decision making,” he said.
During the meeting, Julka and Professor Coaldrake reviewed the current training mechanism between the Ministry and QUT with regard to in-service training of Indian Information Service officers. Both agreed that the future training agenda should include contemporary issues related to media and communication studies. They emphasized that Skill Development was critical for in-service training of officers handling government communication.
I&B Ministry
Government sets up AI governance group to steer policy
AIGEG to align ministries, assess jobs impact, guide AI deployment.
MUMBAI: If artificial intelligence is the engine, the government is now building the dashboard and making sure everyone reads from the same screen. The Centre has constituted a new inter-ministerial body to coordinate India’s approach to AI, formalising a key recommendation from its governance framework and the Economic Survey. The AI Governance and Economic Group (AIGEG), set up by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, will act as the central platform to align AI-related policy across ministries, regulators and departments, an attempt to bring coherence to what has so far been a fragmented and fast-evolving landscape.
The group will be chaired by union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, with minister of state Jitin Prasada as vice chairperson. Its composition reflects both technological and economic priorities, bringing together the principal scientific adviser, the chief economic adviser, and the CEO of NITI Aayog, alongside key secretaries from telecommunications, economic affairs and science and technology. A representative from the National Security Council Secretariat is also part of the group, while the MeitY secretary will serve as member convenor.
At its core, AIGEG is designed to do two things: coordinate and anticipate. On the policy front, it will review existing regulatory mechanisms, issue guidance across sectors and ensure companies remain compliant with evolving legal frameworks. Beyond that, it will oversee national initiatives on AI governance, with a focus on enabling responsible innovation rather than merely regulating it.
The economic dimension is equally central. The group has been tasked with assessing how AI-driven automation could reshape jobs identifying which roles are most at risk, where those impacts may be geographically concentrated, and whether technology will augment or replace human labour. Based on these assessments, it will develop mitigation strategies and transition plans, signalling a more proactive stance on workforce disruption.
In parallel, AIGEG will work with industry stakeholders to chart a long-term roadmap for AI adoption, categorising use cases into “deploy”, “pilot” or “defer” buckets depending on readiness factors such as data availability, skill levels and regulatory clarity. The aim is to move from broad ambition to structured execution deciding not just what can be built, but what should be built now.
The group will function as the apex layer in India’s AI governance architecture, supported by a Technology and Policy Expert Committee that will track global developments, emerging risks and regulatory priorities. Together, the two bodies are expected to shape both the pace and direction of AI adoption in the country.
In a landscape where technology often outruns policy, the creation of AIGEG signals an attempt to close that gap ensuring that India’s AI journey is not just rapid, but also coordinated, accountable and economically grounded.
