- Brings together government policymakers, technology leaders and startups to discuss the future of digital governance in Uttar Pradesh.
- Commits to partnering on the critical digital skills and technology required for the state’s digital success.
Lucknow, March 18, 2021: Committed to partnering with the public sector to accelerate India’s digital transformation, Microsoft India hosted the Digital Governance State Roadshow for Uttar Pradesh in collaboration with the Department of IT & Electronics, Government of Uttar Pradesh, and Elets Technomedia. The virtual conference brought together government policymakers, technology leaders, and startups on a common platform to explore the potential of technology for the future of governance. The forum saw discussion around the impact and integration of technologies like cloud, data, and AI into state priorities like urban development, healthcare, agriculture, power, and education. Anchoring these discussions, Microsoft shared its commitment to partner with the state, making available the technology and tools required to accelerate its digital success.
A major highlight of the event was the focus around the government’s efforts to nurture the startup ecosystem in Uttar Pradesh, boosting entrepreneurship and long-term growth for the sector. A customized workshop was organized for startups, addressing topics like mentorship, funding, national and international market exploration and market access, corporate tie-ups etc. The conference saw robust participation from startups, incubators, venture capitalists, and educational institutions.
Dialogue at the event spanned a host of subjects, including leveraging technology for making Uttar Pradesh a $1 trillion economy, digital transformation and future of governance, using technology for smart and safe cities and the critical role of startups and entrepreneurship in enabling an Atmanirbhar Uttar Pradesh.
The event saw panel discussions, fireside chats and a skilling workshop with participation from senior government and public sector officials of Uttar Pradesh including Shri Ajit Singh Pal, Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology, Government of Uttar Pradesh, Shri Arvind Kumar, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Infrastructure & Industrial Development and IT and Electronics Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh, Shri Navneet Sehgal, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Information, MSME and Export Promotion, Khadi & Village Industries, Government of Uttar Pradesh, Shri Sanjay R. Bhoosreddy, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Sugar Industry and Cane Development & Excise Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh and Commissioner, Cane & Sugar, Uttar Pradesh; Shri Nitin Ramesh Gokarn, IAS, Principal Secretary, Public Works Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh, among other speakers.
Inaugurating the event, Shri Ajit Singh Pal, Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology, Government of Uttar Pradesh, said, “The Digital Governance State Roadshow for Uttar Pradesh is an apt platform to discuss and deliberate on latest technological advancements and the role of artificial intelligence and cloud in the healthcare, agriculture, education and other sectors. In this era of digital transformation, tech giants like Microsoft have an important role to play. The Uttar Pradesh government and Microsoft can sign an MoU in the field of technology and help realize the dream of a digital Uttar Pradesh.”
“When it comes to technology implementation, there are a plethora of opportunities in Uttar Pradesh and our government is giving opportunities to private companies in this field,” he added.
In his welcome address, Navtez Bal, Executive Director, Public Sector, Microsoft India, said, “India’s public sector has demonstrated tremendous agility, innovation, and resilience this past year, addressing problems at scale and ensuring the smooth continuity of citizen services. Technology played a central role in enabling this resilience and response. We thank the Uttar Pradesh government for this opportunity and are excited to advance a dialogue on the state’s potential and preparedness to embrace technology-led development and innovation. We look forward to working closely with state governments across the country, empowering government officials to leverage data, AI and secure cloud technology for efficient, transparent and productive governance.”
The Digital Governance State Roadshow is a unique knowledge-sharing platform to deliberate on the significance and opportunity that technologies like cloud computing, data and AI offer for transforming governance in India. Public sector organizations around the world are using the power of AI and the cloud to innovate in a fast and agile manner, address problems at scale, and transform public services for citizens.
Microsoft’s Digital Governance State Roadshow brings together public sector officials across various states in the country to advance dialogue on how technology can play a critical role in accelerating economic and societal progress, addressing the unique needs of our country.
Microsoft is deeply invested in the digital transformation of the government ecosystem in India and has been working closely with central and state governments across the country to deliver critical digital skills and technology to accelerate their digital success.
About Microsoft
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Microsoft set up its India operations in 1990. Today, Microsoft entities in India have over 13,000 employees, engaged in sales and marketing, research, development and customer services and support, across 11 Indian cities – Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, New Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune. Microsoft offers its global cloud services from local data centers to accelerate digital transformation across Indian startups, businesses, and government organizations.
