Survey Context
- First major dataset from CAMS (2022–2023) by NSSO, covering 3.02 lakh households and 12.99 lakh people.
- Aims to track progress on SDG 4.4 – digital skills for youth and adults.
Relevance : GS 2(Social Issues)
Internet Access – National Picture
- 76.3% households have broadband Internet access across India.
- Urban areas: 86.5%
- Rural areas: 71.2%
- Shows deep Internet penetration, but with regional and social disparities.
Regional Disparities
- High broadband access (>90%): Delhi, Goa, Mizoram, Manipur, Sikkim, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh.
- Low broadband access (<70%): West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh.
Social Group Disparities
- General category households: 84.1% have broadband.
- OBCs: 77.5%, SCs: 69.1%, STs: 64.8%.
- Indicates a digital caste divide, with marginalized groups lagging.
Income-Based Digital Divide
- Poorest decile (bottom 10%): 71.6% households lack broadband.
- Richest decile (top 10%): Only 1.9% lack broadband.
- Even second lowest decile shows 56.2% connectivity → shows improvement across income bands.
- Economic status = key driver of digital access.
Mobile Phone Access
- Mobile/telephone access: 94.2% rural, 97.1% urban households.
- Mobile usage (age 15+): 83.9% rural, 92.4% urban.
- However, exclusive mobile use is low among women and lower castes, especially in rural areas:
- Rural general category women: only 25.3% use mobile exclusively.
- Urban women: 51.2%.
- Even worse for SCs, STs, OBCs.
Technology Level in Use
- Only 50% rural and 70% urban users use 4G.
- 40.4% of Indians still use older mobile technologies (2G/3G).
- 5G adoption: negligible.
Digital Skills Gaps
- Internet usage (15+ age group): 53.6% rural, 74% urban.
- Email use: 20% rural, 40% urban.
- Copy-paste skills: 40% rural, 60% urban.
- Spreadsheet arithmetic skills: very low.
- Online banking skills: only 37.8% of population 15+ can perform.
Policy Implications
- Clear digital divide across regions, caste groups, genders, and income levels.
- Digital skills lag behind access, especially in rural areas and among marginalized groups.
- Government should:
- Subsidize broadband for the poor (as done for water/electricity).
- Focus on basic digital literacy training at the grassroots.
- Ensure equity in access to support goals under SDG 4.
