1st Edition

The Dazzle of the Digital Unbundling India Online

By Meghna Bal, Vivan Sharan Copyright 2023
    146 Pages 4 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    The Dazzle of the Digital is written in the context of digital technology’s inextricable link with progress and modernity in India, with the COVID pandemic in the backdrop. Digital technology such as smartphones and the internet exemplify the popular ideal of a modernity where the proliferation of data and information seamlessly translates into knowledge and value. The authors attempt to wrestle with this impulsive conflation of the digital with the modern, and argue that the former can sometimes retard progress rather than foster it. They provide examples from various spheres – ranging from public service delivery to private markets – to unpack the pitfalls of a blinkered view on modernity. The book presents an objective take on the potential of digital technology, written with the hope that it will prompt greater societal reflection on technology as a lever for advancement, at a time when the march of everything digital is inexorable.

    Lists of Figures

    List of Tables

    Series Editor's Foreword (Saurabh Dube)

    Acknowledgements

    1. Introduction – The Dazzle of the Digital

    2. A Brief History of the Politics of Technology in India

    3. Defaulting to e-Governance

    4. Is Data the New Oil?

    5. Digital in the Time of COVID

    6. Conclusion – Stepping Back to Leap Forward

    Biography

    Meghna Bal; Fellow, Esya Centre

    Vivan Sharan; Partner, Koan Advisory Group