Citizens, especially youth, should have basic understanding of AI: Ashwini Vaishnaw

New Delhi, Jan 13 (IANS) It is important that citizens, particularly the youth, have a basic understanding of what AI is, how it works, where it is used, and use it responsibly in their lives, according to Minister for Electronics and IT, Ashwini Vaishnaw.

He said that small scale enterprises will reap the benefits of AI, if they are able to use AI in daily work and increase their productivity.

“With this objective, the National AI Literacy Programme has been launched and it is envisaged that this programme will mobilise 10 Lakh learners in the next one year,” he said while commemorating the National Youth Day, according to an IT Ministry statement on Tuesday.

The government has reaffirmed its commitment to youth empowerment by spotlighting the newly launched National AI Literacy Programme and its flagship ‘YUVA AI FOR ALL’ course, bridging Swami Vivekananda's vision of enlightened youth with the tools for an AI-driven future.

At the event, ‘YUVA AI FOR ALL’ foundational course was highlighted, to make AI literacy a core life skill, aligned with National Youth Day's focus on Yuva Shakti.

With the course running time, clocked at a little over four hours, YUVA AI FOR ALL has been designed as an inclusive entry point to AI learning, requiring no prior technical background.

To be made available in 11 languages (Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil and Telugu), the ‘YUVA AI FOR ALL’ course is free of any charge and available on leading learning platforms such as FutureSkills Prime, iGOTKarmayogi, DIKSHA and other popular ed-tech portals.

On completion of the course, every learner will get an official certificate from the Government of India.

“The ‘YUVA AI for All National AI Literacy Programme’ is a significant step towards democratising access to AI knowledge and preparing India’s citizens especially the youth for opportunities and responsibilities of an AI-driven future,” said IT Ministry.

--IANS