SUMMARY
Bhashini aims to create the next generation of government websites that will enable users to access them in their language of choice
Nag also highlighted the active involvement of the fintech sector, particularly those focused on banking the unbanked, and the retail sector, aiming to promote inclusivity for both merchants and buyers
In October, NPCI with Bhashini launched Hello! UPI, a voice-enabled UPI payments feature available in Hindi and English, soon to expand to three more languages.
India’s fintech and ecommerce space, which is experiencing rapid growth, is actively engaging with the government’s AI-powered language translation platform, Bhashini, to offer their users multiple languages, both text and speech.
This could include accessing app content, giving voice commands for payments or filing forms, grievances redressal chats and so on—all in native languages, Moneycontrol reported.
Amitabh Nag, the CEO of Bhashini, told Moneycontrol that various private organisations, especially those in the financial sector, are engaging with them. These companies utilise purpose-driven data from their systems to assist in enhancing the testing of Bhashini’s systems.
Bhashini was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2022. Before that, the Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar conducted a brainstorming session with startups to shape the strategy for the AI-led translation platform.
Bhashini is part of the larger National Language Translation Mission. It aims to create the next generation of government websites that will enable users to access them in their language of choice.
The integration of Bhashini is part of the efforts of the NPCI, which facilitates services like UPI Payment, Bharat Bill Pay, RuPay Card, FASTag, to further increase digital payments in the country, especially by making them accessible to feature phone users.
Since its launch, Bhashini has collaborated with diverse stakeholders, including the government, academia, research groups, startups, banks, industry players, and data collection companies, to not just test the tool but also develop various use cases.
Nag also highlighted the active involvement of the fintech sector, particularly those focused on banking the unbanked and the retail sector, aiming to promote inclusivity for both merchants and buyers. Proof-of-concepts (POCs) are being conducted with these sectors, he added.
Reportedly, Paytm is among the fintech firms in discussions with Bhashini for testing their system, with major announcements expected by the end of 2024.
Bhashini’s capabilities are not limited to financial transactions; they are also developing services for the PM-Kisan app, enabling information to farmers in their preferred local language through text and voice (via AI chatbots). The Reserve Bank’s frictionless credit system uses Bhashini’s translation system for digital lending.
In October last year, NPCI with Bhashini launched Hello! UPI, a voice-enabled UPI payments feature available in Hindi and English, soon to expand to three more languages. The teams intend to encompass functions like recharges, checking bank accounts, processing electricity payments, challans, and renewing insurance policies through voice commands in Indian languages, in its use cases.
At present, Bhashini supports 22 languages for text-to-text translations and 12 for voice-to-text in its repository. Moreover, 6 languages are still under formulation for data collection challenges, with a team of 200 people actively working on the project.
