India advances AI-led transformation of public data ecosystem

New Delhi— India has made notable strides in building an AI-ready public data infrastructure, strengthening access to official statistics and enabling the deployment of artificial intelligence across sectors such as healthcare, weather forecasting and agriculture, according to a government statement.

A key pillar of this transformation is e?Sankhyiki, launched in 2024. The platform currently hosts 21 statistical products and over 136 million records. It allows users to directly query datasets, integrate them with analytical tools and automate reporting processes, significantly improving efficiency in data-driven decision-making.

The platform also offers a unified interface to access multiple datasets, reducing the time required for data retrieval and simplifying analysis workflows.

Another major initiative, the National Data and Analytics Platform, aggregates datasets from 52 ministries spanning 31 sectors. It standardises data into a coherent format and provides built-in tools for analytics and visualisation, making it easier for users to interpret and utilise government data.

In the healthcare domain, the government recently launched the Benchmarking Open Data Platform for Health (BODH) in February 2026. This platform is designed to evaluate AI models using diverse, anonymised real-world datasets. It assesses systems on parameters such as performance, robustness, bias and generalisability before large-scale deployment.

BODH also enables developers to train and test AI systems in a controlled environment, while allowing regulators to conduct structured third-party evaluations with higher statistical reliability—helping establish benchmarks aligned with national public health priorities.

Beyond healthcare, meteorological agencies are increasingly using AI and machine learning for applications such as short-range global forecasting, precipitation modelling, fire detection and fog prediction.

Overall, India’s growing ecosystem of AI-enabled statistical platforms is reshaping how public data is accessed and used, supporting more responsive governance and informed decision-making across sectors.

With inputs from IANS