Maharashtra Set to Launch Its Own AI Policy, Aiming for Increased Business and Youth Employment
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Mumbai, Jan 1 (NationPress) Maharashtra’s Information and Technology Minister Ashish Shelar has declared that the state government is preparing to unveil an Artificial Intelligence (AI) policy to mold the future landscape of industries, businesses, and governance, recognizing the significant transformative potential of AI.
He has instructed the department to formulate the AI policy.
Minister Shelar emphasized that the age of AI technology is upon us and Maharashtra must capitalize on this chance to emerge as a leader in this domain.
“By utilizing AI, we can draw in more industries and businesses, generate job opportunities for the youth, and establish Maharashtra as a formidable contender,” stated the Minister during his discussion with department officials.
“The India AI Mission, initiated in March this year with a budget of Rs 10,372 crore, aims to enhance AI capabilities nationwide, with specific allocations for the India AI Datasets Platform, Application Development projects, Graphic Processing Units, India AI Innovation Centre, Future Skills Programme, and funding for startups in the AI sector. Aligning Maharashtra’s AI ambitions with these national initiatives is crucial for the state to become a leader in the AI revolution,” remarked Shelar.
According to the Minister, the Central government intends to commence the collection and aggregation of non-personal datasets to construct a comprehensive database that will support the India AI Datasets Platform starting January 2025. This initiative will facilitate seamless access for startups, companies, academics, and researchers to develop applications, interact with language models, and provide specialized services.
“It is vital for Maharashtra to position itself at the forefront of India’s technological progress while contributing to the nation’s goal of becoming a global AI powerhouse,” Shelar stated.
Minister Shelar's remarks follow the recommendations from the state body MITRA, which has been created based on the model of NITI Aayog. MITRA has recently suggested the creation of sovereign AI through the establishment of a joint government and private sector entity with a 49 percent - 51 percent equity structure via a competitive selection process involving reputable IT firms. IT companies specializing in AI, machine learning (ML), and Quantum Computing will have unrestricted access to extensive, high-quality, machine-readable public datasets for the initial two years. It has underscored the necessity for setting up an Investment Fund to support AI and Quantum Computing startups.
