New Delhi, Dec 5 (Mayank Nigam) India’s growing inequalities based on caste, religion, gender, class, and geographic location are being worryingly replicated in the digital space, as per the Oxfam India’s latest ‘India Inequality Report 2022: Digital Divide’. “Percentage of men owning phones is as high as 61 per cent while only 31 per cent women owned phones in 2021” said the report. The report said eigth per cent of the General caste have a computer or a laptop whereas less than 1 per cent of the Scheduled Tribes (ST) and 2 percent of the Scheduled Castes (SC) have it. “‘As per Mobile Gender Gap report by GSMA, women are less likely to use mobile internet by 33 percent when compared to men in 2021” it said. The report showed that a person with a post-graduate or a PhD is 60 per cent more likely to have a phone than a person with no education. This is worrying because this digital divide can further deepen the existing socio-economic inequalities in the country.
“We urge the state and Union government to immediately take necessary steps to universalise internet connectivity and treat digital technologies as public utility not a privilege”, said Amitabh Behar, CEO of Oxfam India. The report revealed that digital divide based on employment status where 95 per cent of the salaried permanent workers have a phone whereas only 50 per cent of the unemployed (willing and looking for a job) have a phone in 2021. The report also highlighted that contrary to popular perception the use of computer devices decreased in rural areas. Pre pandemic, only 3 percent of the rural population owned a computer. This has come down to just 1 per cent post- pandemic. Whereas in urban areas, the number of people with computers is eighth percent. The use of digital technologies in delivering essential services such as education and health is also reflecting the country’s digital divide and its consequences.
Oxfam India’s five states rapid assessment survey during the lockdown in September 2020 showed 82 per cent of parents faced challenges in supporting their children to access digital education; signal and internet speed were the biggest issues in private schools. “In government schools, 80 per cent parents reported that education was not delivered during the lockdown. Eighty per cent government school teachers also struggled with delivery through digital mediums due to lack of devices and internet” it said. Oxfam India also called on the Union government and state governments to ensure universal access to internet connectivity by investing in digital infrastructure to not only make the internet affordable, but also push for greater accessibility to smartphones.