The Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD), under Digital India Corporation (DIC), Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, in collaboration with the Department of Information Technology, Electronics & Communications, Government of Goa, organised the 'BHASHINI Rajyam: State Engagement Workshop' in Panaji to advance multilingual AI and strengthen language-first Digital Public Infrastructure. The event brought together policymakers, senior government officials, industry leaders, academia, startups and language experts, and was attended by  Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant and  Minister for Information Technology, Electronics & Communications, Tourism, Printing & Stationery Shri Rohan A. Khaunte, reflecting a shared commitment to making digital governance more inclusive, accessible and multilingual.

With a special focus on Konkani, the workshop highlighted how AI-powered language technologies can make digital governance more inclusive by enabling citizens to access government services, information and digital platforms in their preferred language. The discussions underscored the role of multilingual AI in building a voice-first ecosystem where language is no longer a barrier to public service delivery.

The inaugural session featured addresses by Shri Santosh Sukhdve, IAS, Secretary, Department of Information Technology, Electronics & Communications, Government of Goa; Shri Prasad Lolayekar, IAS, Secretary, Higher Education, Government of Goa; Dr. Chandrakant Shetye, MLA, Bicholim and Chairman, InfoTech Corporation of Goa Ltd.; Shri Rohan A. Khaunte, Minister for Information Technology, Electronics & Communications, Tourism, Printing & Stationery, Government of Goa; and Dr. Pramod Sawant, Chief Minister of Goa.

Delivering the keynote address, Shri Amitabh Nag, CEO, Digital India BHASHINI Division, outlined BHASHINI's vision for a language-first Digital Public Infrastructure powered by multilingual AI. He highlighted its growing impact across governance, tourism, healthcare, education, banking and citizen services, and called for stronger collaboration among governments, academia, startups and language experts to strengthen regional language ecosystems, including Konkani, and drive inclusive digital transformation.

The workshop featured technical sessions on the National Hub for Language Technology (NHLT) and showcased BHASHINI's growing ecosystem of multilingual AI solutions. Participants were introduced to BHASHINI App Mitra, BHASHINI Mitra and BHASHINI Pravakta, demonstrating how AI-powered translation, speech recognition, text-to-speech, transliteration and multilingual APIs can be seamlessly integrated into government applications and citizen-facing digital services.

The BHASHINI team showcased live demonstrations of its AI-powered language solutions, offering participants a first-hand experience of multilingual speech, translation, transcription and document-based technologies. The demonstrations highlighted how BHASHINI can strengthen citizen-centric governance while enabling seamless multilingual access to tourism services, public information and digital platforms, enhancing digital experiences for both citizens and visitors.

A dedicated session focused on strengthening the Konkani language ecosystem through collaboration between government, academia, language experts and technology partners. Discussions explored opportunities to expand language datasets, enhance AI models and identify state-specific use cases to accelerate the adoption of multilingual AI across Goa.

The Open Mic on Use Cases fostered discussions on state-specific applications of multilingual AI across governance, tourism, education, healthcare and citizen services, while exploring opportunities to integrate BHASHINI across Goa's digital platforms for more inclusive, language-first public services.

The workshop reaffirmed BHASHINI's commitment to working closely with State Governments to build language-first Digital Public Infrastructure. It marked the beginning of deeper collaboration with the Government of Goa to strengthen the Konkani language ecosystem, identify priority use cases and expand the adoption of multilingual AI across government services, enabling more accessible, inclusive and citizen-centric governance.

Shri Rohan A. Khaunte, Minister for Information Technology, Electronics & Communications, Tourism, Printing & Stationery, Government of Goa, said:“The BHASHINI Rajyam Workshop is a significant step towards building an inclusive, AI-powered digital Goa. Through our collaboration with the Digital India BHASHINI Division, we aim to remove language barriers and ensure that every citizen—including those in the remotest parts of Goa—can access digital services in Konkani. As AI becomes more accessible, preserving and empowering our language is central to Goa's digital future and innovation journey."

Shri Amitabh Nag, CEO, Digital India BHASHINI Division, said: "A comprehensive demonstration showcased a simulated voice journey of a Goan youth, highlighting how BHASHINI's multilingual AI ecosystem can enable seamless interactions with governance and public services through voice. The persona-based journey illustrated key touchpoints—from accessing government schemes and digital services to education and citizen support—demonstrating how AI-powered speech technologies can make service delivery more inclusive, accessible, and language-first. The session also highlighted the importance of developing high-quality Konkani language datasets to strengthen AI capabilities and accelerate the creation of voice-enabled digital public services in the language."

About Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD)

The Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD), under Digital India Corporation (DIC), MeitY, is India's national platform for AI-powered multilingual digital inclusion. BHASHINI powers 800+ government websites, has enabled 8+ billion AI inferences, processes 20+ million AI inferences daily, and supports 36 Indian text languages, 23 Indian voice languages and 35 international languages, making Digital Public Infrastructure more accessible through language AI.

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Dharmendra Tewari / Dr. Nayan Solanki / Kanishk Sharma / Vanshita Jaiswal