RIS Discussion Paper Series - Equitable Development Transformation with Technology: Relevance of the Indian Experience

As per to Grossmann (2001), the first set of literature has concentrated on the impact of capital accumulation and technological change on the distribution of income and wealth, whereas the second set of literature has focused more on the impact of inequality on the rate of growth. [...] She argued that technology “is one of the formative processes of men” and the appropriation of technology by men, and the exclusion of women from many of the domains deemed technical, were processes that leave their mark in the very design of tasks and of machines. [...] In order to understand the role of technology as an equaliser, the 8 conceptual framework based on inclusive innovation would be pertinent as it emphasizes and promotes the creation of products and services that are specifically designed to meet the needs of low-income and excluded groups (“innovation for the poor”) as well as encompasses the innovation carried out by the low income and excluded g. [...] In the case of renewable sources of energy, it is the regulation and policy frameworks in Nordic countries and Germany that played a key role in incentivising innovation in wind and solar energy respectively. [...] 29 In the case of India, as discussed earlier in this paper, the role of government and public sector in bringing about the institutional as well as technological innovations with the objective of harnessing technology as an equalising agent, has been the most significant factor for leading a transformational development trajectory which is equitable and inclusive.