- “SOIL-TECH – Towards Digital India”, 15th-17th February 2019, JNU
In association with FICCI-ILIA
Indian language technology stands at a critical juncture today. On one hand, linguistic and cultural diversities give Indian languages the freedom and independence, make them dynamic, while the lack of technology and related materials on the other hand is slowing the growth momentum. The ability of language, technology, standard, grammar, acceptability and the ability to bind in a formula between the four main language families, 22 national languages and the diversity and computational complexity of the total 1761 languages has been attracting the language community. Currently, Indian language internet users in India (234 million) have already overtaken the number of English users (175 million). These users are expected to account for nearly 75% of India’s internet user base by 2021. On one hand, India continues to add more Indic speaking users which is making the internet a dynamic space; on the other hand, the lack of technology and related resources, is stalling the growth in the competitive digital age. In order to understand the changing dynamics of this complex and ever-changing industry, FICCI-ILIA partnered with School of Sanskrit and Indic Studies, JNU to co-organize a three-day conference “SOIL-Tech – Towards Digital India” on 15th-17th February 2019 at CONVENTION CENTER, JNU, New Delhi bringing together the brightest minds in natural language processing researchers, academicians, business, media and publishing to join the conversation. From panel discussions to plenary discussion to discussion on white papers, the three days were filled with insightful conversations about forces shaping India’s language technology industry and how the Indian languages shall be impacting the economy by the people helping bring about this change.