Infosys' Nandan Nilekani to turn advisor for government panel to curb digital monopolies

Nandan Nilekani, the non-executive Chairman of IT giant Infosys, is all set to work with the central government to work against digital monopolies. The central government is currently forming a nine-member panel to curb such monopoly’s formations and the Infosys lead is set to join in. The committee set up by the centre will work to accelerate the development of an Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC).

Nandan Nilekani joins the central committee

The introduction of Nandan Nilekani to the centre’s committee will see the government instill more trust in the process put forth by the Commerce Ministry. According to a government statement, the committee being formed will work to promote open networks and digitise value chains while enhancing value for consumers.

Explaining the need for the process, the statement said, “The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) is a project initiated by the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The task has been assigned to the Quality Council of India (QCI). ONDC aims at promoting open networks developed on open-source methodology, using open specifications and open network protocols independent of any specific platform."

The Indian IT industry veteran will now be a member of the advisory council of the government that will recommend measures for the formation and working of ONDC. Apart from Nilekani, the council will include RS Sharma, CEO of the National Health Authority, Adil Zainulbhai, the QCI chief, Anjali Bansal, the founder of Avaana Capital, Arvind Gupta, the co-founder of Digital India Foundation, Dilip Asbe, head of the National Payments Corporation of India, Suresh Rathi, head of the National Securities Depository, Praveen Khandelwal, chief of the Confederation of All India Traders, and Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO of the Retailers Association of India.

PM Modi praises Infosys for service

Earlier in June, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had lauded the role played by Indian IT giants including Infosys in providing their services to the people during the COVID pandemic. Speaking at the fifth edition of the Viva Tech Summit, PM Modi lauded the efforts put forth by Infosys in providing tech support for the 2021 French Open. PM’s speech noted that India's IT sector has grown to $194 billion in the pandemic year and continues to remain one of the best in the world.

IMAGE: PTI (With ANI inputs)