Digital Divide : Meaning & Types

Digital Divide is a term that means the gap between Individuals, communities, Drives, Inequality and Countries who have access to Information and communication technologies (ICTs) and those who don’t have access. This gap is created due to the availability of Internet connections and devices like Smartphones and Computers. The ability to pay for the Internet access, device and data plan. The knowledge of digital literacy is required to effectively use technology. The digital divide is a tool to understand if more or lower will in any country it shows how much the country is developed or is still in its developing phase.

In this article, we will discuss about Digital Divide and its types in detail.

Types of Digital Divide

S.no	Type of Digital Divide	About it
1	Geographic Divide	Remote and rural areas often lack proper infrastructure for internet connectivity, leaving residents disadvantaged compared to urban populations.
2	Socioeconomic Divide	Individuals with lower incomes often face challenges affording internet access and devices, creating a gap between rich and poor.
3	Age Divide	Older adults may face difficulties learning new technologies and adapting to the digital world, creating a gap between younger and older generations
4	Gender Divide	In some regions, women may have lower access to education and resources, leading to a digital gender gap.
5	Social Digital Divide	Internet access creates relationships and social circles among people with shared interests. Social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, etc. create online peer groups based on similar interests.
6	Language Divide	Content and services might not be readily available in local languages, creating a barrier for individuals who don’t speak the dominant language online.

Digital Divide in India 

The Urban-Rural divide 

• Access: Only 31% of the rural population uses the internet compared to 67% in urban areas. Limited infrastructure and higher costs hinder rural connectivity.
• Affordability: Lower rural incomes often restrict access to devices and data plans.
• Digital Literacy: Lack of exposure and training programs limit digital skills in rural communities.

Gender Digital inequalities

• Access: Only 31% of women use the internet compared to 61% of men. Social norms, lack of awareness, and affordability issues contribute to the gap.
• Digital Literacy: Lower female literacy rates and limited access to education further disadvantage women in using technology.
• Safety Concerns: Fear of online harassment and lack of awareness about online safety can deter women from using technology.

Regional Digital Divide and Intra-State Digital Inequality

• Development disparities: Certain states and regions lag in infrastructure development, leading to unequal access across the country.
• Geographical challenges: Hilly terrains, remote locations, and island communities face additional hurdles in establishing connectivity.
• Intra-state disparities: Even within states, urban-rural divides and tribal areas often experience limited access compared to developed regions.

Disparity due to literacy/digital literacy

• Low literacy rates: Individuals with limited literacy skills face difficulties navigating the digital world and understanding online content.
• Lack of digital literacy programs: Insufficient training initiatives hinder individuals from acquiring the necessary skills to effectively use technology.

Linguistic Digital Divide

• Content limitations: Content and services might not be readily available in local languages, excluding individuals who don’t speak the dominant language online.
• Limited accessibility tools: Lack of language translation tools and accessibility features for visually impaired or differently-abled individuals further restricts access to information.

Government Initiative To Bridge Digital Divide in India

The Indian government has launched several initiatives to address the digital divide and promote digital inclusion across the country. Here’s a closer look at some of the key programs:

Digital India Initiatives

• Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyanfor: This scheme aims to train one person per rural household in basic digital literacy skills, covering over 6 crore households from rural areas .
• National Digital Literacy Mission (NDLM): This mission focuses on digital literacy skills for individuals across the country, focusing on rural and underserved communities.

National Education Policy, 2020

• This policy aims to integrate technology into education from the school level onwards, aiming to equip students with essential digital skills and prepare them for the digital world.
• This main goal of this policy is to provide infrastructure to schools like providing computers and alloting computer teachers is every school to educate the school students in the CS field.

Internet Saathi Program

• This initiative, launched in collaboration with Google India and Tata Trusts, empowers women in rural communities as “internet this” to promote digital literacy among their peers.
• The main motive for launching this scheme was bridging the gap between rural India and urban India.

Optical Fibre Network (NOF-N)

• This project aims to connect over 2 lakh gram panchayats with high-speed optical fiber broadband, improving internet connectivity in rural areas.
• This was a major breakthrough to connecting villages of India directly with high-speed internet.

DIKSHA (Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing) platform

• This platform provides free and open access to digital learning resources for educators and students at all levels.
• This is provided college and in government libraries through which students can learn skills

Unnati Project

• This initiative focuses on empowering women through digital literacy training and access to information and communication technologies (ICTs) in rural areas.
• In every Panchayat there will be free classes for women to gain digital literacy.

Gyandoot

• This project utilizes mobile vans equipped with computers and internet connectivity to provide access to information and e-governance services in remote villages.
• This is a part of the Common Service Center government scheme.

Digital Mobile Library

• This initiative provides access to books, educational resources, and digital content through mobile libraries in rural areas.
• Physical books some times can be costly to purchase but with the Digital Mobile Library students can easily learn anything.

Online Massive Open Online Course MOOC

• Government agencies and educational institutions offer free online courses on various topics, promoting skill development and knowledge sharing.
• Government of India has partnered with many companies like Google, Microsoft ,and many others to prepare these courses and make them free on the government portal .

On Air Shiksha Vani

• This radio program broadcasts educational content for students, particularly in rural areas lacking internet access.
• It’s a direct way to connect students who have problems to reach school if they live at a remote location.

E-pathshala

• This online platform provides access to digital textbooks and learning materials for school students across various subjects.
• The central state boards have launched their apps for school students where they will get their class all textbooks and study-related materials like Past Year’s Question paper.

Way Forward – Digital Divide

Infrastructure development	The promotion of indigenous Information and Communication Technologies development under Atmanirbhar Abhiyan can play a significant role.  Promotion of budget mobile phones is the key, we should explore migration to new technologies like 5G and the upcoming 6G.
Promoting Digital Literacy	Government have launched many Schemes to promote Digital Literacy: Digital India Initiatives  National Education Policy, 2020 Internet Saathi Program Optical Fibre Network (NOF-N) DIKSHA (Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing) platform Unaati Project Gyandoot Digital Mobile Literacy Online Massive Open Online Course MOOC On Air Shiksha Vani E- Pathshala
Promotion of Regional Language	State governments should pay particular attention to content creation in the Indian regional languages, particularly those related to government services. Natural language processing ( NLP) in Indian languages needs to be promoted.
TRAI	TRAI should consider putting in place a credible system. This system will track call drops, weak signals, and outages. It ensures the quality and reliability of telecom services.
Cyber Security	Cyber crimes are increasing day by day India loses Millions of Dollars due to the lack of not having awareness, Infrastructure, and Digital literacy and there is also a digital divide . Government have taken many steps to tackle cyber security.

Conclusion

Digital Divide is a term that means the gap between Individuals, communities ,and Countries who have access to Information and communication technologies (ICTs) and those who don’t have access. This gap is created due to the availability of Internet connections and devices like Smartphones and Computers. The Indian government has launched several initiatives to address the digital divide and promote digital inclusion across the country.The main reason for Digital Divide is not having proper Infrastructure , awareness and digital literacy .

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Digital Divide – FAQs

What do you mean by Digital Divide?

The digital divide describes the gap between people who have access to affordable, reliable internet service and the skills and gadgets necessary to take advantage of that access and those who lack it.

What are two cause of Digital Divide?

Factors such as Low income and Low litracy rate ,geographical restrictions, lack of motivation to use technology, lack of physical access to technology, and digital illiteracy contribute to the digital divide.

Who introduced Digital Divide?

In 2000, US president Bill Clinton mentioned the term in the State of the Union Address.

Why is Digital Divide important?

The benefits of closing the global digital divide include Economic growth. Without equal access to digital technology, developing countries, underserved communities, and rural areas may not be able to catch up to these advances.

Is Digital Divide a global issue?

The global digital divide is a special case of the digital divide the focus is set on the fact that “Internet has developed unevenly throughout the world” causing some countries to fall behind in technology, education, labor, democracy, and tourism.