NITI Aayog Releases Indian National Blockchain Strategy

NITI Aayog – the policy think tank of the Indian Govt. – releases its national blockchain policy draft paper “Blockchain: The India Strategy“. It explains different use cases of blockchain in India along with some conclusions from ongoing pilot projects.

The Govt of India establishes NITI Aayog with the aim to achieve sustainable development goals. How? By fostering the involvement of state govt(s) of India in the economic policy-making process.

National Blockchain Strategy by NITI Aayog Presents a Two-Part Plan

The strategy document targets stakeholders such as government, enterprise leaders, and citizens. It aims at demystifying the concepts surrounding blockchain technology. Also, it aims to create a concrete national plan of action towards blockchain technology.

The policy paper is, however, released in two different parts. Part one deals with basic concepts, trust systems, the economic potential of smart contracts and blockchain. Along with ease of doing business, and different ongoing use cases. On the other hand, part two will be released in the coming weeks which will mainly cover different recommendations for using blockchain technology in India.

The think tank, therefore, explains that the generic futures of distributed ledger technology could represent a paradigm shift in the political economy of India. It emphasizes a rethink of the current engagement of government bodies.

The government should pay special attention to the decentralized network where peer-to-peer transactions can create more socio-economic value. If state entity is there just to ledger maintenance and not adding some value then we can relook the role of government.

For example, the strategy paper states that for land and property transactions, there could be a DLT based system that would make it unnecessary for a government entity to keep records.

Pilot Projects Provide Valuable Insight

NITI Aayog pursues proofs-of-concept in four areas in an attempt to better understand the possible hurdles to implement blockchain technology. The pilot projects include a track-and-trace of drugs in the pharmaceutical supply chain. It claims verification and approval in the disbursement of fertilizer subsidies, verification of university certificates, and a transfer of land records.

However, the private and public sectors need some legal and regulatory modifications to deploy blockchain at scale. According to NITI Aayog.

What’s Next?

The second part of the strategy, which is yet to release, will focus on recommendations to establish India as a vibrant blockchain ecosystem. It will include regulatory and policy considerations to create a national infrastructure for policy solutions. And a procurement process for government agencies to adopt this emerging technology.

The document released by NITI Aayog is the second such strategy published by the government in recent weeks. Earlier this month, NISG has published a draft document on the country’s national blockchain strategy.