The Digital India Bhashini Division under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology will host a workshop in Thiruvananthapuram on October 8 to explore how AI-based Malayalam language technologies can strengthen digital governance.
The event, titled ‘Bhashini Rajyam Workshop: Kerala Chapter’, is being organised with the Kerala State IT Mission to make digital platforms more inclusive for Malayalam-speaking citizens. The goal is to ensure that public services are accessible in Malayalam through voice and text interfaces, reducing the need for English proficiency in official digital interactions.
During the workshop, the Kerala government and the Digital India Bhashini Division (DIBD) will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop AI models, speech recognition systems, and multilingual applications in Malayalam.
The ministry said the collaboration aims to extend language support across governance, education, and healthcare services, making them more accessible to citizens who prefer to use their mother tongue.
The event will also feature demonstrations of Bhashini’s multilingual AI tools, including the MITRA (Mitra Programme), which supports voice-first governance applications.
Two new initiatives — Bhashini Samudaye, a network of State Language Missions to drive digital language adoption, and Bhashadaan, a citizen platform that collects Malayalam voice and text data for AI training — will be launched during the workshop.
Amitabh Nag, CEO of the Digital India Bhashini Division and director of IndiaAI, said Malayalam holds an important place in India’s linguistic and cultural landscape. The workshop, he added, aims to lay the groundwork for a digital future where people can access public services in their native language.
The session is expected to bring together policy leaders, technologists, academics, and industry experts to discuss Kerala’s role in India’s multilingual AI ecosystem.