Union Minister of Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal speaks during the 'The New Growth Playbook' session at the VivaTech event, in Paris on Wednesday. UAE's Economy and Tourism Minister Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri (second from right) and ex-Minister of the Economy, Finance, Industrial & Digital Sovereignty of France, Bruno Le Maire (E-R), also present. (@PiyushGoyal X/ANI Photo)
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India has a strong case to bridge the global technology divide, supported by its young population, large consumer base, low-cost data, abundant power capacity for data centres and a steady supply of STEM graduates, said Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal.In a post on X, Goyal shared a video speaking at the Viva Technology 2026 event in Paris. Goyal wrote in the post, "India is a compelling case for the world." He further noted that India is positioned at the forefront of technological development, supported by a young and talented population, affordable data, and growing capabilities."Our young & talented population, affordable data, growing capabilities & a vision for shared growth, position India at the forefront of technological development," he added. While addressing a press conference, Goyal said India has a youthful population with an average age of under 30 years. Additionally, the country is the world's fastest-growing large economy, which boosts innovation."We have a youthful population, our average age is under 30 years. (0:06) We are the world's fastest-growing large economy, so a lot of economic activities that spur innovation," he said. Goyal further added that India's 1.4 billion population generates demand, giving the country "economies of scale.""We have 1.4 billion people generating demand and that gives us economies of scale," he added. Goyal futher added that India has data at a "fraction of the cost" it costs in the other countries and abundant power. "We have data at a fraction of the cost it costs in other countries. We have abundant power to meet the needs of data centres, computing capacity and all of that...and we produce the world's largest number of STEM graduates, the techies in science and engineering and technology.""Every year, 1.4 million people...all of this collectively make India a very compelling case to bridge that technological divide and as you may be aware, India never thinks only of itself," he added."For me, my brother Abdullah, the Middle East, the African continent, the other parts of Asia, we are all the global south is our family," he said.Published on June 18, 2026
