“I am delighted that Ministry of Electronics and IT and Google have come together for ‘Build for Digital India’ initiative. This initiative will not only motivate the college students across India to innovate but will also produce some good technology solutions for some major social challenges of India,” IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a statement. A formal call to join the programme will be announced soon, Google said.

“Advanced new technologies like Machine Learning and AI can help address at scale some of the toughest social challenges that India faces today,” said Karan Bhatia, Vice President, Government Affairs and Public Policy, Google.

“We are pleased to be partnering with MeitY to reach, inspire and equip today’s young engineers with the technical and entrepreneurial skills and the mentorship they need to turn their bright ideas into tomorrow’s breakthrough solutions,” Mr Bhatia added.