Inequality of another kind (The hindu)

Mains Paper 2: Polity
Prelims level: Article 21
Mains level: Requirement of Digital inequality and Digital literacy

Context

•  In the recent Faheema Shirin vs. State of Kerala case, the Kerala High Court declared the right to Internet access as a fundamental right forming a part of right to privacy and the right to education under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. This entails the obligation of the state under Articles 38 and 39 of the Indian Constitution.
•  This is regarded as a move in the right direction but it is suggested that the right to internet access and digital literacy be declared as an individual fundamental right the reasons for which are necessary to be understood.

Reasons of Digital inequality:

•  Almost all of the Government initiatives reach people via the digital way in this age of advanced technology. Thus a lack of knowledge to access elevates the social and economic backwardness of such people.
•  According to the Deloitte report, ‘Digital India: Unlocking the Trillion Dollar Opportunity’ 2016, digital literacy of India is less than 10%.
•  Access to the internet can allow people to bypass lower-level bureaucracy.

Reasons of Digital literacy:

•  Need for increasing digital literacy is to access other fundamental rights like education etc.
•  In this framework the state would have a positive obligation to create infrastructure for a minimum standard and quality of Internet access as well as capacity-building measures which would allow all citizens to be digitally literate and;
•  A negative obligation prohibiting it from engaging in conduct that impedes, obstructs or violates such a right.

Way Forward

•  Initiatives like the Bharat Net Programme, National Digital Literacy Mission must be implemented in a way to reach more and more disadvantaged people.
•  Thus the state has the obligations of creating the infrastructure to increase the digital literacy rate.

Prelims Questions:

Q.1) With reference to the BIMSTEC, consider the following statements:
1. It is a regional organization comprising seven Member States lying in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal.
2. It came into being in June 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration and its permanent secretariat is located at Bangkok.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a. 1 only
b. 2 only
c. Both 1 and 2
d. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: A
Mains Questions:
Q.1) Why the right to Internet access and digital literacy should be recognised as a right in itself?