About the news

• The Centre has announced the establishment of three Centres of Excellence (CoE) in artificial intelligence (AI) focused on healthcare, agriculture, and sustainable cities.
• The CoE in healthcare will be led by the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Delhi, while IIT Ropar in Punjab will spearhead the agriculture initiative. IIT Kanpur has been assigned to develop the CoE for sustainable cities. These centres will collaborate with industries and startups.
• The Union Budget allocated ₹990 crore for establishing these centres over the period from 2023-24 to 2027-28. An apex committee, co-chaired by Zoho founder-CEO Sridhar Vembu, has been formed to oversee implementation.
• Union Education Minister noted that the unveiling of these centres represents a significant step in enhancing India’s position in the global AI landscape. He expressed hope that the CoEs would contribute to global public policy and become key solution providers.