MeitY Invites Firms to Expand AIKosh with India-Specific Datasets

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has invited private companies, startups, and research institutions to contribute India-specific, non-personal datasets to AIKosh, a key initiative under the IndiaAI Mission. This move follows the platform’s launch, which initially featured datasets primarily from government organizations.

The objective of this initiative is to enhance AIKosh’s repository, supporting artificial intelligence research, innovation, and policymaking. According to the expression of interest (EOI) document released on March 25, the government seeks to make high-quality, anonymized datasets more accessible to AI developers, enabling the creation of advanced AI models like large language models (LLMs).

Eligible entities include startups, corporations, academic institutions, and non-profits, but individual contributions are not permitted. Organizations must meet legal and data governance requirements to participate. Contributors must register on AIKosh, appoint a dataset management representative, and ensure compliance with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA) and the National Data Sharing and Accessibility Policy (NDSAP).

Datasets submitted to AIKosh must include complete metadata, specify licensing terms, and adhere to platform standards. Contributors will benefit from AIKosh’s collaborative features, such as data standardization, iterative refinement, and versioning. Additionally, organizations can use AIKosh to host hackathons and challenges, increasing their visibility and attracting AI talent.

AIKosh is a major component of the ₹10,738-crore IndiaAI Mission, which aims to strengthen India’s AI ecosystem by providing entrepreneurs and researchers with essential datasets. The government has opened applications for dataset contributions on a rolling basis, with periodic compliance reviews.

Source: Moneycontrol