Prime Minister Narendra Modi has mentioned ‘MANAV Vision for AI’ in the India AI Impact Summit, which is a new and important part of India’s AI policy. This is not a separate law or scheme, but a fundamental approach to India’s AI development, which the government is calling ‘Human-centric AI’ or ‘MANAV-centric AI’.
What does MANAV mean?
MANAV is an acronym derived from the Hindi word ‘manav’. This means that the development and use of AI should be done completely keeping human interest, safety and respect at the center. The government considers it part of ‘sovereign AI’ (independent AI), but MANAV has an even deeper focus. It wants to make AI not just a technology but a medium for human well-being.
Now the complete breakdown of MANAV is something like this:
- M-Moral and Ethical Systems: Ethics and moral values ​​should be kept at the top in AI. No AI system should be discriminatory, misinform or violate human dignity.
- A- Accountable Governance: Responsibility should be fixed for AI decisions. If AI makes any mistake, it should be clear who will take responsibility for it. Government, companies and developers will all be responsible.
- N- National Sovereignty: India’s AI should remain under India’s control. Data, models, computing power and decision-making ability should not fall into the hands of foreign companies or governments.
- A- Accessible and Inclusive: AI should reach every Indian. Be it a village farmer, a small town student or a linguistic minority. AI should work in languages ​​like Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, Marathi etc. and reduce economic-social inequality, not increase it.
- V- Valid and Legitimate: There should be legality in the use of AI. Any AI tool or application should be within the scope of law and should not endanger human freedom or security.
What are the main meanings and principles of MANAV Vision?
- Human-centred development: Every decision, model and application of AI will put human needs, ethics and safety first. The machine will not replace the human being, but will help him.
- Ethics and Transparency: Strict guidelines to prevent discrimination, fake news or misuse in AI systems.
- Inclusivity: AI should be created keeping in mind the diversity of India (language, culture, region, economic level). Like AI should work in languages ​​like Hindi, Tamil, Bengali etc. and reach rural areas.
- security and privacy: Data of Indian citizens will remain in India only (data localisation), foreign companies cannot use it without permission.
- Self-reliance: India will make its own AI models, chips, data centers and computing power, and not just depend on foreign technology.
Where did the MANAV vision come from?
In the inauguration of India AI Impact Summit 2026 on 19 February 2026, PM Modi said that AI should not just mean machines but ‘service to humanity’. The government is considering this as the core philosophy of India AI Mission. This means that AI will bring crop prediction in agriculture, early detection of diseases in healthcare, personalized learning in education and transparency in governance. But everything will be for the benefit of humans.
India is showing a different AI model to the world, where in America the focus is on profit and in China on control, in India ‘human’ comes first. This will give India a strong voice in the global AI debate. Just like Europe has GDPR and America has privacy laws, similarly India is making its way through MANAV. This is a big step towards India’s ‘Sovereign AI’. That means our AI will work on our terms and on our values.
