The future of Bharat’s economy is being built beyond cities

India’s next phase of economic growth will not be shaped by large cities alone. It will be shaped equally by the villages, small towns and growth corridors where millions of new digital users are entering the formal economy for the first time.

This shift is already underway. Affordable smartphones, low-cost data, digital public infrastructure and expanding connectivity have brought essential services closer to the kirana store, the local market and the last-mile household. India’s digital economy is expected to become a larger part of the country’s overall economic output in the coming years, with official estimates projecting its share to reach nearly 20% of Gross Value Added (GVA) by 2029-30.

At the same time, rural regions continue to account for a significant share of the country’s active internet users, making Bharat central to the next wave of digital adoption.

The change is not only about more people coming online. It is about how digital access is reshaping consumption, financial behaviour and aspiration. Across Bharat, demand is moving beyond essentials into categories such as education, mobility, healthcare, insurance, appliances, digital commerce and lifestyle-led services. For many households, the smartphone has become a gateway to payments, savings, credit, commerce and information.

UPI has been influential in this advancement, making sure that digital payments become less complex, common, and a part of daily life. In June 2026, UPI recorded 22.72 billion transactions amounting to Rs 28.92 lakh crore. This clearly demonstrates how rooted the habit of digital payments has become into our everyday financial practices. For small businesses, each transaction becomes part of history that makes them eligible for formal financing and allows for planned development.

But the process of adopting such technologies is not the same everywhere. As much as mobile-based money transfers and other financial services are common in big cities, confidence is still being built up in smaller towns and in rural areas.

For new users, the issue of confidence is tied to issues of trust, language, paperwork, fraud, and errors in transactions. This is where the importance of assistive models comes into focus. Retailers and business correspondents guide customers towards using financial services and completing digital transactions.

Technology makes it easy to access but it is trust that leads to use finally. In Bharat, that trust is often built through familiar faces and local relationships. A customer is more likely to adopt a financial product when it is explained by someone from the community, in a language they understand, at a place they already visit. This combination of digital infrastructure and human assistance is what makes last-mile inclusion sustainable.

The next phase of Bharat’s consumption story will also be closely linked to women’s participation. Across villages and small towns, women are increasingly contributing to household income, supporting micro-enterprises and influencing financial decisions.

Through self-help organisations, local entrepreneurship and aided digital service models, they are emerging as active participants in the formal economy. When women are able to access digital resources, financial products and livelihood opportunities, the advantages reach families, communities and local markets.

A strong digital foundation now leads this transformation. Aadhaar, UPI, BBPS, AePS and account-based services have expanded financial access at scale. But infrastructure alone is not enough. Its real worth is giving people the confidence to use these technologies, to grasp the benefits and to receive support when they need it.

Bharat has three gaps to be worked to effectively benefit from digital access. The first one is trust. Users need to feel protected from fraud, wrongful debits and service failures. The second is literacy. Financial products need to be explained in a simple manner with local languages, and with clear use cases. The third point is continuity. Nobody should be left alone after onboarding. Support, grievance redressal and continued engagement can build long-term usage.

This is the reason for the future of financial inclusion to not be either physical or digital. It will be assisted, trusted and technology-led, combining the scale of digital platforms with the reassurance of local presence. Assisted platforms can help people move gradually from guided transactions to confident digital behaviour. The goal is not only to bring people into the digital economy, but to help them participate in it meaningfully.

As Bharat becomes more connected, the opportunity ahead is immense. Digital payments, credit, insurance, savings and commerce can together strengthen household confidence, fuel entrepreneurship and drive local economic growth.

This is why the road to Viksit Bharat will pass through the country’s villages, small towns and emerging growth centres, where the next generation of consumers and entrepreneurs is already rising. India’s growth story beyond cities is no longer a distant possibility, it is unfolding every day. The task ahead is to ensure this transformation remains inclusive, trusted and sustainable, with technology strengthened by local trust.

- By Anand Kumar Bajaj, Founder, MD & CEO, PayNearby