High-Risk AI in Welfare Governance

GS-II: Government Policies & Interventions | Governance | Welfare Schemes | Fundamental Rights | GS-III: Artificial Intelligence

Context

• Supreme Court intervention: The Supreme Court asked the Union government to consider a petition highlighting the lack of a comprehensive statutory regime governing the government’s use of “high-risk” Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• Areas of concern: The petition relates to AI use in areas affecting access to:

o Food.

o Health benefits.

o Wages.

o Pensions.

o Scholarships.

o Welfare subsidies.

• Petitioner’s concern: Advocate N.K. Goswami questioned whether the government can use high-risk technologies in crucial areas of governance without a specific statutory framework.

Technologies Flagged in the Petition

• Artificial Intelligence (AI): Use of AI systems in governance and welfare delivery.
• Machine learning: Automated systems that can influence government decisions.
• Risk-scoring mechanisms: Systems used to assess or classify individuals based on perceived risk.
• Biometric surveillance tools: Technologies involving biometric information for surveillance or identification.
• Predictive policing: Use of technological systems to predict or assess potential criminal activity.
• AI-assisted content moderation: Automated systems used to regulate or moderate digital content.

Key Constitutional Concerns

• Welfare access: AI-driven decisions can affect access to essential government benefits.
• Liberty: Automated risk assessments may influence individual freedoms.
• Privacy: AI and biometric systems can involve extensive processing of personal information.
• Dignity: Errors or opaque automated decisions can adversely affect individual dignity.
• Livelihood: AI-based decisions may affect wages, pensions and employment-related benefits.
• Freedom of speech: AI-assisted content moderation can potentially affect access to or expression of information.

Core Issue

• Absence of comprehensive statutory regime: The petition raises the question of whether high-risk AI applications by the government should operate without a dedicated legal framework.
• AI and governance: The issue is not merely technological but concerns the use of automated systems in decisions that directly affect rights, welfare and access to public services.
• Need for legal safeguards: The petition seeks examination of the legal basis for deploying such technologies in sensitive areas of governance.

UPSC Mains Practice Question

Q. The increasing use of high-risk Artificial Intelligence in welfare governance raises concerns relating to privacy, dignity, liberty and access to public benefits. Discuss the need for a comprehensive statutory framework governing the use of AI by the State.