INTERSECTIONAL DIGITAL CAPABILITY: REFRAMING WOMEN’S ARTISTIC AGENCY IN INDIA’S TECHNOLOGY ECOSYSTEM

Rasna Sehrawat; Priyanka Singh Niranjan

doi:10.29121/shodhkosh.v7.i1.2026.7341

Authors

Dr. Rasna Sehrawat Assistant Professor, Amity Institute of Education, Amity University, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India
Priyanka Singh Niranjan Associate Professor, Amity Institute of Education, Amity University, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29121/shodhkosh.v7.i1.2026.7341

Keywords:

Women In Tech, Digital Infrastructure, Digital Gender Gap, Feminist Technology Theory, Leadership Positions

Abstract [English]

Technology has transformed contemporary life on an unprecedented scale. From navigation platforms guiding billions of users to software-as-a-service (SaaS) infrastructures powering global economies, digital systems shape how societies communicate, work, and govern. Yet beneath narratives of seamless innovation lies a persistent structural imbalance in which designs, leads, and benefits from technological transformation. In India’s rapidly expanding digital economy, women, particularly those situated at the intersections of caste, class, geography, and socio-economic marginality, remain significantly underrepresented in core technological roles, leadership positions, and decision-making spaces. This conceptual paper argues that the digital gender gap must be reconceptualized not merely as a disparity in access or participation, but as an intersectional capability deficit embedded within structural, socio-cultural, and institutional systems. Drawing on Feminist Technology Theory, the Capability Approach, Intersectionality, and Digital Divide scholarship, the paper proposes an Intersectional Digital Capability Framework (IDCF) to analyze layered inequalities in India’s technology ecosystem. Moving beyond inclusion-based narratives, the framework advances a shift toward digital sovereignty, where women are not only users or employees in technological systems but active architects of digital futures. By integrating theoretical depth with policy relevance, this paper contributes to debates on women-led development, digital justice, and structural transformation in emerging economies.

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