The central government has empanelled six partner firms, including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), to develop and deploy artificial intelligence (AI) solutions across government departments. Besides TCS, the government will partner with Innefu Labs, CoRover, Cactus Communications, Kyndryl Solutions, and NEC Corporation for its AI initiatives. More than 80 companies submitted bids for the request for empanelment, which closed last week.
It has been reported that firms such as KPMG, Deloitte, PwC, EY, Fractal Analytics, Gnani AI, and Jio Haptik did not make the final shortlist, announced on February 27, 2026.
The National e-Governance Division (NeGD), had invited proposals across seven service categories for AI deployment over a two-year period. NeGD is the technology arm of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) that powers key digital platforms such as UMANG and DigiLocker.
The primary objective of the exercise was price discovery. Innefu Labs emerged as the lowest bidder, offering on-demand AI manpower at approximately Rs 4 million per month for all personnel, while TCS came in as the second lowest bidder at Rs 4.2 million per month. Shortlisted entities will be required to match the lowest bid.
The initiative is aimed at creating a ready pipeline of AI and machine learning talent that can be deployed on demand for government projects, while establishing transparent and standardised pricing for such manpower.
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