Authors - Nirmal Prabhu K, Sisira M S, Kanagaraj S, Kirthika P, Ashwin C Abstract - The proliferation of information and communication technologies has brought ICTs to the forefront as important enablers of social inclusion, governance, and rural development. However, the existence of inequalities over the years concerning the use, benefit, and application of ICTs, among others, has brought about a noticeable digital divide, especially among emerging nations such as India. This paper presents the underlying causes for the existence of the digital divide among rural populations in India as part of a comprehensive research review on the matter, adopting the Resource and Appropriation Theory by Van Dijk. A structured search of studies was conducted using the Scopus database, identifying articles related to rural India, both quantitative and qualitative studies. Findings indicate that the problem of the digital divide is not solely found among the rural populations of India, which lack the necessary infrastructure, as it is also ingrained among the socio-economic, geographical, and linguistic population groups, among others of India, including women as the most vulnerable section of society. The study concludes comprehensive multidimensional approach is required to bridge the digital divide.
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