Non-portability of Algorithmic Fairness in India

Abstract: Conventional algorithmic fairness is Western in its sub-groups, values, and optimizations. In this paper, we ask how portable the assumptions of this largely Western take on algorithmic fairness are to a different geo-cultural context such as India. Based on 36 expert interviews with Indian scholars, and an analysis of emerging algorithmic deployments in India, we identify three clusters of challenges that engulf the large distance between machine learning models and oppressed communities in India. We argue that a mere translation of technical fairness work to Indian subgroups may serve only as a window dressing, and instead, call for a collective re-imagining of Fair-ML, by re-contextualising data and models, empowering oppressed communities, and more importantly, enabling ecosystems.