CITATION.cff

cff-version: 1.2.0
message: "If you use this framework, please cite it as below."
type: article
title: "Corrigibility as a Structural Precondition for Digital Public Infrastructure: A Cybernetic Framework"
authors:
  - family-names: "Aravind"
    given-names: "Anivar A"
    orcid: "https://orcid.org/0009-0009-8995-0005"
    email: "ping@anivar.net"
    website: "https://anivar.net"
version: "1.0.0"
date-released: "2026-01-11"
url: "https://indiastack.in/dpi/"
repository-code: "https://github.com/anivar/corrigibility-framework"
license: "CC0-1.0"
keywords:
  - digital public infrastructure
  - corrigibility
  - cybernetics
  - Ashby
  - Ostrom
  - free software
  - AI governance
  - Aadhaar
  - UPI
abstract: >-
  Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)—including identity systems, payment rails,
  data exchanges, and increasingly AI-based services—is being deployed globally
  at population scale. This paper introduces a formal framework for evaluating
  DPI based on corrigibility: the structural capacity of those affected by a
  system to detect error, signal harm, and trigger correction without incurring
  material loss. We derive five necessary tests—EXIT, CODE, AUDIT, GOVERN, and
  FORK—from three independent theoretical traditions: cybernetics, commons
  governance, and free software principles.