Govt to roll out 5-year strategic plan to make India big tech player: MoS

The government is looking at rolling out a five-year strategic perspective plan to make India a significant tech player, Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on Tuesday.

The minister added that the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) will partner with the private sector in areas not just limited to soliciting business for them but for future technology developments like quantum computing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and semiconductors, according to an official statement released by the ministry.

"Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) has set some serious ambitions and wants India to be a significant player in the tech space.

"Soon, we are going to roll out a five-year strategic perspective plan, detailing the competency and capabilities that need to be developed for realising these ambitions," Chandrasekhar said at a technology conference organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

He added that there have been tremendous strides in digitising the country's economy and public services in the past six years, which has helped India remain resilient during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We have created Unicorns at the rate of two a month, attracting USD 65 billion investment in the tech space," Chandrasekhar said.

The minister said the post-COVID-19 era offers a new set of opportunities and there has never been a more exciting time for those in technology than today.

"At MeitY, we have clear objectives, we expect to be partners with the private sector in areas not just limited to soliciting business for you...but even in areas of future technology development whether it is quantum computing or strategic areas, where we want India to create competencies like artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and semiconductors, etc," he said.

The minister said the government is willing to walk the extra mile and is open to all sorts of consultations to prepare a road map for India to emerge as a significant player in the technology space.