Digitalisation to boost manufacturing, create highly skilled jobs: Kant

Thinking global will require quality and conformance to global standards which can be achieved through digitalisation: Kant

NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant on Wednesday highlighted the means by which digitalisation will radically change manufacturing, thus benefiting the customers.

"India should not miss the opportunity presented by the fourth industrial revolution, which will also create new kinds of highly paid and highly skilled jobs. There is an urgent need for more industry-academia collaboration and develop requisite skills in technology," said Amitabh Kant while speaking at the Third Manufacturing Summit by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

Suggesting a compulsory apprenticeship programme to encourage hands-on experience in technology as early as higher secondary level, Kant said that the second disruption would be a shift from internal combustion to shared, connected and electric mobility.

"The earlier India embraces both, the better, he stated. He urged industry to think big and think global. Thinking global will require quality and conformance to global standards which can be achieved through digitalisation, he emphasized," added Kant.

To effectively embrace digitalization, Kant asked the industry to foster competitive advantage across their value chains, focus on productivity and fill productivity gaps to compete globally, fortify quality, prioritize investment in innovation and R&D and invest in lifelong learning of employees.

A compendium of case studies on smart manufacturing "Manufacturing In India: Creating a smarter future" was also released on the occasion.

"Digitalization will bring opportunities to those who embrace it but be a big risk for those who do not," said CEO Digital Factories, Siemens AG, Dr Jan Mrosik.

"Lack of digitalization was the main reason why half of FORTUNE 500 companies disappeared from the list since 2000," added Mrosik.

On the other hand, Sunil Mathur, Chairman, CII Smart Manufacturing Council asserted that Smart Manufacturing is here to stay.

"India must start competing at a global level and build competitiveness. We should emphasize on driving the Smart Manufacturing movement and finding the right model for India," Mathur emphasized.