Smart Technologies are going to pave the way for India @100: Jitendra Singh, MoS, Science and Technology & Earth Sciences

New Delhi: Technology based ascent has already begun and smart technology is going to pave the way for India @100, says Dr. Jitendra Singh, Hon’ble Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Science and Technology & Earth Sciences at an ASSOCHAM event.

Speaking at the curtain-raiser conference for the 2nd edition of ‘The SMARTec Initiative India 2021’ held today at New Delhi, the Minister highlighted various initiatives taken by the government to promote science and technology for start-ups. SMARTec India2021 in partnership with Department of Science & Technology, and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, Govt. of India will be held from December 03 – 15, 2021

“India is emerging as among world top leaders in the area of Science & Technology and recently it entered the list of top 50 innovative countries reaching to 46th position in the Global Innovation Index 2021. The power of collaboration with government, industry and stakeholders needs to be systematically harnessed for realizing the vision of a new resurgent India, Everything cannot be left to government and government should also not be hesitant to involve stake holders outside the government sector because that is not compatible with progressive advancement” the minister said.

“India has consistently improved its business and innovation environment and is now ranked 63 among 190 economies in the ease of doing business, according to the latest World Bank annual ratings. There is very little correlation between formal and digital literacy, smart literacy which can be acquired without formal education and the government has brought the New Education Policy which has multiple entry/exit options to promote innovation and start-up culture.” he further added.

H.E. Ms Katrin Kivi, Ambassador of Estonia to India said, “We are living in what is known as Asian century, where global outlooks are shifted towards a rapidly growing economies in Asia. Estonia is fully synchronised with this trend. For the last few years, Estonian exports to India have been growing considerably and given the ambitions and the strengths of India and Estonia, I believe that there is room for genuine partnership and true collaboration. India is a strategically important market attractive for Estonian entrepreneurs due to its large market opportunities and growing consumer base. We hope to foster a real collaboration that also advances Indian interest. Our strategic geographical presence, attractive ecosystem of innovation, beneficial tax structure, stable government and highly skilled personnel gives Estonia a distinguished advantage and provide a solid platform for up scaling and expanding business operations.”

Dr. Sheetal Chopra, Chairperson ASSOCHAM IPR Council, addressing the gathering said, “What we used to dream of is a reality today and we cannot do without our smart phones and smart watches. Doctors are performing remote surgeries and there are connected cars that are saving us fuel and making our commute much safer. We must appreciate the work of global standardisation framework, where there are a handful of companies who over a period of years had taken lot of effort and spent billions of dollars in coming up with the best of technologies. A 90 minute movie takes 72 hours to download in 2G and with 5G the same can be downloaded in less than 90 seconds. More than 50k+ start-ups in all sectors including IOT, AI, and robotics are already registered and certified by The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade. For India to achieve that global economic scale, it is important that we facilitate these start-ups and they are able to take advantage of the already standardised technologies. Today we have sufficient eco system like start-up India hub, PLI scheme, National IPR policy, national manufacturing policy and other policies”

Dr. Lovneesh Channana, Chairperson National Council IT, ITES & Digital Commerce said, “We have moved from the stage of discussing the why of technology to what of technology and now moving into the how of technology. How we apply technology and how do we make technology application are becoming more important. We are getting adept at using technology to improve operational effectiveness. The time is coming where citizen experience data or consumer experience data will be differentiators due to the huge level of digitisation. Very soon we will be managing experiential data in addition to operational data. This revolution we are talking about in Smart tech is not one way, earlier we were creating products and giving it to users, today it’s a two way. For India, unless we cover the 63 million SMEs in the larger technology journey, we cannot achieve the desired impact. Awareness, access to low cost tech, creation of digital talent pool and getting global market access for Indian SMEs through technology are some of the areas we must address”.

“The SmartTec India 2021 is one of the initiative that can be partnered with International Trade Council (ITC) where sharing of new technologies and best practices can be of immense benefit to everyone around the world”, said Ms. Ranjini Rangan, Honorary Chair Person, International Trade Counsil (SEA) & Director, Olimea Advisory Pte Ltd.

“The SMARTec India 2021 is a wonderful opportunity for our Australian companies, to engage with tech experts, industry leaders and advance collaborative efforts to build our technological partnership”, said Ms. Petula Thomas, Chief Executive Officer, Indo-Australian Chamber of Commerce.

The curtain-raiser event was also attended by dignitaries from partner countries like Finland, Estonia, Israel, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Japan. The focus areas for SMARTec India2021 include Aerospace & Defence, Financial Services, Healthcare, Enterprise AI & Automation, Industry 4.0, MSME & Start-ups, Smart Mobility. To celebrate the spirit of innovation, awards for 10 top innovations from various sectors and fields or work will be handed out on 03rd December 2021. The curated confluence of smart technologies will experience a 13 days long virtual exhibition which will be attended by over 50 Exhibitors from India and various leading countries, live demonstrations and product launches of exciting products and services, participation from progressive central & state governments.