Technology: Aim is $300 billion turnover in electronics by 2025: Rajeev Chandrasekhar

New Delhi: India’s impetus in the tech and digital manufacturing sector will create as many as 50 lakh jobs in the next three years, said Rajeev Chandrasekhar, minister of state for IT & Electronics.
Companies like Apple, Micron and others are looking for trustworthy partners and economies, Chandrasekhar said at The Times of India Right To Excellence Tech Summit 2023. “We are one of the fastest growing digital economies in the world, and are encouraging companies to move supply chains to India,” the minister said, adding, the target is to hit $300 billion turnover in electronics by 2025.
The minister said the past week had seen two big ‘Made in India’ successes. One, for the first time ‘Made in India’ units of iPhone 15, which went on sale on September 22, were available in India from Day 1. Two, Micron did the ground-breaking for its $2.8 billion semiconductor plant in Gujarat. “India has carved out a niche and that’s one of the reasons why companies like Apple are coming to India,” Chandrasekhar said during a fireside chat.

Companies and other corporates that attended the Tech Summit were also bullish on growth in India. Tarun Garg, COO of Hyundai in India, and Jyoti Malhotra, MD of Volvo Cars, said sustainability and connected will be the theme for new products, while Reema Jain, chief information and digital officer at Hero Moto, said companies are designing new digital interfaces for consumer connect. Rohan Verma, director & CEO of MapMyIndia, said his company has developed tech products, including mapping, indigenously and these are at par “and even better” than those offered by global giants such as Google.
Lt. Gen Deependra Singh Hooda (Retd.), former general officer commanding-in-chief, Indian Army’s Northern Command, said need of the hour is to be on offensive to deter cyberattacks. “Just defensive measures do not work here as stakes are very high.” Lt. Gen S P Kochhar, DG of telecom body COAI, said having high-quality networks are essential to harness 5G’s potential. “Collaboration and cost-sharing among stakeholders are imperative.”
Muralikrishnan B, president of Xiaomi India, said 4G devices had helped bridge the digital divide in the country, and now the focus remains on rolling out 5G smartphones. Paavan Nanda, CEO of Winzo Games, said Indians have an edge in the tech sector, and time has come to attract talent that can not only compete but can beat the best in the world. Anku Jain, MD of MediaTek in India, said 5G will propel future industries that would be connected and have interfaces with cloud. Amit Sanyal, customer value solutions COO at Comviva, said 5G will enable personalisation at scale.