India has moved from tech adoption to leadership in last decade: Jitendra Singh

Ahmedabad, Jan 12 (PTI) Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Monday said India has graduated from technology adoption to technology leadership, with deep-tech-driven growth in the last decade.

Speaking at the

Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA) Ventures Summit, the Union minister of state for science and technology lauded India’s startup ecosystem, noting that it was the third largest globally, with more than 1.75 lakh enterprises, 50 per cent of which come from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.

“India in the last decade has graduated from technology adoption to technology leadership, and there is more of deep-tech driven growth,” he said, adding that we are trying to live up to the strategies followed by other countries.

Singh said that it is also the responsibility of the Department of Science & Technology, like other departments, to carry academics beyond the walls of the institute.

Department of Science and Technology is one of the partners of IIMA Ventures, an incubation space for startups, investing in early-stage startups, and helping them through regional and virtual incubation programmes.

Singh emphasised that management and technology are interdependent.

“Just as technology requires management for optimum outcomes, management also requires technology. There is inter-disciplinary strategising also now,” he said.

He also pointed out that a startup would not last long without a good industry backup and management strategy.

Singh said, “Ten years ago, India was among the fragile 11, and now we are in the big four, and that entire economic growth has been technology-driven.” “India’s startup ecosystem is the third largest globally, with more than 1.75 lakh startups, and of these, 50 per cent come from Tier 2 or Tier 3 cities, which breaks the myth that to initiate a startup, you have to hail from a metro city, because of a beautiful gadget you have in your pocket (smartphone). It has given us democratisation of education, research, and opportunities,” he said.

Singh launched ‘Translation Endeavours’, IIMA Ventures’ flagship platform, constituted to bridge the gap between science and entrepreneurship.

It is a collaborative platform bringing together India’s leading academic institutions, incubators, and venture builders to significantly accelerate the translation of high-quality research into commercially viable ventures. PTI KVM PD ARU