India is amongst the top 12 preferred biotech destinations globally and the third largest biotechnology destination in the Asia Pacific region. India is among the top countries globally in the field of scientific research, positioned as one of the top five nations in the field for space exploration.
In Australia, the science and innovation sector plays a significant role in driving economic growth and competitiveness. The country has a strong research and innovation culture, with several world-class research institutions and universities.
SOLID DEMAND:
- Expanding middle-class and increasing affordability are demand drivers for technologically advanced products.
- TechnoPro, a Japanese tech firm, planned to hire 10,000 engineers and researchers in India by 2023.
DRIVING ADVANTAGE:
- India stands third globally in the number of peer-reviewed science and engineering publications.
- The IT and BPM market accounts for 9.3% of India's GDP and 56% of the global outsourcing market.
- India is the third most sought-after manufacturing destination in the world and has the potential to export goods worth US$ 1 trillion by 2030.
GOVERNMENT POLICIES:
- The government introduced the STP Scheme, which is a 100% export-oriented scheme for the development and export of computer software, including export of professional services.
- Under the Union Budget 2022-23, the government announced allocation of Rs. 14,217 crore (US$ 1.86 billion) to the Ministry of Science and Technology. The Department of Atomic Energy was allocated Rs. 22,723.58 crore (US$ 2.97 billion), the Department of Science and Technology (DST) was allocated Rs. 6,000 crore (US$ 785.64 million), and the Ministry of Earth Sciences was allocated Rs. 2,653.51 crore (US$ 347.45 million).
RISE IN INVESTMENTS:
- In November 2022, Amazon Web Services announced the launch of its second AWS infrastructure region in India - the AWS Asia Pacific (Hyderabad) Region. By 2030, it is anticipated that the region will support more than 48,000 full-time jobs annually thanks to investments totalling more than US$ 4.4 billion in India.
- In August 2022, Network People Services Technologies (NPST) announced that it was working on a banking super app. The high-end platform can be used by banks, fintech companies, and other BFSI players, and it will offer a seamless user experience with all banking, financial, and transactional services combined into a robust, smart app.
- HDFC Bank has partnered with Flywire to enable their customers to make fee payments digitally to overseas colleges and universities.
INTRODUCTION
The IT & BPM sector has become one of the most significant growth catalysts for the Indian economy, contributing significantly to the country’s GDP and public welfare. The IT industry accounted for 7.4% of India’s GDP in FY22, and it is expected to contribute 10% to India’s GDP by 2025. The country has regularly undertaken space missions, including missions to the moon and the famed Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). India is likely to take a leading role in launching satellites for the SAARC nations, generating revenue by offering its space facilities for use to other countries. A globally competitive manufacturing sector is India’s greatest potential to drive economic growth and job creation this decade. Due to factors like power growth, long-term employment prospects, and skill routes for millions of people, India has a significant potential to engage in international markets.
India is gradually progressing on the road to Industry 4.0 through the Government of India’s initiatives like the National Manufacturing Policy which aims to increase the share of manufacturing in GDP to 25 percent by 2025 and the PLI scheme for manufacturing which was launched in 2022 to develop the core manufacturing sector at par with global manufacturing standards.
MARKET DIMENSIONS
India’s gross domestic product (GDP) at current prices stood at Rs. 51.23 lakh crore (US$ 694.93 billion) in the first quarter of FY22, as per the provisional estimates of gross domestic product for the first quarter of 2021-22. The manufacturing GVA at current prices was estimated at US$ 77.47 billion in the third quarter of FY22 and has contributed around 16.3% to the nominal GVA of during the past ten years.
According to National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom), the Indian IT industry’s revenue touched US$ 227 billion in FY22, a 15.5% YoY growth. Indian software product industry is expected to reach US$ 100 billion by 2025. Indian companies are focusing on investing internationally to expand their global footprint and enhance their global delivery centres.
By 2022, R&D expenditure is targeted to reach about 2% of the country’s GDP. The engineering R&D and product development market in India is forecast to post a CAGR of 12% to reach US$ 63 billion by 2025, from US$ 31 billion in 2019. As per the Economic Survey 2022, India’s gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD) as a percentage of GDP stood at 0.66%.
INVESTMENTS AND GROWTH
Some of the recent developments in the field of science and technology in India are as follows:
In November 2022, Norwest Venture Partners agreed to invest US$ 32 million in Celebal Technologies, which specialises in AI, big data, and an enterprise cloud among other technologies. In exchange, Norwest Venture Partners will acquire a minority stake in the company.
Actis, a global investor in sustainable infrastructure, is planning to invest over US$ 700 million in order to acquire and expand assets for its platform aimed at offering real estate to tenants in the life sciences and allied sectors in India.
In November 2022, Amazon Web Services announced the launch of its second AWS infrastructure region in India – the AWS Asia Pacific (Hyderabad) Region. By 2030, it is anticipated that the region will support more than 48,000 full-time jobs annually thanks to investments totalling more than US$ 4.4 billion in India.
In FY23 (until September 2022), the combined index of eight core industries stood at 142.8 driven by the production of coal, refinery products, fertilizers, steel, electricity and cement industries.
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
Some of the major Government policies on this sector are as follows:
In the Union Budget 2022-23, the government allocated Rs. 2,403 crore (US$ 315 million) for Promotion of Electronics and IT Hardware Manufacturing.
The PLI for semiconductor manufacturing is set at Rs. 760 billion (US$ 9.71 billion), with the goal of making India one of the world’s major producers of this crucial component.
In August 2022, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), in collaboration with the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA), successfully planned and carried out the “Synergy” Cyber Security Exercise for 13 countries to build network resilience against ransomware attacks.
In the Union Budget 2022-23, the allocation for IT and telecom sector stood at Rs. 88,567.57 crore (US$ 11.58 billion).
In November 2022, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) decided to work together to build a platform in order to support the development of new electric vehicle (EV) batteries that meet Indian regulations.
THE FUTURE AHEAD
India ranks third among the most innovative lower-middle-income economies in the world. Rising per capita income in India will bring boom in R&D investment in the country with multiple foreign players shifting R&D bases to India. India plans to move forward with developing its science and technology sector by collaborating with other countries. India has active bilateral science and technology (S&T) programs of cooperation with more than 45 countries, including dedicated programs for Africa, ASEAN, BRICS, EU and neighbouring countries.
India is aggressively working towards establishing itself as a leader in industrialisation and technological development.
India is the topmost offshoring destination for IT companies across the world. Having proven its capabilities in delivering both on-shore and off-shore services to global clients, emerging technologies now offer an entire new gamut of opportunities for top IT firms in India.
The Indian IT & business services industry is expected to grow to US$ 19.93 billion by 2025. Spending on information technology in India is expected to reach US$ 144 billion in 2023. By 2026, widespread cloud utilisation can provide employment opportunities to 14 million people and add US$ 380 billion to India’s GDP. As per a survey by Amazon Web Services (2021), India is expected to have nine times more digitally skilled workers by 2025.
India is an attractive hub for foreign investments in the manufacturing sector. Several mobile phone, luxury and automobile brands, among others, have set up or are looking to establish their manufacturing bases in the country. The manufacturing sector of India has the potential to reach US$ 1 trillion by 2025.