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‘Make In India’ Call Gets Smart Response from Abroad

Make in India has been the NDA government’s flagship campaign to boost manufacturing in India. In a mega launch ceremony, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi threw open the doors of the Indian manufacturing sector to foreign investors with a promise to enhance the ease of doing business in the country. The Government’s vision to craft out a manufacturing hub in the nation is the first step to enhancing the contribution of the manufacturing sector towards the GDP. Twentyfive key sectors were marked out as priority sectors and foreign investors have been promised all assistance and information required to set up businesses in India.

The Prime Minister followed up on the Make in India campaign with a series of labour reforms that were long overdue. The response to Make in India call has been quite promising, domestic as well as foreign, although it’s not time yet to see the impact of these reforms. Tying it up with Digital India and the expansion targets of the economy, the Government is certainly working on what seems to be a comprehensive plan to rope in foreign investments to boost the economy and growth.

Make in India to strengthen India-Oman ties

The President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, extended an invitation to all the private and public sector companies of Oman to set up manufacturing units in India and enter into close ties with the 25 priority sectors. The hope of lucrative returns and the plethora of opportunities for investment in the country were the highlights of President Mukherjee’s message to Dr. Ali Bin Masoud Al Sunaidy, Commerce and Industry Minister of the Sultanate of Oman. Dr. Masoud Al Sunaidy called on the President at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on Monday. “Bilateral trade between India and Oman has increased from USD 4.6 billion in 2012-13 to USD 5.77 billion in 2013-14. However, trade remains much below its potential and both sides need to bring it to a higher level commensurate with the depth of the bilateral relationship,” President Mukherjee told the visiting Omani Minister.

The soon to be held seventh joint commission meeting between India and Oman is likely to provide both the nations a perfect platform to strengthen trade ties and for investors from Oman to explore investment opportunities in our country. The Omani Minister welcomed the Indian President’s suggestions and expressed the hope that the two countries could further strengthen traditional ties in the years to come with more companies deciding to manufacture in India.

Fiat plans for ‘Make in India’

Modi’s call to Make in India has had things moving in the automobile sector. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has come up with a plan to manufacture a range of C-segment Jeep brand premium sports utility vehicles in India and export these SUVs to countries such as Australia, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. This manufacturing (export) unit is likely to be up and running within two years and shall bring in an investment of about INR 1,500-2,500 cr. The project has been called M6 or 556 and will see the production of the first SUVs in the country. Fiat Chrysler has hitherto been sustaining losses due to low sales numbers in their Indian operations and the exports are likely to reverse this trend. A formal announcement is still awaited, though.

he Fiat-Chrysler merger has enabled the company to look at various new investment options and the automobile manufacturing sector of India looks rather promising. Fiat is likely to produce the new Jeep line at its Ranjangaon plant in Maharashtra. Almost 20,000 such C-segment SUVs are likely to be produced every year and they will be priced between INR 20 and 25 lakh in domestic markets.

Defence boost to Indian manufacturers

In a major boost to the Indian defence manufacturing sector, the Indian Government has cleared INR 80,000 cr worth of defence deals including the construction of six submarines. On October 26 last, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) approved the manufacturing of these diesel-electric submarines in a single domestic shipyard. The entire project is likely to cost the Government INR 50,000 crore. Defense manufacturing is one of the core sectors identified by the Make In India campaign. This acquisition is also likely to boost the morale of the Indian Navy which has been hurt due to a series of accidents over the past year.

Sweden praises ‘Make In India’

The NDA Government’s Make In India campaign has become the key highlight at the Sweden India Nobel Memorial Week which is currently being held across 10 different Indian cities – Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune.

This is the eighth such memorial week being held by the Swedish Embassy in India. Swedish companies such as Tetrapak, Scania, Ericsson, and Volvo India have committed to successfully participating in Make in India and strengthening their decade old relationship with the Indian manufacturing sector. The Swedish Ambassador, H E Harald Sandberg praised Modi’s initiative to boost the manufacturing, automobile, infrastructure and other sectors of the Indian economy drawing upon the traditional strengths of the country. The Sweden India Nobel Memorial Week is being held between October 26 and November 1 and apart from the campaign is also focusing on Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi.

Healthcare through ‘Make in India’

Make in India is not only for foreign investors, says Modi. The Indian healthcare industry must utilize the full potential of India’s burgeoning manufacturing industry and produce world class medical devices indigenously. This will bring quality healthcare to the doorstep of the poor masses of the nation, he said at the inaugural ceremony of the HN Reliance Foundation Hospital in Mumbai. Want of affordable primary healthcare is of primary importance in a populous country like India, said the PM. The only means to achieving this end is by cutting costs and manufacturing in domestic units. With the help of technology and Digital India, the quality standards of such products can be raised as well.

MAKE IN INDIA

Sectors in focus

For the Make in India campaign, the government of India has identified 25 priority sectors that shall be promoted adequately. These are the sectors where likelihood of FDI (foreign direct investment) is the highest and investment shall be promoted by the government of India.On the campaign launch, the Prime Minister Mr. Modi said that the development of these sectors would ensure that the world shall readily come to Asia, particularly to India where the availability of both democratic conditions and manufacturing superiority made it the best destinations, especially when combined with the effective governance intended by his administration.

Automobiles	Food Processing	Renewable Energy
Automobile Components	IT and BPM	Roads and highways
Aviation	Leather	Space
Biotechnology	Media and Entertainment	Textiles and garments
Chemicals	Mining	Thermal Power
Construction	Oil and Gas	Tourism and Hospitality
Defence manufacturing	Pharmaceuticals	Wellness
Electrical Machinery	Ports
Electronic Systems	Railways

Benefits and disadvantages of Make in India

India is a country rich in natural resources. Labour is aplenty and skilled labour is easily available given the high rates of unemployment among the educated class of the country. With Asia developing as the outsourcing hub of the world, India is soon becoming the preferred manufacturing destination of most investors across the globe. Mae in India is the Indian government's effort to harness this demand and boost the Indian economy.

India ranks low on the "ease of doing business index". Labour laws in the country are still not conducive to the Make in India campaign. This is one of the universally noted disadvantages of manufacturing and investing in India.

Why Companies were not manufacturing in India

Make in India campaign is at loggerheads with the Make in China ideal that has gained momentum over the past decade. China is a major rival to India when it comes to the outsourcing, manufacturing, and services business. India's ailing infrastructure scenario and defunct logistics facilities make it difficult for the country to achieve an elite status as a manufacturing hub. The bureaucratic approach of former governments, lack of robust transport networks, and widespread corruption makes it difficult for manufacturers to achieve timely and adequate production. The Modi government has vowed to remove these hurdles and make the nation an ideal destination for investors to set up industries.

The Make in India Website

Apart from the launch of a colourful brochure, which should find its way into the hands of anyone intending to invest into India, the government of India also launched a website to supplement the campaign. The Make In India website highlights each of the 25 target sectors with statistics, reasons to invest, growth drivers, all policies relevant to investors and the individual sectors, government support, and opportunities for investors apart from showcasing the live projects that have been undertaken and FAQs. The website also links to the campaigns Social Media feeds on Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, and YouTube.

Criticism and concerns

The NDA government's Make In India campaign has till early October attracted INR 2000 crore worth investment proposals. The campaign has, despite this,found its fair share of critics. The topmost of these criticisms is leveled against the incumbent government. It has been felt that the government does not walk its talk - labour reforms and policy reforms which are fundamental for the success of the Make In India campaign have not yet been implemented. A number of layoffs in companies such as Nokia India cast long shadows over the campaign. A number of technology based companies have not been enthused by the campaign launch and have professed to continue getting their components manufactured by China.

Campaign Name	Make In India
Launch Date	09/25/14
Launched By	PM Mr. Narendra Modi
Number of Sectors	25
Investment Proposals Received	INR 2000 crore (till 9-Oct-2014)

Make in India

Make in India campaign

Make in India is the BJP-led NDA government's flagship campaign intended to boost the domestic manufacturing industry and attract foreign investors to invest into the Indian economy. The Indian Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi first mentioned the keyphrase in his maiden Independence Day address from the ramparts of the Red Fort and over a month later launched the campaign in September 2014 with an intention of reviving manufacturing businesses and emphasizing key sectors in India amidst growing concerns that most entrepreneurs are moving out of the country due to its low rank in ease of doing business ratings.

The Make in India Vision

Manufacturing currently contributes just over 15% to the national GDP. The aim of this campaign is to grow this to a 25% contribution as seen with other developing nations of Asia. In the process, the government expects to generate jobs, attract much foreign direct investment, and transform India into a manufacturing hub preferred around the globe. 

The logo for the Make In India campaign is a an elegant lion, inspired by the Ashoka Chakra and designed to represent India's success in all spheres.The campaign was dedicated by the Prime Minister to the eminent patriot, philosopher and political personality, Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya who had been born on the same date in 1916.

Why PM wants to Make in India

The Prime Minister called for all those associated with the campaign, especially the entrepreneurs and the corporates, to step and discharge their duties as Indian nationals by First Developing India and for investors to endow the country with foreign direct investments. The Prime Minister also promised that his administration would aid the investors by making India a pleasant experience and that his government considered overall development of the nation an article of faith rather than a political agenda. He also laid a robust foundation for his vision of a technology-savvy Digital India as complementary to Make In India. He stressed on the employment generation and poverty alleviation that would inevitably accompany the success of this campaign

Launch Ceremony

Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi launched the Make In India campaign on September 25, 2014. The date of the launch was chosen to be of maximum advantage. Coming right after the successful insertion of Mangalyaan - a wholly indigenously built low-cost probe into the Martian orbit - the event highlighted India's success in manufacturing, science and technology, and all this at inexpensive costs. It also came just a day ahead of the Prime Minister's maiden US visit. Calculated to enhance India's attractiveness as an investment destination, the launch ceremony was held at the Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi. Thehall thronged with attendees, a number of whom did not even find seats. Leading entrepreneurs and the CEOs of about 3000 companies from across 30 countries were invited to attend the launch.

Law Minister Mr. Ravishankar Prasad and Commerce Minister Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman were part of the occasion. Apart from them, a number of corporate head honchos with deep roots in the country also spoke at the occasion. These include - Mr. Cyrus Mistry (Chairman, Tata Sons), Mr. Kenichi Ayukawa (MD and CEO, Maruti Suzuki India), Mr. Mukesh Ambani (Chairman & Managing Director, Reliance Industries), Mr. Azim Premji (Chairman, Wipro Limited), Mr. KM Birla Chairman, Aditya Birla Group), Ms. Chanda Kochchar (MD & CEO, ICICI Bank), Mr. Phil Shaw (CEO, Lockheed Martin), and Mr. YC Deveshwar (Chairman, ITC).

ACTION PLAN FOR STARTUP INDIA

WHAT ARE ACTION PLAN FOR STARTUP INDIA

The action plan of this campaign was successfully launched by the PM Narendra Modi on 16th January 2016. Following are the well described action plan for startup India:

Simplification and Handholding

Following facilities are provided under this, such as:

1. Compliance Regime based on Self-certification:

It will help youths to reduce their regulatory burden as well as focus on their core business by keeping compliance cost low. According to this scheme, startups have been given required friendly and flexible (simplifications in regulatory regime) compliance with labour and environment laws in order to prevent time and effort. Inspection process has been made easy and simple through the online startup mobile app as well as there will be no inspection for first three years however they can be inspected after complaint of violations. Startups (in case of environment laws) coming under white category (defined by Central Pollution Control Board) are able to self-certify compliance however random checking can be performed.

2. Startup India Hub

According to startup India hub, there will be single point of contact to connect entire startup ecosystem in order to enable knowledge exchange as well as access to funding. Our country is full highly skilled and confident youths who have capability to start business on their own however need some favorable environment. Many of them get discouraged and failed due to lack of guidance and access of needed ecosystem. Startup India hub is a friend, mentor and guide for all the startups who have courage to take risks in life. It will hold their hand and go together all through the journey. Startup India hub will ease the doing of business by creating exciting and enabling environment through the implementation of various effective measures for all the startups. It will assist startups by organizing mentorship programmes in collaboration with needed organizations to focus on important aspects.

3. Rolling out of Mobile App and Portal

Startups will be given support through the mobile app and online portal in order to easily interact with government and regulatory institutions regarding business needs and information exchange with other business persons involved. It will ease the establishments and operations of the business through fast and easy registration process which ultimately reduce the burden of startups. It will provide formal platform to the startups to get connected with collaborated with other partners of ecosystem. Online mobile app will enable startups with easy registration process having simple form, tracking the status of registration process and get digital version final registration certificate, collaborative platform, etc. However, it will be available on all the mobile devices from 1 April 2016.

4. Legal Support and Fast-tracking Patent Examination at Lower Costs

It will provide easy access to high quality intellectual property services and resources (rebate in fees, fast track examination of patent applications, assisting panel of facilitators, etc) required to the startups to easily adopt Intellectual Property Rights (strategic business tool enhances industrial competitiveness of any organization).

5. Relaxed Norms of Public Procurement for Startups

It will provide equal platform to the startups especially those who are in manufacturing sector. Startups will be supported to have their own manufacturing facilities in India.

6. Faster Exit for Startups

It will enable startups to easily complete the operations. It will support startups to run businesses with new and innovative ideas without any fear of failure. According to this, startups can take exit within 90 days after applying for the exit.

Funding Support and Incentives

Following facilities are provided under this, such as:

1. Providing Funding Support through a Fund of Funds with a Corpus of INR 10,000 crore

Finance support will be given to the startups for the development of the new business enterprises. Due to the lack of finance support startups may not able to completely perform their innovative ideas. The government of India will arrange the fund of funds (INR 2,500 crore yearly and INR 10,000 crore in 4 years) to support startups. It will not directly support them however through the SEBI registered Venture Funds.

2. Credit Guarantee Fund for Startups

It will provide credit to the startups from all the sections of society in order to promote entrepreneurship by breaking Indian society stigma regarding failure of startups business. This plan will encourage banks including other lenders to support startups through venture debts.

3. Tax Exemption on Capital Gains

It will provide tax benefits to the startups on their capital gains. According to this, investors will be given some incentives in order to invest among startups. Those startups, who have invested their capital gains in the government’s recognized Fund of Funds, will be given tax exemption. Capital gains invested in purchasing new assets for the enterprise will also be given tax exemption.

4. Tax Exemption to Startups for 3 years

In order to promote entrepreneurship among startups, they will be supported through tax exemption for three years. Youths have capacity to think beyond the limit so they need more help to continue work on their innovative ideas. Initial years become the struggling years for any new entrepreneur that’s why government has decided to support for first three years through tax exemption.

5. Tax Exemption on Investments above Fair Market Value

It is to encourage seed capital investments among startups. Tax exemption will be given to the investments over fair market value.

Industry-Academia Partnership and Incubation

Following facilities are provided under this, such as:

1. Organizing Startup Fests for Showcasing Innovation and Providing a Collaboration Platform

It is to maintain the proper communication and collaboration within the startup community to gain national and international visibility. Government will promote the active participation of academia, investors, industry and other stakeholders by organizing the startup fest. Government has decided to hold at least one national level fest in the national city and one international level fest in the international city for the startup ecosystem. The activities like exhibitions and product launches, curated Startup walks, sessions to connect with mentors, investors, incubators, and startups, conferences with industry leaders, showcasing of innovations, mentoring sessions, competitions (Hackathon, Makerspace, etc) talks by disruptive innovators, announcements of rewards and recognitions, etc will be held during the startup fest.

2. Launch of Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) with Self-Employment and Talent Utilization (SETU) Program

The facility of Atal innovation mission with the self employment and talent utilization program is given to the startups for promotion of world-class Innovation Hubs, Startup businesses, Grand Challenges, and other self-employment activities.

3. Harnessing Private Sector Expertise for Incubator Setup

Government will promote and connect private sectors expertise (Department of Biotechnology, Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Department of Electronics and Information Technology, Department of Higher Education, and NITI Aayog) to setup incubator all through the country. People will be benefited in many ways through incubation facilities such as provision of mentorship support, physical infrastructure, access to networks, access to the market, etc. According to this central government will provide around 40% fund support (maximum of INR 10 crore) to establish 35 incubators in the existing institutions. Funding support will be given by the NITI Aayog as part of Atal Innovation Mission.

4. Building Innovation Centres at National Institutes

There is planning to set up 31 innovation centres at national institutes (offering facilities to more than 1,200 new Startups) including 13 startup centres with annual funding support of INR 50 lakhs for the first three years to promote student driven startups and 18 Technology Business Incubators at the NITs/IITs/IIMs etc.

5. Setting up of 7 New Research Parks Modeled on the Research Park Setup at IIT Madras

There is plan by the government to invest around INR 100 crore in setting up 7 new Research Parks in the institutes in order to break traditional and artificial barriers of innovation as well as create and apply advancements in knowledge.

6. Promoting Startups in the Biotechnology Sector

It is to motivate more innovative youths of the country towards biotechnology sector. Startups in this field will be supported by the government through the facilities like 5 new Bio-clusters, 150 technology transfer offices, 20 Bio-Connect offices, 50 new Bio-Incubators etc in the research institutes and universities all across the country. There is facility of Biotech Equity Fund (fund in partnership with National and Global Equity Funds) in order to provide financial support to the young Biotech startups.

7. Launching of Innovation Focused Programs for Students

Government will promote research and innovation among students in the field of science and technology by launching innovative programs. Innovation core program will be created to target the school kids to achieve 10 lakh innovations from 5 lakh schools. Some of the best innovations will be shortlisted to showcase at the Annual Festival of Innovations at Rashtrapati Bhavan. Another program named National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing Innovations will support and award around 20 student innovations from IEDCs with INR 10 lakhs. Uchhattar Avishkar Yojana will promote IIT students for very high quality research. Funding contributions will be 50% from MHRD, 25% from DST and 25% from industry.

8. Annual Incubator Grand Challenge

Government will support startups through creation of world class incubators. It will help in building an effective startup ecosystem and help them in the initial stage as well as other phases of the business lifecycle.

STARTUP INDIA ACTION PLAN

What is Startup India

Startup India is an initiative launched to give new opportunity to the innovative youths of the country in order to more job in India. It is an active support started by the government of India to motivate new entrepreneurs as well as a chance to see some new dreams in the field of development. The action plan of this initiative was launched by the PM Narendra Modi on 16th of January, Saturday 2016 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. This event was organized by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP). The aim of this event was celebrating the entrepreneurial spirit of India. It aims to create strong network in India to promote innovations and startups in business by the youths.

What is Action Plan

The action plan of the startup India initiative has a list of sequential activities and well-defined steps taken by the government of India for the same. Action plan has an outline of all the most important priorities required to focus on the aim of this initiative. Action plan is prepared to give a strong support to the startups of India to create various small businesses for more job creation. It ensures new innovative entrepreneurs to start a business with full support. It is to initiate ‘Make for India’ after the initiative ‘Make in India’ by the youths of the country. It will make Indian youths, who are willing to do something new in the field of business, more confident and energetic. Now, youths can start their own business in favor of India without having much fear of getting failure as this action plan has various effective plans for them.

The whole action plan is the wheel of the startups India initiative made for supporting them who are new in business however full of innovative ideas. This initiative is the strong belief of the Indian PM Narendra Modi that our Indian youths can do better in the field of development through businesses if they are given a strong support and chance to implement their innovative ideas of business without any fear and governmental system delay in the process.

Benefits of Action Plan

Action plan is a well-formed plan of action prepared by the government to set business startups with full support and in the right direction. Action plan provides clarity to prioritize and allocate time and resources in better way to fulfill objectives of the programme. Actions plan becomes a guidebook which helps one to set on the right track. Generally, a business owner faces many unpredictable problems on the way of setting a business. The first and foremost thing is that he/she has to invest his/her own money without being sure of the surety of success in that business. Many times the business becomes fail and if one has further courage, he/she starts again otherwise becomes hopeless because of the lack of motivation and finance.

This action plan created by the government will be proved as a strong support for the courageous and motivated youths of the country to do some new and effective business. It is a big risk taken by the government of India by creating such a surprising action plan in the favor of youths. According to this action plan, startups will be supported with finance, tax benefits and various other favorable supports through flexible government systems. It aims to empower youths in various working areas from digital/technology sector to the wide range of sectors such as agriculture, social sector, manufacturing, education, healthcare, etc.

This action plan will help startups to easily tackle with all the potential obstacles on the way. Action plan ensures the right steps in right direction. This action plan is dream list of the activities to be done in the favor of this initiative. It will prioritize the required actions which are legally necessary for the quickest payback to the business.

KEY'S INITIATIVES UNDER DIGITAL INDIA SCHEME

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NINE KEY INITIATIVES UNDER DIGITAL INDIA SCHEME

Under Digital India programme, 9 key initiatives are in progress, which are as follows:

• Broadband Highways:

The aim is to connect 250000 Gram Panchayats through high speed internet by December 2016 with the investment of Rs 32,000 crore; Nationwide internet infrastructure through National Optic Fibre Network (NOFK) by 2016.

• Universal Access to Mobile Connectivity:

The aim is to connect all the remaining 42300 villages which are unconnected through mobile telephony with the investment of Rs 16000 crore by the financial year 2018.

• National Rural Internet Mission:

The aim is to make available government services to all Gram Panchayats through Common Service Centres (CSCs) by March 2017 with the investment of Rs. 4750 crore; also, 150000 Post-Offices are to become Multi-service Centres by 2016.

• e- Governance:

The aim is to simplify government business processes by introduction of IT, online interface and tracking across departments, integration of services and platforms-UIDAI, Payment Gateway, Mobile Platform etc; public grievance redressal through IT.

• e-Kranti:

The aim is electronic delivery of services be it education, agriculture, health, justice or financial inclusion.

• Information for All:

The aim is online hosting of data and proactive engagement with citizen through social media and web portals such as MyGov.in; citizen will have open access to information and open data platform.

• Electronic Manufacturing:

The aim is Net Zero imports by 2020 through increased level of local manufacturing of electronic items such as: Set Top Boxes, VSATs, Mobiles, Consumer and medical Electronics, Smart Cards etc.; efforts will be made to provide clarity on taxation, incentives, skill development and government procurement.

• Training and Job Creation:

The aim is to train students in small towns and villages for IT sector jobs; the target is training of 1 crore students in next five years to make them IT ready workforce; Setting up BPOs in each North Eastern State; Telecom service providers will train 500000 people in five years to create a Telecom ready rural workforce to cater to their own needs.

• Early Harvest Programme:

All Universities across the country will be connected through Wi-Fi by December 2015; e-mail to be the primary mode of communication- to secure e-mail services across all departments of government; Biometric attendance in all Ministries and Departments.

CHALLENGES BEFORE DIGITAL INDIA INITIATIVE

The Digital India project, no doubt is one of the grandest projects till date because it embraces all the government machinery and departments in its fold; its aim is to create a truly participatory democracy with the use of digital technology; its target is to connect more than 120 crore Indians with their Government so that they could avail services and benefits of government services in real time and also get their grievances redressed in quick time.

But to implement this scheme is a great challenge before the Government; firstly,connecting 250000 Gram Panchayats through National Optical Fibre Network is not an easy task; it will require a lot of efforts and dedication from BSNL, the nodal agency for laying down the cables; secondly,improving IT literacy is a great task ahead because for the project to become successful, it is necessary that mass of people must know how to utilise the digital services; thirdly,security of data is very important because digital medium is still very unsafe and data vulnerability is a big issue specially in financial transactions; thus, internet data security is a big concern ahead; fourthly,making Digital India scheme known and creating an awareness among common masses about its benefits is also a great challenge.

Overall this great initiative will require great efforts from the entire government machinery and people concerned to make it successful.

PUSH FOR DIGITAL INDIA INITIATIVE BY NARENDRA MODI DURING HIS UNITED STATES VISIT

On 26 September 2015, PM Narendra Modi addressed a gathering of CEOs of top Tech Companies in Silicon Valley, San Jose, US. He made a pitch for the Digital India initiative and explained to them that Digital India is an initiative to transform India in a way which is unmatched in the History.

PM invited Tech majors to set up electronic manufacturing bases in India; he urged Apple CEO Tim Cook to set up manufacturing unit in India. The PM also announced the plan to expand WiFi connectivity across 500 railway stations in India, in collaboration with Google; Microsoft also announced an early plan to make available Cloud Services operated out of India.

Top leaders of Tech Companies are in agreement with the vision of Digital India and are willing to invest resources for the purpose; thus the current push by PM Narendra Modi would surely be helpful in realizing his Digital India dream.

DIGITAL INDIA

Digital India initiative is one of the most ambitious projects of the Government of India; it is part of PM Narendra Modi’s vision of making India a ‘digitally empowered knowledge economy’

WHAT IS DIGITAL INDIA INITIATIVE

Digital India initiative is an extended and transformed version of e-Governance project which is in place since mid-1990s. Various e-Governance projects all over the country encompassing all the government departments have not been able to bring about desired results. Thus there was a need felt by the current government to overhaul the present infrastructure of e-governance plan and also include additional objectives in the new initiative.

Through the implementation of this scheme, the gap between government departments and people in general would be minimized. Services and benefits provided by the government would reach to the citizens in quick time and without much hassle. It will also ensure local electronic manufacturing and job creations for Indians.

Therefore, to realise the objective of making India a ‘Digital Society’ and a ‘Knowledge Economy’, PM Narendra Modi envisioned the scheme of “Digital India” so as to transform the entire concept of Governance by making it more transparent and accessible to the citizen.

The Digital India initiative is being envisaged by Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY) but other ministries are also involved such as Ministry of Communications & IT, Ministry of Rural Development, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Ministry of Health and others also.

DIGITAL INDIA INITIATIVE LAUNCHED

PM Narendra Modi launched the ambitious Digital India initiative on 1 July 2015 at a ceremony held in New Delhi to celebrate first Digital India Week, in the presence of top CEOs from India and abroad. The industry lauded this new initiative as an important milestone in transforming India’s digital infrastructure for the next generation and also as a catalyst for investment in technology sector and in employment generation. These CEOs have committed to invest Rs. 4.5 lakh crore for the initiative to make it a success.

VISION AREAS OF DIGITAL INDIA

The main vision of Digital India initiative is to ‘transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy’.

To achieve this vision, the government has marked three Vision Areas, viz.:

1. Making digital infrastructure as a utility to every citizen.
2. Making Governance and public services on demand.
3. Making citizens digitally empowered.

Important objectives under these vision areas are:

1. High-speed internet connectivity for fast delivery of public services.
2. Creation of unique digital identity for every citizen.

• Providing private space on public cloud.

1. Making cyber-space safe and secure.
2. To make government services available in real time through online medium.
3. To improve ease of doing business through transformed digital services.

• Financial transactions are to be made cashless and electronic.
• Universalization of digital literacy.

1. Making digital resource and services available in Indian languages.
2. Making governance citizen participative through collaborative digital platform.