Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Electronics and IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, lauded India’s tech capabilities and its role in spearheading digitization, during a dialogue in New Delhi with Andrew Staples, Editorial Director from the Economist Impact.

Highlighting India’s technological prowess, Rajeev Chandrasekhar pointed to Chandrayaan 3 as evidence of the nation’s ability to execute deep-tech successfully.

He emphasized India’s growing potential in fostering inclusivity through technology, stating, “This is an exciting time for India’s tech space as we are building deep tech capabilities, no one would have thought that we would be at this stage.”

“We are a highly capable country and Chandrayaan 3 represents how we can execute these deep tech capabilities and that self-confidence leads me to believe that the vision of our PM can be realized where the digital economy will be 20-25% of the total GDP,” said Chandrashekhar.

The Minister also articulated India’s role in assisting countries that have lagged behind in technology and digitalization through the India stack, particularly through the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) initiative, read the Ministry of Electronics and IT press release.

Chandrashekhar stated, “The DPI is an extremely exciting conversation today and has gained momentum in the context of the Indian presidency of the G20. The fact that India is now a case study, a nation that has deployed technological tools for progress and growth”.

“This is now increasingly being seen by countries that have lagged behind, as a way to follow India’s lead, taking the India stack, an open-sourced digital infrastructure and then using these to digitize their own governments,” Chandrasekhar explained.

Reflecting on India’s journey, the Minister underscored the importance of striking a balance between protecting citizens’ rights and fostering innovation.

He expressed hope that the G20 would encourage global companies to view India as a reliable partner, ultimately contributing to a trust-based global order.

“What I expect from the G20 is that all these large companies who are looking at globalization look at India as a trusted, long-term partner. This will be a win-win since it will set the basis of a trust-based global order,” Chandrashekhar stated.

There have to be guardrails for data processing of citizens’ data, and how they should be used. As the Government of India, we take our duty very seriously of creating a balance and a symmetry between the rights of individuals and data protection while boosting innovation in our country,” the Minister affirmed.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s remarks underscore India’s growing influence in the global tech arena and its commitment to digital inclusivity, innovation, and data protection on the international stage.