BackExperts call for targeted policies, new tech laws to boost economy
PLIs and other schemes have helped initiate hardware making in India but are not enough, an expert says
PremiumBusiness chiefs, and policy and legal experts called upon the Indian government, at the tech policy session of Mint Budget Conversations, to adopt clearer laws and policies to regulate and boost the role of new technologies in the upcoming Union budget.
More schemes that focus on research could help India better direct its recent slew of incentives, said Smita Purushottam, founder of policy think tank Science, Indigenous Technology and Advanced Research Accelerator (Sitara), while elaborating on how better policies can help India fast-track its role in technological sectors, in a discussion moderated by Vikram Chandra, founder of Editorji.
“Section 35(2AB) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, which gives tax incentives for research and development (R&D) to companies in India, has been largely diluted. R&D is a driving force of an economy’s growth, but we have very few schemes that focus on research," she said.
Production-linked incentives (PLIs) and other schemes have helped start the process of hardware manufacturing in India but are not enough, according to Purushottam. “We see so many schemes... However, they’re not targeted the way they are in China and the US," Purushottam pointed out.
Others believe that an increasingly decentralized approach towards the global supply chain of hardware could be an opportunity for India to cash in on. Rajneesh Kumar, senior vice-president and chief corporate affairs officer, Flipkart, said, “It is important to not only support local innovation but also ensure that we strike trade agreements with nations. Decentralised supply chains and growing local manufacturing will play big roles in India’s future."
However, to enable all of this, the government must look at adopting new laws, rather than amending old ones. Pavan Duggal, cybersecurity advocate at the Supreme Court of India said the problems with retrofitted actions are inadequate definitions of new technology concepts such as cybersecurity.
“Countries such as China, Singapore, and Australia are coming up with national laws on cybersecurity. India must do so too," Duggal said.
Abhishek Issar, founding member of the Federation of Electronic Sports Association said India’s mobile-first approach makes it a big market by volume, but it is still “not even in the global top 20 by revenue". At Union Budget 2022, policies clarifying skill versus chance games, tighter data protection, and gamification may bring more investors to India, he said.
Union Budget 2022 may help bolster Indian firms and their roles in areas such as data localization, said Rohit Kumar, chief executive of Zedsoftpoint.
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