$245 Billion IT and Electronics Opportunity by 2014: IT Task Force

In what is being considered as an important step in spelling out

priorities for the IT industry and providing the much needed stimulous,

The href="http://dqindia.ciol.com/content/egovernance/2006/106052102.asp">

IT Task Force  (Set up

in 2009) submitted

its detailed report to the government of India. The report forsees a

$140 billion electronics and $ 105 billion software and services

Industry by the year 2014, besides recommending the setting up of a

National Electronics Mission






However, what remains to be seen is how
many of these recommendations are seriously taken up by the ministry.

Owing to the parliament session that is in process, href="http://dqindia.ciol.com/content/top_stories/2009/109040701.asp">A

Raja, minister for

communications and IT, refrained

from making any comments. While the broad recommendations of the

Task Force include favorable regulatory environment, Sustainable

innovation ecosystem, domestic market growth catalysts and

“made

for India designs”, there were some sector specific

recommendations

as well. (see below).

While

handing over the report href="http://dqindia.ciol.com/content/50yrsIT/People/2006/106123016.asp">Ajai

Chowdhry, the Chairperson of the

Task Force, made clear that the

downturn necessitated such an action more than ever as the growth of

the industry has been relegated to the single digit bracket.

Moreover, he said that there was a great need to bring in scope for

innovation and leadership in which some countries are way ahead us.

“For momentum does not define leadership”, he said.

As

the report was handed over, Chowdhry

went on to say that the industry is handing over its

“dream” to

the government and hoped to see it come true very soon. Even though the

parliament session left

nothing much to say, we shall keenly watch out for the actions that

the minister claimed his ministry will spring into very soon.

R.

Chandrashekhar,

Secretary, Department of IT, Ministry of Communications & IT

said, “The aim was to chart a vision and recommend a suitable

strategy for development and growth of all segments of the value chain

of the ICTE sector in India for the next five years and beyond, with

concrete and implementable recommendations/action points for making the

industry globally competitive. The goal is to arrive at a shared

Government Industry Vision of what the sector should aspire to achieve

in next few years, particularly in terms of investment, contribution to

GDP and employment.”






Kiran Karnik, Co-Chairman of the Task Force said, “We looked
at how IT could proliferate into rural India and aid inclusive growth,

as also the multi-faceted dynamics of the Industry keeping in mind

issues such as infrastructure, domestic market development, employment

generation, exports, impact of international agreements &

transactions.”

style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 0, 0);">Key

Highlights:

face="Times New Roman, serif"> size="3">Software and  Services

• Establish
  
  India as a trusted global hub for professional services and managing
  risks effectively
  

• Global
  
  trade development and actively advocating free trade in services,
  
  including the free global movement of service providers

• Maintain
  
  a globally competitive tax regime — extend Section 10A/10B
  
  and provide parity with SEZ scheme. Ensure incentives under Section
  
  10A/10B and SEZ continue after the direct tax code is introduced.

size="3">Electronics System

Design & Manufacturing

• lang="en-GB">Establish a 'National
  
  Electronics Mission' to help in the synchronized functioning
  
  of the Industry through effective coordination across ministries and
  
  government departments in the centre and the states and would enhance
  
  the ease of doing business. 

• Nurturing
  
  established electronics manufacturing clusters and develop them into
  
  centres of excellence, while encouraging new ones.

size="3">Strategic Electronics

• lang="en-GB">Focus on technology areas that need to
  
  be developed domestically as they are unlikely to be transferred by
  
  global players

• lang="en-GB">Identify and provide support in areas
  
  where the private sector can collaborate and provide superior execution
  
  capabilities to Defence Public Sector Units (DPSUs) such as fabrication

• lang="en-GB">Consider IT and software capabilities as
  
  an enabling mechanism: significant changes are required to reform
  
  current organization and acquisition practices and fix issues such as
  
  the mismatch between technological planning & development

• lang="en-GB">Accelerate process by which private
  
  sector and indigenous participation happens. Initiate implementing the
  
  key recommendations from the Kelkar Committee Report on the following
  
  areas:

• Provide
  
  a level playing field for private players with the DPSUs

• Tighten
  
  offset clauses to provide for more effective technology transfer to
  
  India and enlist private sector participation in utilizing
  
  investments/business resulting from the offset clause