Inviting investors, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today pitched for making the state as a hub for electronics manufacturing following its success in the field of information technology.
“I want Karnataka to be home to the most vibrant ESDM (Electronic System Design and Manufacturing) ecosystem in the world, catering to the demands of domestic and global markets,” Siddaramiah said at IESA Vision Summit.
The Chief Minister said Karnataka is at the forefront when it comes to supporting the ESDM industry. “With over 85 chip design firms, we are leaders in chip designing and R&D. We were among the first to envisage an exclusive ESDM policy, K-ESDM, which aims to focus on and promote the ESDM industry in Karnataka.
The policy aims to capture 10 per cent of the ESDM market in India over the next six years,” he said. The Centre expects demand of electronics product in the country to reach USD 400 billion by 2020. The domestic ESDM market is expected to reach USD 94.2 billion in 2015 from USD 68.3 billion in 2012.
However, domestic production and services in the industry lag far behind the demand, with revenues from domestic production estimated at USD 29.8 billion in 2012 and is forecast to reach USD 42.4 billion in 2015, as per a study by Indian Electronics and Semiconductor Association with Ernst and Young. The industry has suffered due to imports of IT and telecom products being allowed at zero per cent duty under Information Technology Agreement signed by India in 1997.
“We have a holistic view of the challenges faced by the ESDM industry, and we are addressing these using a combination of promotional initiatives, post-performance incentives, fiscal measures, capital subsidies and other capacity building measures,” Siddaramaiah said.
He said that industry should work with academia in state to create manpower required for development of electronics ecosystem in the state. “My government has finalised a list of engineering colleges in tier 2 and 3 cities that would house incubation centres to promote entrepreneurship. The focus will be more on building an ecosystem fostering entrepreneurship rather than building physical space and purchasing expensive equipment,” he said.
he central government has also approved a scheme to impart technology training to about 5.4 lakh people over the next 5 years with an investment of about Rs 500 crore. In a written message, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu — who could not attend the summit — also lured investors to come to his state.
“Almost 60 per cent of electronics manufacturing that happens in India is small components manufacturing. This has to change. We need to innovate at a much larger scale and own the IP (Intellectual Property) for these innovations,” Naidu said in his message. He added that Andhra Pradesh has always placed a lot of emphasis on support high-tech industry and is ready to focus on next phase of transformation.
