India’s Deep-Tech Push & Bureaucratic Hurdles

Syllabus: GS3/Economy; Employment; Growth & Development

Context

• Recently, during India’s Independence Day address, the Prime Minister urged the nation to shed its dependency and embrace technological sovereignty to lead in deep-tech innovation — spanning artificial intelligence, quantum computing, semiconductors, and space technology.

About the Deep Technology

• It refers to innovations rooted in advanced scientific and engineering breakthroughs such as AI, quantum computing, biotechnology, and space tech and of its disruptive nature.
• It often requires long development cycles, high capital investment, and rigorous validation.
• Deep tech start-ups differ from traditional start-ups primarily in their technology-driven approach, longer development cycles, and higher risk factors.
  • Traditional start-ups often rely on business model innovation, such as e-commerce, SaaS, or consumer services.

India’s Strengths

• Talent Pool: India has world-class engineers and scientists. Many global tech firms rely on Indian talent for core R&D.
  • India ranks third globally in scientific research and has climbed from 81st to 39th in the Global Innovation Index.
• Cost Efficiency: Indian startups can innovate at lower costs, making them attractive for global partnerships.
• Government Push: Initiatives like the PLI Scheme for semiconductors and green hydrogen are helping build indigenous capabilities.

Concerns & Issues in India’s Deep-Tech Ecosystem

• Bureaucratic Bottlenecks: India’s bureaucratic machinery, rooted in colonial legacy, remains one of the biggest hurdles, as it was designed for control, not innovation.
  • Slow Decision-Making: Regulatory approvals for R&D, IP filings, and funding disbursements are often delayed.
  • Fragmented Oversight: Deep-tech spans multiple ministries — MeitY, DST, DBT, ISRO, DRDO — leading to coordination challenges.
  • Risk Aversion: Bureaucrats are often hesitant to back experimental technologies, fearing audit scrutiny or political fallout.
• Funding Gaps & Market Failure: Deep-tech requires patient capital and long gestation periods.
  • CSR Funds Underutilized: India’s ₹15,000 crore annual CSR budget could support strategic tech, but remains largely untapped.
  • Investor Hesitancy: Many investors lack the technical understanding or appetite for long-term risk.
  • India lacks a dedicated strategic fund to bridge this gap. Government missions like IndiaAI and National Quantum Mission are underfunded compared to global peers.
• Talent Drain & Research Deficit: India produces top-tier engineers and scientists, but many leave for better opportunities abroad. Domestic research budgets are meagre, and academia-industry linkages remain weak.
  • Universities don’t produce research at scale.
  • IP creation is low; India often serves as the back office for global tech giants.
  • GPU clusters and advanced computing infrastructure are scarce, limiting AI and quantum research.
• Legal & Ethical Concerns: India’s push into AI and surveillance tech raises serious questions about privacy and civil liberties.
  • The Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA) has been criticized for granting broad exemptions to the government, undermining individual rights.
  • AI-powered surveillance lacks proportional safeguards.
  • Facial recognition systems are being deployed without robust legal frameworks.
  • Citizens face heightened scrutiny while the state enjoys unchecked data access.
• Cultural & Strategic Misalignment: India’s tech culture often prioritizes execution over invention. Quick commerce and fintech dominate, while frontier technologies remain underexplored.
  • Nationalism and proxy culture wars with tech companies distract from the real work of building foundational capabilities.
  • Deep-tech is treated as a promising sector, not core infrastructure.
  • Political theatrics sometimes overshadow policy delivery.
  • Strategic technologies are still seen as the burden of commercial industry alone.

Related Efforts & Initiatives

• Union Budget (2025-26): India is positioning itself as a hub for sunrise technologies with initiatives like the Indian Semiconductor Mission and increased R&D funding.
• Prime Minister’s Research Fellowship (PMRF): The government is tripling intake under PMRF, aiming to support 10,000 scholars over five years.
• National Deep Tech Startup Policy (NDTSP): It is spearheaded by the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser. It outlines over 80 policy interventions and has consulted nearly 200 experts to build a robust framework for deep-tech growth. It aims to:
  • Strengthen India’s economic future through tech sovereignty;
  • Transition to a knowledge-driven economy;
  • Promote ethical innovation;
  • Support startups with funding, infrastructure, and IP protection;
• National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS): It was launched by the Department of Science & Technology (DST) with focus on AI, robotics, autonomous systems, IoT, drones.
• Electric Vehicle Solutions Led by Startups (EVolutionS): To accelerate EV component development and build a robust supply chain.
  • Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) help startups move from prototype to product.
• Climate, Energy and Sustainable Technology (CEST) Initiatives with focus on advanced hydrogen and fuel cells, methane mitigation, carbon capture and utilization, and AI/ML-based climate prediction models etc.
• Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) Program: It promotes biotech innovation and commercialization.
• Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF): For high-priority deep-tech research; focusing on Electric vehicles, climate tech, and foundational science.

Road Ahead

• A dedicated ‘India Strategic Fund’ to bridge the gap between academic research and industrial application, similar to models in the US and Israel.
• India has the ingredients—talent, market, and policy momentum—but must overcome structural inertia. To truly compete with the US and China, it needs:
  • A cultural shift toward bold, research-driven entrepreneurship;
  • Streamlined governance and regulatory reform;
  • Stronger academia-industry linkages;
  • Deep investment in foundational technologies.

Source: IE