Minister of Electronics releases draft National Strategy on Robotics for public consultation

Source: The post is based on the article “Minister of Electronics releases draft National Strategy on Robotics for public consultation” published in “PIB” on 14th October 2023

What is the News?

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has released the Draft National Strategy on Robotics. 

What is the Draft National Strategy on Robotics?

Aim: To harness the potential of robotic technology and support its development to make India a global leader in robotics.

Objectives: To make India a global robotics leader by 2030.

– To build upon the mandates of the Make in India 2.0 plans which identified robotics as one of the 27 sub-sectors to further enhance India’s integration in the global value chain.

Core sectors: The strategy has identified 1) manufacturing 2) agriculture 3) healthcare and 4) national security as the four core sectors to prioritize robotics automation.

Implementation: The National Strategy on Robotics is proposed to be undertaken as the ‘National Robotics Mission’. 

– This mission will be implemented through the establishment of the Robotics Innovation Unit(RIU) as an institutional framework under IndiaAI.

Recommendations: Create Centers of Excellence (CoEs) for research in robotics. 

– Promote private sector participation in key robotic sectors.

– Support startups, utilize research capabilities in universities and establish dedicated zones for robotics industries.

– Fiscal interventions to facilitate local manufacturing of robotics hardware.

– Initially, the government should be a major buyer of Indian-made robotic systems.This can be done through a Public Procurement Policy for Robotics which encourages local production by favoring suppliers with a minimum domestic content requirement.

Challenges in India’s robotics sector: 

– India relies heavily on importing robotics components, mainly from China and Japan.

– The cost of robotics hardware components is high.

– Insufficient investments in research and development hinder progress.

– Absence of dedicated legislation for robotics or allied technologies such as artificial intelligence.