India set to shape next industrial revolution driven by AI, biotech: Jitendra Singh

MUMBAI: India is getting ready to move from the tech sidelines to centre stage. Union minister Jitendra Singh said the country is poised to play an essential role in the next industrial revolution, which he expects to be driven by biotechnology and artificial intelligence rather than the IT-led transformation of the previous era.

Speaking at a media conclave on Sunday, Singh said India had been late to the last industrial revolution but was now better positioned to shape emerging technologies.

He pointed to India’s dedicated biotechnology policy, BioE3, along with the National Quantum Mission and IndiaAI Mission, as examples of the policy architecture being built around frontier technologies.

Singh said the shift towards biotechnology, AI, the circular economy, recycling and other technology-led sectors is already reshaping the global economy. Biotechnology, in particular, could have a growing impact on healthcare, agriculture and food production while creating new avenues for employment and economic growth.

India’s space sector, meanwhile, has emerged as one of the clearest examples of how policy changes can unlock private-sector potential.

Singh said India’s space economy, which was once almost negligible, has grown to around $9 billion and is projected to reach $40-45 billion within the next eight to nine years.

He attributed much of the change to the decision to open the space sector to private participation in 2020. The move has helped create an ecosystem of space startups, including companies developing rockets and reaching unicorn status within a relatively short period.

The minister also cited the Chandrayaan mission’s detection of evidence of water molecules on the Moon as an example of India contributing to global scientific knowledge.

According to Singh, the country never lacked scientific talent or technical capability. What was missing was an enabling policy environment that could turn that capability into commercially and socially useful outcomes.

The government is now seeking to extend this approach to other sectors.

Singh said private participation is being encouraged in areas that were traditionally dominated by the government, including the nuclear sector. While this creates new opportunities for industry, he said businesses must also prepare for emerging fields and build the capabilities needed to participate.

With India working towards its 2047 development goals, Singh said the window to prepare for these opportunities is limited. Every sector will need to evolve, while businesses must be ready to enter areas that could shape the country’s next phase of growth.

He also highlighted the role of technology in widening access to education. Digital learning, he said, is helping students outside major metropolitan centres access opportunities that were once difficult to reach.

The startup ecosystem is similarly spreading beyond large cities, with entrepreneurs from smaller towns increasingly building businesses around technology and innovation.

Singh also pointed to governance reforms as part of India’s broader transformation, noting that nearly 2,000 obsolete laws have been removed.

Among the reforms he highlighted were changes to family pension rights for single daughters, nomination rights for women government employees and pension provisions for families of employees who die before completing 10 years of service.

He also cited the removal of gazetted officer attestation requirements for several documents as an example of the government placing greater trust in citizens.

For India to achieve its 2047 ambitions, Singh said the country must move beyond being a technology follower and become a source of capabilities and innovations that others can adopt.

That will require a closer partnership between government and industry, he said, with both sides learning from each other rather than working in silos.

The larger goal, Singh said, is a “whole of government plus whole of nation” approach, bringing policymakers, businesses, innovators and citizens together to ensure India is not merely present at the next industrial revolution, but helps shape it.