India Launches ₹1 Lakh Crore RDI Fund To Power Tech Sovereignty And Innovation

By Surabhi Gupta

New Delhi: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and multiple portfolios, Dr. Jitendra Singh, reaffirmed Government of India's commitment to self-reliance in emerging technologies by announcing a ₹1 lakh crore Research, Development, and Innovation (RDI) Fund to support India's sovereign technology aspirations with close collaboration with the private sector.

Speaking at the ASSOCHAM Conference on "Sovereign Tech for India's Digital Transformation" under the theme, Bharat@100, Dr. Singh presented the central government's ambitious vision to create a vibrant ecosystem for indigenous technological development, primarily in critical and sunrise sectors.

"I call on the industry to step forward and take full advantage of the opportunities that the Government has opened up. India is advancing as a technology player and the world is watching," declared Dr. Singh to a global audience of industry leaders.

The Rise of Industry-Led R&D

The scheme is part of a larger effort to prioritise and improve the research and innovation landscape in India, built around a ₹1 lakh crore RDI Scheme. The objective of the scheme is to provide private sector firms engaged in deep tech, in strategic technologies, and in high-impact R&D projects with long-term, low-interest loans and risk capital for financing, along with a broad range of uses that the terms set forth in the scheme will determine. One key feature of the scheme is the establishment of a Deep-Tech Fund of Funds to multiply private investment into innovation.

The fund will be anchored through the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) and delivered through the Department of Science and Technology (DST). The fund will take the form of a Special Purpose Vehicle, which is expected to be the foundation of an industry-led shift away from government-led R&D to support innovation at scale.

Policy Shift: From Control To Collaboration

Dr. Singh highlighted the government's bold departure from past policies that treated strategic sectors like space and nuclear energy as exclusive government domains. The decision to open these sectors to private participation has already delivered impressive results.

India's space economy, for instance, has surged to $8 billion, with projections suggesting it could quadruple to $40 billion in the near future. The success of private space startups and the historic participation of Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla in an international space mission have helped solidify India’s reputation as a credible and equal global technology partner.

Imagining Sovereignty In A Digital World

The conference examined Sovereign Technology, not just the ownership of hardware or software, but also building capability in all layers of technology infrastructure, from data storage to AI models.

Dr. Singh highlighted that India needs India-specific data repositories; relying on datasets produced in foreign countries often produces poor context in adequately addressing policy and technology solutions.

In this regard, the India Biological Data Centre (IBDC), which was established by the Department of Biotechnology, provides an important step forward to developing Indian data repositories. The IBDC serves as the national repository for genomic data. Already, the IBDC houses over 10,000 whole genome sequences from the Genome India Project, which serves as a foundational initiative towards the realisation of precision medicine and healthcare advancement.

Viksit Bharat By 2047: The Importance Of Technology

Connecting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ambition of a Viksit Bharat by 2047, Dr. Singh insisted that the great growth engines of tomorrow will be sectors like space technology, biotechnology and the blue economy. These sectors carry significant strategic weight, but they will be able to have far more than just strategic importance with massive societal impacts.

Dr Singh provided an example in the form of the 'Vaccine Maitri' initiative from the COVID-19 Pandemic, demonstrating India's potential to leap with empathy and innovation. The ability to develop, manufacture and deploy indigenous vaccines (with global reach) in a short period of time had only been done through the collaborative effort between the Government for facilitation and the Private sector delivery.

The Changing Face Of Innovation: Tier-2 Cities & Women Entrepreneurs

India's innovation story is no longer exclusive to urban tech centres. Dr. Singh spoke of a tremendous paradigm shift for innovation in Tier-2 cities, which represent nearly 50% of India's startups. A significant number of these startups have women talent, which is, in part, a sign of democratized technology and innovation, inclusive of all.

The government is rolling out dedicated schemes for women, tribal communities, and youth to leverage their talent towards one national development narrative. This inclusive process is key to embedding a tech-led, people-centred growth model.

An Ethical Approach To AI

In discussing Artificial Intelligence (AI), Dr. Singh encouraged tempered enthusiasm toward total automation, opting instead for hybridisation between Artificial Intelligence and Human Intelligence. He reiterated that while AI is transformative, it must be used for good, with ethics, equity, and accountability.

India is already ahead of the curve in generative AI with the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems, which has a budget of ₹3660 crore, and will build capacity for Large Language Models (LLMs) among other things by building capacity with 25 premier institutions like IIT Kharagpur, IIT Bombay, and IISc Bengaluru.

Financial Commitment To Science and Innovation

The government’s monetary commitment to science and technology is still rising. There is a budget of ₹65,307 crore for the six major scientific agencies:
• Department of Science & Technology (DST)
• Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR/DSIR)
• Department of Biotechnology (DBT)
• Department of Space (DOS)
• Department of Atomic Energy (DAE)
• Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES)

This constitutes a 57% increase year on year, with outlays increasing to ₹41,581 crore. This is indicative of India’s growing prioritizing of scientific research and technological development.

State R&D Experiments

R&D expenditure is also gaining ground at the state level. In FY23, the spending by all state governments on research was ₹8,476 crore. The maximum expenditure was by Uttar Pradesh (₹1,009 crore), Gujarat (₹922 crore), and Punjab (₹697 crore). These numbers show the degree of dispersal of innovation, and state governments are contributing to national science and technology capabilities.

Deep Tech: The Strategic Frontier

Multiple initiatives have been launched in India to push forward programs in deep technologies: AI, robotics, drones, biotechnology, renewable energy, climate tech, and nuclear microreactors. Such projects are designed on similar principles but exist independently in a multitude of departments in the Indian government; they have a common purpose: to create strategic autonomy in critical technologies.

One example is the Electric Vehicle (EV) Mission, with an R&D budget of ₹310 crore for electric mobility. These deep-tech missions are part of a larger objective that aims to future-proof the Indian economy from global uncertainties, sudden shocks, as well as technological disruptions.

As India approaches the centenary of its independence in less than 25 years, the Government is working to establish a tech-sovereign nation that is a leader in global innovation and is a model for inclusive, responsible, and strategic technology development.

As Dr. Jitendra Singh succinctly put it, “Sovereign technology is not just about autonomy; it’s about aspiration, ambition, and action. And India is ready.”

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