India Must Develop Strategic Leverage to Counter Technology Denial

India should develop a strategy of “Mutually Assured Disruption” to reduce its vulnerability to technology denial and global supply-chain disruptions while continuing to access advanced technologies and innovation from around the world, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) Secretary S. Krishnan said on Thursday.

Speaking at an event organised by the Public Affairs Forum of India (PAFI) in the national capital, Krishnan said India needs to build sufficient domestic capabilities in critical technologies to ensure that essential systems can continue functioning even if access to foreign technologies or supplies is disrupted.

At the same time, he stressed that India should remain open to global technology, innovation and international supply chains.

Krishnan said achieving complete self-reliance across every component of the technology value chain would be unrealistic. Instead, India should focus on developing strong capabilities in strategically important segments of global supply chains and establish itself as an important participant in key technology ecosystems.

He said the objective should be to secure a meaningful presence in critical parts of global value chains rather than attempt to manufacture every component domestically.

Such an approach, according to Krishnan, would give India greater resilience against external disruptions while also strengthening its position within international technology and manufacturing networks.

“From a strategic perspective, I think having a presence in the semiconductor space is very important,” Krishnan said, adding that India is already a growing consumer of semiconductor devices and that rising per-capita incomes could accelerate electronics consumption.

He said the growth in domestic electronics demand makes it important for India to develop adequate capabilities to produce critical inputs.

Krishnan also pointed to changes in global supply-chain strategies since the Covid-19 pandemic. He said businesses and governments have increasingly recognised the risks associated with excessive dependence on a single market, country or source of supply.

Instead of concentrating manufacturing exclusively in locations offering the lowest costs, companies and governments are placing greater emphasis on diversification to strengthen supply-chain resilience, he said.

The MeitY Secretary’s comments come amid a broader shift in global technology and manufacturing strategies, with countries seeking to strengthen domestic capabilities in critical sectors while maintaining access to international markets and technologies.