New Delhi: India is moving to solidify its position as a global manufacturing hub by deepening technological ties with Japan and injecting fresh capital into its domestic goods sector. The Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) has engaged with Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) under the India-Japan Industrial Competitiveness Partnership (IJICP).
This collaboration aims to explore sectoral scopes for the Indian capital goods industry, focusing specifically on technology transfer, skill development, and cooperation in advanced manufacturing technologies.
To reduce reliance on imports and strengthen industrial exports, the government is implementing the “Enhancement of Competitiveness in the Indian Capital Goods Sector – Phase II” scheme.
Project Scale: So far, 29 projects have been sanctioned with a total project cost of ₹891.37 crore.
Government Support: The government’s contribution to these projects stands at ₹714.64 crore.
Objective: The scheme is designed to augment indigenous manufacturing and technological development to bolster industrial production.
Driving the Digital Shift via SAMARTH Centres
A key pillar of this industrial overhaul is the push for digitization. MHI has established four Smart Advanced Manufacturing and Rapid Transformation Hub (SAMARTH) centres to lead the adoption of Industry 4.0 across the heavy industry sector.
These centres are strategically located at premier research and academic institutions:
C4i4 Lab, Pune.
IITD-AIA Foundation for Smart Manufacturing, IIT Delhi.
I-4.0 India @ IISc, Bengaluru.
Smart Manufacturing Demo & Development Cell, CMTI, Bengaluru.
These hubs are expected to serve as the nerve centres for strengthening India’s digital manufacturing capabilities, ensuring that domestic industries remain competitive on a global scale. This information was provided by Shri Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma, Minister of State for Heavy Industries, in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.