In order to boost hydro power generation, the government has approved a slew of measures including providing renewable energy status for large hydel projects and new funding provisions. With the government's decision, hydro projects above 25 MW will be considered as renewables and eligible for various incentives like financial assistance and cheaper credit (as per existing practice, only hydropower projects less than 25MW are categorized as Renewable Energy).

The Cabinet has approved National Policy on Electronics 2019 in February 2019, which was proposed by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) in 2018. The Policy aims to position India as a global hub for Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) by encouraging and driving capabilities in the country for developing core components, including chipsets, and creating an enabling environment for the industry to compete globally.  NEP 2019 replaces NEP 2012.

The government will soon approve the power tariff policy which would provide for a penalty for unscheduled power cuts except in the case of technical faults or act of God (natural calamities) by distribution companies from April 1, 2019. In addition, second version of UDAY scheme (UDAY 2.0) meant for revival of debt-laden discoms is being worked out and would be launched with more technological interventions to reduce their Aggregate Technical and Commercial (AT&C) losses.

Government has allocated Rs 3,004.90 crore (over €375 million) for development of solar power projects next financial year (2019-20) including both grid-interactive and off-grid and decentralized categories. Under grid-interactive schemes, the budgeted allocation for solar is seen rising 15% to Rs 2,479 crore (about €310 million) while the allocation for solar projects under off-grid and decentralized renewable power is seen declining 35% to Rs 525 crore (over €65 million) for FY 2019-20.

SESEI drafted and released a sectorial report on Indian Electrical Equipment including Consumer Electronics sector covering sector profile, Industry trends & projections, key market players, new government policies and initiatives and standardization work. Report can be downloaded from here>> &  Presentation is available here>>

• Guidelines for Procurement of aggregated Power of 2500 MW under Pilot Scheme-II for three years (covered under Medium Term). Read more
• Notification for Quality Control Order on SPV Goods 2017. Read more
• Office Memorandum (OM) on “Implementation of approved Models & Manufacturers of Solar PV Modules (Requirements for Compulsory Registration) Order, 2019”. Read more
• MNRE along with the MoP announced the amendments to the guidelines for the tariff-based competitive bidding process for procurement & Power from grid-connected solar PV power projects. Read more
• Modifications in Scheme for “Development of Solar Parks and Ultra Mega Solar Park Scheme. Read more
• Guidelines for enlistment under 'Approved Models and Manufacturers of Solar Photovoltaic Modules (Requirements for Compulsory Registration) Order, 2019. Read more
• Quality Control Order on Solar Thermal Systems/ Devices/Components Goods. Read more

The Union Cabinet has approved the National Policy on Software Products 2019 to develop India as the global Software Product hub, driven by innovation, improved commercialization, sustainable Intellectual Property (IP), promoting technology start­ups and specialized skill sets. Policy aims to help the industry grow at CAGR of 40% to reach USD 70-80 billion by 2025, while creating employment opportunities for 3.5 million people.

Telecom Engineering Centre (TEC) has been asked to finalize standards for IoT/M2M as the country aspires to roll out 5G services at par with the rest of the world. The roadmap for M2M communications was released in May 2015 but the centre is yet to finalize generic requirement for the segment. So far, TEC has released Twelve Technical Reports (TRs) in the last three years.

In order to take the benefit of AI and related technologies to the people, Government is planning to launch national program on AI. The program will be catalysed by the establishment of the National Centre for AI. The centre will be established as a hub along with centres of excellence. 9 priority areas had been identified by GoI for the same and a national portal on AI will be developed soon.

Germany-based Bosch in collaboration with IIT-Madras has opened Data Science (DS) and AI centre at IIT-Madras. The mission of the new center is to create societal impact through multidisciplinary interactions with government, academic, research and industrial collaborators on core challenges in DS and AI. Bosch will invest 20 crores (2.5 million euros) over five years in the centre.