Plan to make Kerala electronic hardware manufacturing hub: Vijayan

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government is set to roll out a new set of policies in an effort to make it an electronic hardware manufacturing hub, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijay has said.

"Government is transforming the state into a manufacturing hub with special focus on electronic hardware manufacturing," Vijayan wrote on Twitter.

He said this after the Kerala Electronics and Hardware Mission submitted a detailed report outlining the potential, challenges and roadmap for electronics system design and manufacturing and promotion of the State's startup ecosystem.

The Chief Minister also said that an MoU with Intel and UST for exploring the potential for establishing facilities to manufacture PCs and servers in the state was on the anvil.

"Kerala is betting heavily on electric mobility and this gives a huge opportunity for attracting manufacturing to the State," Vijayan said.

The government had already made clear its intention of promoting electronics hardware manufacturing in the state through policy initiatives, including budget declarations on setting up hardware parks and funding for EMCs, a release said here.

The "Roadmap for Hardware Manufacturing in Kerala" prepared by the Hardware Mission, set up to coordinate the activities of multiple agencies working in the sector, indicated that the state could emerge as a major manufacturing hub in electronics and related hardware.

"Overall, the report indicates a potential for Kerala to leverage its strengths in human resources, start-up ecosystem, high consumption and a proactive policy to establish a manufacturing hub in electronics and related hardware," State IT Secretary M Sivasankar said.

"A wide network of experienced professionals from the state in key positions and their willingness to support the cause is an added advantage," he said.

However, Kerala needs to make a quick move to grab the first mover advantage and to counter the incentives offered by competing locations in the country, he added.

The release also said there was a need for a "Kerala First" policy when it came to procurement and other issues included lack of proper facilities within Kerala for certification and testing.

On the state's advantage, the report noted that Kerala's import-dependent, consumption-driven economy could potentially leverage the high aggregated domestic demand to grow its internal manufacturing system.

Some of the hardware start-ups from Kerala have been getting international recognition, giving an overall boost to the ecosystem, the report added.