Bewildered by the breach in the country’s banking system, and in view of the rising threat to critical information technology infrastructure from aggressive cyber warfare strategies of rival countries like China, the government has decided to roll out a fund for sustainable research and development in the field of cyber security. Set at Rs 1,000 crore, the fund will be sourced from the Department of Science and Technology.

To be administered by a high-power committee headed by National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, the scheme for which this fund is allocated will be responsible for the development of technology for protection of critical infrastructure needed by law enforcement agencies. The mandate to operationalise and implement the scheme will lie with the National Security Council Secretariat.

As part of the scheme, research will be conducted in the field of cyber security, centres of excellence will be set up to step up participation and inter-operable laboratories will be developed for testing of software and hardware, indigenisation of products and human resource development.

With recent advances in information technology and communication, and growing coverage of the internet, more and more people and assets have become vulnerable to cyber breach. “Such cyber incidents and risks may cause major disruptions that could impact the economy. Dependence on a few countries for technology and equipment could compromise national interest and security,” the Hindu Business Line quoted an official as saying. Therefore, it is important that the government takes up this initiative with utmost seriousness.