‘India-UK tech pact to secure supply chains’
The India-UK Technology Security Initiative (TSI) is a strategic investment in the future that will secure supply chains, the UK Parliament was told during a review of the pact's impact.
TSI, agreed between Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Keir Starmer in July 2024 and renewed as part of the India-UK Vision 2035, is aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation in critical and emerging technologies.
During a Westminster Hall debate in the House of Commons on Tuesday, UK Minister for AI and Online Safety Kanishka Narayan highlighted UK National Security Adviser (NSA) Jonathan Powell's recent visit to Delhi for talks with his Indian counterpart, Ajit Doval, to agree that the next phase of the pact.
“The TSI is a strategic investment in our future. We are committed to its delivery,” said Narayan. “The Technology Security Initiative is already delivering in biotechnology and health technology, sectors that matter both for our economic growth and for our resilience... It will secure supply chains,” he said.
The British Indian minister in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), who was born in Bihar, stressed that technology and innovation was firmly at the core of the UK's partnership with India.
“The UK and India are natural tech partners, with major Indian tech companies like Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro already expanding in the UK, supporting jobs, productivity and innovation across our economy. Dozens of Indian firms and entrepreneurs are investing here in Britain, creating the jobs and growth of the future,” he said.
“That is why the UK-India Technology Security Initiative exists. It is a landmark partnership, bringing into sharper focus collaboration in frontier technology across telecoms, critical minerals, semiconductors, AI, quantum, biotechnology, health tech and advanced materials.
“It is clear that working closely with India allows us not only to open new opportunities for our businesses and make sure that our technologies rely on secure and trustworthy foundations, but to work with a partner that is increasingly setting the global agenda,” he told cross-party MPs. Narayan informed Parliament that the TSI has already delivered several joint innovation projects through the UK-India Joint Centre for AI, which also enables the safe adoption of AI across other TSI sectors.
The India-UK Connectivity and Innovation Centre, with an initial 24 million pounds in joint funding, is driving innovation in how AI is used in telecoms networks and non-terrestrial networks such as satellite internet and telecoms cybersecurity.
Meanwhile, a letter of intent between the UK's National Institute for Health and Care Research and India's Department of Biotechnology will drive innovation in fem tech – improving health outcomes for women. The minister from Wales added: “Through the UK-India Critical Minerals Guild, we are strengthening joint capabilities in critical minerals; I will closely consider its collective feedback and its particular observations on the partnership on critical minerals.
