Lok Sabha Question No. 4711 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-03-29
Subject: National Level Web3 Strategy
Ministry: ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Manish Tewari

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4711

TO BE ANSWERED ON 29.03.2023

## NATIONAL LEVEL WEB3 STRATEGY

## 4711.  SHRI MANISH TEWARI:

Will the Minister of ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  has  conducted  any  study  to  ascertain  the  economic  and technological opportunities that Web3 provides and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether the Government has conducted any study to develop and implement a national level Web3 strategy like National Blockchain Strategy 2021 and if so, details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (c) the  details  related  to  any  initiatives  under  the  Ministry  led  mandates  of  Digital  India and Emerging Technologies towards developing the Web3 sector in the country;
- (d) whether the Government supports startups that are innovating in the Web3 sector in the form of any incubation or mentorship and if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) whether  the  Government  trains  or  plans  to  train  relevant  Government  officials  in Emerging Technologies such as blockchain and if so, the details thereof.

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI RAJEEV CHANDRASEKHAR)

(a) and (b): While the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has not conducted  any  formal  study  on  the  economic  and  technological  opportunities  that  Web3 provides or for developing and implementing a national strategy for the same, it is cognizant of such opportunities and has issued the National Strategy on Blockchain. Blockchain plays an  important  role  in  realising  Web3,  and  the  said  Strategy  encompasses  major  technology components required for Web3.

(c): Blockchain technology is an important component of Web3. Government has undertaken the following research initiatives in the field of blockchain technology:

- (i) MeitY  has  initiated  a  research  project  titled  'Design  and  Development  of  a Unified  Blockchain  Framework  for  offering  National  Blockchain  Service  and Creation  of  Blockchain  Ecosystem'.  The  project  focuses  on  evolving  the blockchain technology stack for end-to-end blockchain application development, enabling Open Application Programming Interfaces (Open APIs) for  seamless  integration  and  offering  blockchain-as-a-service  (BaaS)  over distributed infrastructure.
- (ii) The Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Blockchain Technology has been set up at National Informatics Centre, Bangalore to provide consultancy and training to government  departments  for  identifying  potential  use-cases  and  developing proofs-of-concept and deployable systems.
- (iii) The Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) has also established a CoE in Blockchain  Technology  at  Gurugram  to  support and  promote  innovative startups and entrepreneurs working in blockchain technology.

(d): MeitY promotes technology startups engaged in developing technology solutions related to  societal  challenges  using  emerging  technologies,  including  Web3,through  the  following initiatives:

- (i) Technology  Incubation  and  Development  of  Entrepreneurs  (TIDE  2.0)  Scheme was initiated in the year 2019 to promote tech-entrepreneurship through financial and  technical  support  to  incubators  engaged  in  supporting  information  and communication technology startups using emerging technologies, such as technologies  related  to  Internet  of  Things,  artificial  intelligence,  blockchain, robotics etc.
- (ii) MeitY  has  operationalised  26  CoEs  in  diverse  areas  of  national  interest  for driving  self-sufficiency  and  creating  capabilities  to  capture  new  and  emerging technology areas.
- (iii) The Start-up Accelerator Programme of MeitY for Product Innovation, Development  and  Growth  (SAMRIDH)  provides  startups  with  a  platform  to enhance their products and secure investments for scaling their business.

(e):  Yes,  Sir.  Training  in  emerging  technology,  including  in  blockchain  technology,  is imparted under the FutureSkills Prime programme of MeitY.

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