India’s first Printed Circuit Board (PCB) and Supply Chain Cluster will be established in Mysuru, announced Minister for Electronics and Information Technology and Biotechnology (IT/BT) Priyank Kharge on Thursday (Sept.19). His statement was read during the 4th Mysuru Big Tech Show, held at the Infosys campus.

Kharge highlighted Karnataka’s upcoming Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) policy, which is currently undergoing industry consultation and will be updated in the coming months. The Global Capability Centre (GCC) policy is expected to be released by the end of September. He also emphasized the State government’s commitment to supporting startups through its Procurement Policy, which will prioritize those with unique intellectual property registered with the Startup Cell.

“If these startups participate in the ‘Beyond Bengaluru’ initiative, the Karnataka government could become their first customer,” he added.

Kharge noted that over the past 12 months, 15 tech companies have opened or expanded their operations in the Mysuru cluster. Additionally, the State has allocated 235 acres of land under the modified Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMC 2.0) scheme, bringing in over ₹5,000 crore (approximately ￥4.2 billion or $600 million) in investments and creating more than 3,000 jobs.

Ekroop Caur, Secretary of the Department of Electronics and IT/BT, mentioned the launch of a Cyber Security Policy and the establishment of a Centre of Excellence at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), which will help foster a cyber security hub in Mysuru.

The Mysuru cluster, seen as an extension of Bengaluru’s tech hub, has strong potential for equitable and sustainable growth, Dr. Caur added.

Sudhanva Dhananjaya, Founder of Excel Soft Technologies, noted growing global interest in the Mysuru cluster and called for the tech community to unite in driving investments and innovation.

The 4th Mysuru Big Tech Show 2024, held ahead of the Bengaluru Tech Summit in November, attracted over 450 delegates, 45 global speakers, and numerous startups, students, and industry representatives.