India is making concerted efforts to accelerate its progress in science and technology, as evidenced by several key announcements and developments from December 13, 2025. These initiatives span critical areas like private sector innovation, artificial intelligence, and advanced maritime technology.

₹1 Lakh Crore RDI Fund Launched to Spur Private Innovation

In a landmark move, Union Minister of State for Science & Technology, Dr. Jitendra Singh, inaugurated a ₹1 lakh crore Research, Development, and Innovation (RDI) Fund in New Delhi. This ambitious initiative aims to significantly bolster private-sector innovation by providing long-term, unsecured, low-interest loans and equity-based instruments. The fund is envisioned as a catalyst to empower India's private sector, fostering research and development (R&D), intellectual property creation, and commercialization in advanced technological domains. Dr. Singh emphasized that this fund is a "global first" in public financing for private-sector innovation and aligns with India's broader national strategy, encompassing missions in artificial intelligence, semiconductors, quantum technologies, and clean energy.

AI Takes Centre Stage in Drug Discovery and Healthcare

Union Minister Jitendra Singh also highlighted India's strategic reliance on generative AI to revolutionize drug discovery and clinical research. Speaking at the 7th CII Pharma and Lifesciences Summit 2025, he underscored that AI would enhance decision-making and operational efficiency in pharmaceutical and biotech companies, rather than replacing human scientists. Furthermore, the Ministry of Education has established the Translational AI for Networked Universal Healthcare (TANUH) Foundation at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru. This dedicated AI Centre of Excellence in Healthcare will focus on developing and deploying scalable AI solutions, particularly for the effective management of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) at the point of care.

World's First Autonomous Shipyard to Emerge in Andhra Pradesh

India is set to host the world's first autonomous maritime shipyard and systems centre in Andhra Pradesh. Land has been allotted to Sagar Defence Engineering Pvt. Ltd for this pioneering project, which is expected to significantly enhance India's indigenous capabilities in both defence and commercial maritime sectors. The facility, located at the Juvvaladinne Fishing Harbour in SPSR Nellore district, will utilize AI, robotics, and real-time data analytics, positioning India as a global leader in autonomous ocean technologies and contributing to a safer, smarter, and more sustainable maritime future.

IndiaAI Mission Advances with Focus on Ecosystem and Governance

The 'IndiaAI Mission', launched in March 2024, continues to drive the nation's AI strategy, which is rooted in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of democratizing technology. Jitin Prasada, Minister of State for Electronics and IT, informed the Rajya Sabha that the mission aims to support a large number of PhD scholars, postgraduates, and undergraduates, and has already established several India Data and AI Labs. The mission is also developing indigenous AI capabilities, including foundational models and the national dataset platform AIKosh. Complementing these efforts, the India AI Governance Guidelines, released in November, provide a comprehensive national framework to ensure the safe, responsible, and inclusive development and deployment of artificial intelligence.

Cybersecurity and Quantum Leap

In cybersecurity, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) briefed foreign journalists on India's cybersecurity framework. Additionally, Microsoft launched 'MahaCrimeOS AI', an AI- and Azure-powered platform in Maharashtra, aimed at accelerating cybercrime investigations. India has also made notable advancements in quantum technologies, including the development of QSIP (India's quantum security chip) and a 25-qubit Quantum Processing Unit (QPU), showcased at the ESTIC 2025 conclave in November, highlighting the nation's emergence as a global science and technology powerhouse.