Minister of State for Home Affairs, G Kishan Reddy on Monday inaugurated the National Cyber Research, Innovation & Capacity Centre at CDTI campus here and said that it will play a prominent role in helping the nation prepare itself to face the menace of cyber threats, which has become a global challenge.
Addressing the gathering after the inauguration, the minister said that the Centre is one of the seven verticals under Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) and highlighted the growing relevance of continuous research and innovation in our fight against cyber crime.
"I congratulate the Bureau of Police Research and Development for taking up this crucial project, wherein they have materialised the concept of a dedicated Centre for Cyber Research, Innovation and Capacity Building.
"I am indeed happy today for two reasons: First of all, I am opening a National Cyber Research Innovation and Capacity Building Centre, which shall play an important role in helping the nation prepare itself to face cyber threats while working for promotion of innovation in the area to keep India ahead of others in the domain," he said.
"Secondly, that such an important centre is going to be in Telangana. Being a Member of Parliament from Telangana, being a Hyderabadi myself and being a minister in the Union Cabinet, I endowed with the responsibility of tackling cyber crime," he said.
Stating that Centre is the need of the hour, Reddy said: "With the proliferation of information technology, life has become easier. But technology itself is a double-edged weapon, criminals misuse it for ulterior purposes."
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"The world in general and India, in particular, has witnessed a rise in cyber crime during the last decade. Fighting cyber menace is increasingly becoming a global challenge. Our dependence on technology, coupled with the government's intention for digitalisation has created a demand for cyber space," he said.
Appreciating the imperative of a dedicated centre that can carry out research and innovate new technology for making the lives of people better, and to preempt the designs of those who are involved in cyber crimes, Reddy said that the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) conceptualised such centres across India.
"Our aim, therefore, is to anticipate new domains of cyber crime and prevent them before the crimes actually take place. The selection of Hyderabad for the centre is strategic. With organisations like CCMB, CDFD, IIT, a slew of DRDO establishments in the government sector, a host of world-class IT companies in private sector including but not limited to Microsoft, Adobe, Apple Amazon etc Hyderabad figures amongst the top cities of the world in IT development," he said.
Reddy said that the government had anticipated the danger of cyber threat.
"A dedicated division was created in October 2017 under the Ministry of Home Affairs, for addressing the cyber security threat in the country. Along with that, the Central Government has taken steps to spread awareness on cyber crime. The number one priority for the government is the safety and security of the nation. And cyber security is one extremely important aspect," he said.
"As you are all aware, the Narendra Modi government is proactive in every respect, more so in areas concerning security of the nation. It established Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I 4C)', to combat cyber crime in the country, in a coordinated and effective," he said.
The minister said that the National Cyber Research centre would prove to be the backbone of this counter-attack strategy on cyber crime.
"With the involvement of the academia, research institutions, professionals in both the private and public sector, the centre will provide invaluable knowledge to support the mission. It would make sure that we always remain a step ahead of cyber criminals," he said.
"I am happy to inform that the MHA is also working on setting up of Regional Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (R4C) in the States. It is in collaboration with I4C to further strengthen the cyber combat capabilities of the nation," Reddy said.