VARINDIA Fosters Key Dialogues and Collaborations at SIITF 2024

VARINDIA, India's premier technology magazine, successfully hosted the 13th edition of the Southern India IT Fair (SIITF), solidifying its position as a landmark event in India's technology landscape. Since its inception, SIITF has become a crucial platform for industry leaders, system integrators, solution providers, and experts to explore emerging trends, foster innovation, and collaborate within the technology ecosystem.

The evening kickstarted with the auspicious lamp lighting attended by Dr. Pronab Mohanty (IPS), DGP (Cyber & ICT)- Government of Karnataka, Prof. N. Balakrishnan, INSA Senior Scientist, Indian Institute of Science, Mr. Nischay Kandapal, Senior Manager-CMT Lead, Sr. Program Manager, Microsoft, Mr. Sumith Satheesan, Head - Enterprise Solution Consulting Pan India- TP-Link, Mr. Rajaram P V, Zonal Sales Head -SOTI Inc., Mr. Satish Kumar Dwibhashi, CISO- Kreditbee, Mr. Shaik J Ahmed, Head India Security Solutions- Lenovo,  Mr. Tom Sebastian, CEO- Exatron and Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu, Editor-in-Chief, VARINDIA.

Themed "Technology is Redefining Its Boundaries," SIITF 2024 showcased its commitment to bridging the gap between technological advancements and market demands. The event offered a vibrant platform for thought leadership, knowledge exchange, and networking, structured across three engaging phases.

The event commenced with a welcome address by Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu, who highlighted the rapid digitalization of human lives emphasizing the fusion of technology and humanity. He introduced VARINDIA’s "Ask an Expert" platform, connecting professionals with technology experts across 40 fields to facilitate knowledge sharing and strategic guidance.

Prof. N. Balakrishnan, INSA Senior Scientist at the Indian Institute of Science, captivated the audience at SIITF 2024 with his profound insights drawn from 37 years of experience in technology’s remarkable evolution. He explored the transformative potential of emerging innovations and traced India’s pivotal role in shaping the future. Following him, Dr. Pronab Mohanty, IPS, DGP (Cyber & ICT) for the Government of Karnataka, highlighted the growing concerns around cyber threats paralleling advancements in technology.

The second phase of the event featured compelling corporate presentations by Mr. Nischay Kandapal, Senior Manager - CMT Lead and Sr. Program Manager at Microsoft; Mr. Sumith Satheesan, Head of Enterprise Solution Consulting (Pan India) at TP-Link India Pvt. Ltd.; and Mr. Rajaram P V, Zonal Sales Head at SOTI Inc.

Nischay underscored the pressing need for cybersecurity awareness in today’s rapidly evolving technological landscape. TP-Link, known for its consumer-centric solutions, introduced its enterprise-focused products and solutions, creating new opportunities for business partners. Rajaram presented SOTI’s platform-agnostic approach, enabling customers and partners to seamlessly manage diverse devices, operating systems, and emerging technologies such as AR/VR headsets and drones.

Together, these presentations reflected the dynamic interplay of technology, security, and innovation, offering a glimpse into the future of connectivity and digital transformation.

The final segment was a thought-provoking panel discussion moderated by Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu. Themed "Technology is Redefining Its Boundaries," the panel comprised esteemed industry leaders like Dr. Lopa Mudraa Basuu, Certified Corporate Director- InfoSec Gurukul; Pradeepta Mishra, Chief Architect-Data Safeguard Inc.; Satish Kumar Dwibhashi, CISO- Kreditbee; Shaik J Ahmed, Head India Lenovo Security Solutions- Lenovo; Tom Sebastian, CEO- Exatron.

The discussion illuminated how AI, quantum computing, AR, and VR are transforming industries and human interactions. Panelists emphasized that technology is evolving beyond addressing current needs to creating new possibilities, driving innovation, efficiency, and competitive advantage.

SIITF 2024 provided attendees with a unique opportunity to connect with peers, explore growth avenues, and engage with experts on the transformative potential of technology. From leveraging machine learning and analytics to understanding market trends, the event demonstrated how technology can redefine business strategies and foster innovation.

With India poised to emerge as a global digital hub, SIITF 2024 arrived at a pivotal moment. VARINDIA’s commitment to facilitating meaningful conversations ensures that SIITF remains an unmissable event, empowering stakeholders to embrace emerging trends, drive innovation, and contribute to India's digital economy.

The event concluded on a high note with a heartfelt thank-you address by Anil Sahu, Vice President-Marketing, VARINDIA, expressing gratitude to all participants, speakers, and partners. He promised an even more impactful SIITF next year, setting new benchmarks in innovation and collaboration. The forum concluded with optimism for future innovations from the assembled technology leaders.

Supercomputing is a reflection of a nation’s technological prowess. A country’s supercomputing capacity directly correlates with its self-reliance in critical areas such as defense, health, agriculture, weather forecasting, materials science, and more. Additionally, supercomputing contributes to national GDP, scientific publications, and innovation.

The India’s journey towards supercomputing leadership is a remarkable endeavor, which began in 1987, and as a young professor at the time, I was fortunate to be a part of it.

The Beginning

India’s journey began in the late 1980s when we faced significant challenges in acquiring supercomputers. In 1984, during Mrs. Indira Gandhi’s tenure, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) expressed a collective desire to acquire a supercomputer. Although she approved the request, international restrictions and concerns about technology transfer led to denial.

One striking anecdote from that time involved an American engineer inspecting our facility. He arrived with a gun to test whether a bullet could penetrate the glass-enclosed area intended for the computer. Their concern was that foreign agents might steal the technology. Ironically, when the Cyber 1992 supercomputer was finally delivered, it arrived on a large transport aircraft, requiring 15 days to unload—hardly something anyone could carry off in their pocket! This experience underscored the need for self-reliance. The Government of India initiated an indigenous supercomputing program, with several institutions like C-DAC, BARC, NAL, and DRDO stepping up. Among these, C-DAC became the cornerstone for national supercomputing needs, developing India’s first series of indigenous supercomputers under the PARAM brand.

Growth of PARAM Systems

C-DAC’s PARAM series has come a long way:
PARAM 8000 (1991): With a performance of 1 GigaFLOP (less powerful than today’s PCs) and costing nearly ₹1 crore.
PARAM 10000: Achieving teraflop-level performance.
PARAM Yuva (2008): 38.1 TeraFLOPs.
PARAM Yuva II (2013): 360 TeraFLOPs.
Each iteration marked significant advancements, culminating in the National Supercomputing Mission (NSM), launched in 2015.
NSM was a joint initiative between the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), with IISc and C-DAC as implementing agencies. With an initial funding of ₹4,500 crores, NSM aimed to establish a robust supercomputing ecosystem in India, focusing on:
Indigenous technology development
Training manpower in high-performance computing (HPC)
Deploying cutting-edge supercomputers across academic and research institutions.
So far, NSM has delivered 24 petaflops of computational capacity, distributed across institutions like IISc, IITs, and NITs. Over 10,000 HPC users have been trained, more than 1,500 research publications have emerged, and critical national projects like flood forecasting and drug discovery have benefited from supercomputing resources.
Under NSM, India has achieved several milestones:
PARAM Siddhi-AI (C-DAC, Pune): Ranked among the world’s top 500 supercomputers with a performance of 5.26 petaflops.
Rudra Servers: Entirely designed in India, except for processors.
Trinetra Network: An indigenous interconnect technology.
HPC Software Stack and Storage Solutions: Developed by Indian teams.

The latest liquid cooling technology, asynchronous object storage, and advancements in optical interconnects further showcase India’s progress.

The Path Ahead: NSM 2.0
NSM 2.0, set to launch in December 2025, aims to achieve exascale computing—1,000 times the power of petaflops. Key initiatives include developing indigenous processors based on RISC-V and ARM architectures. Next, building AI-accelerated and GPU-based systems for specific applications and fostering grand challenge applications in disaster management, energy security, life sciences, and more.

The Role of IISc and Academic Research
IISc has been a pivotal player in HPC, hosting India’s largest academic supercomputer with 3.3 petaflops and running at 100% utilization. Over 104 HPC projects across academic institutions are ongoing, spanning basic scientific research and national applications.

In the end…

At SIITF 2024, Dr. Pronab took center stage to deliver an engaging and insightful overview of the evolving landscape of cybersecurity, cybercrimes, and data privacy. His address, both informal and comprehensive, spotlighted significant advancements and challenges, with a particular focus on Karnataka and Bangalore—India's renowned tech capital.
He started by echoing Professor Balakrishnan's belief that India has the potential to achieve significant technological advancements. His words inspire great confidence, and I share his optimism about our future.

The Rise of Cybercrimes
In recent years, there has been a significant increase in the use of the term "cyber," often applied broadly to anything involving digital or computing devices. This reflects the growing role of technology in all aspects of life. Having spent over 30 years in policing, preceded by a career in engineering, I have witnessed firsthand how technology has transitioned from being an outlier to a central element in crime prevention and investigation. Back in the day, traditional policing often viewed technology skeptically. Today, however, technology is indispensable. Karnataka alone reported approximately 200,000 to 250,000 crime cases in 2023, of which 22,000 were cybercrimes—around 10% of total crimes. This number is expected to surpass 30,000 in 2024, indicating an alarming growth trend.
Cybercrimes, unlike traditional crimes, are highly scalable. For instance, while general crimes may grow at a steady rate, cybercrimes have surged exponentially, with incidents increasing from 17,000 a few years ago to over 25,000 last year.

Cybercrimes can broadly be classified into two categories:
Cyber Frauds: These involve cheating individuals and defrauding them of money.
Genuine Cybercrimes: These require advanced digital forensic expertise and include serious offenses such as data breaches, large-scale hacking, credit card skimming, and child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Currently, cyber frauds dominate the landscape, constituting over 90% of reported cases. The primary mechanism enabling these frauds is the use of "mule accounts"—bank accounts created with dubious intentions, often by vulnerable individuals paid nominal sums. Fraudulent funds flow rapidly through multiple layers of mule accounts, making them difficult to trace. By the time the police intervene, the money has often been siphoned through hundreds of accounts across multiple countries. Alarmingly, a significant portion of these withdrawals occurs outside India, particularly in Dubai.

Technological Solutions to Cyber Fraud
To address this challenge, we must leverage advanced technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML). For instance, developing AI/ML algorithms with 99% accuracy could help identify and flag mule accounts. While false positives are inevitable, they can be addressed through manual verification.
The current detection rate for cyber fraud is dismally low—approximately 2%—despite Karnataka reporting losses of over ₹3,000 crores in cyber frauds this year alone. This highlights the urgent need for innovative solutions and collaborative efforts between law enforcement and financial institutions.

Cybersecurity Challenges
Cybersecurity, distinct from cybercrime, deals with protecting organizations, states, and nations from digital threats. While some cybersecurity incidents evolve into cybercrimes, many remain within the domain of corporate or governmental risk management.
One critical area is pre-enforcement forensics—investigative measures taken before reporting incidents to law enforcement. This practice, though not yet common in India or globally, can help organizations assess the severity of breaches, contain reputational damage, and decide on further action.

Data Privacy: An Emerging Concern
Data privacy presents another pressing challenge, both technically and legally. Unlike data security, which focuses on protecting data from unauthorized access, data privacy involves the ethical and legal use of personal data.
India's data privacy landscape is still evolving. The proposed Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act has faced delays, reflecting the complexities of defining private data, identifying responsible entities, and establishing enforcement mechanisms. While global standards like the GDPR offer guidance, adapting them to India's unique socio-economic context is a daunting task.
For instance, the European Union's GDPR-inspired frameworks, such as the Privacy Shield and Safe Harbor Acts, have faced significant legal hurdles. India must tread carefully to develop a robust yet practical data privacy regime that balances innovation with individual rights.

Conclusion

With Technological Evolution, Cybersecurity Education has become Essential

Mr. Nischay Kandapal
Senior Manager - CMT Lead, Sr. Program Manager, Microsoft

Over the past two decades, I’ve observed a remarkable trait among Indians—a profound hunger for technology. Whether rooted in our lineage of scholars and innovators or our innate curiosity, this enthusiasm is unmistakable. And what a time it is to be a tech enthusiast! After Professor Balakrishna's insightful discussion on supercomputing and cybersecurity, I’ll delve into these themes, blending past, present, and future perspectives.
Drawing from his 15 years in technology, including roles at Microsoft and collaborations with PwC and Wipro, he highlighted the rapid evolution of tech. He mentioned Google’s quantum computing chip, Willow, which validates multiverse mathematics, and referenced ancient Sanskrit concepts like Rishi Pragya, envisioning thought-driven tasks akin to modern AI—a fascinating convergence of ancient wisdom and contemporary innovation.

SOTI Touches your Lives in one way or the other!

Mr. Rajaram P V
Zonal Sales Head - SOTI Inc.

Rajaram, racing against a tight 15-minute deadline, introduced SOTI to an esteemed audience, highlighting its integral role in everyday life. From 10-minute grocery deliveries to seamless retail and theater experiences, SOTI’s behind-the-scenes contributions are transformative.
Headquartered in Toronto, SOTI leads mobility management across industries. Its solutions power everyday interactions, from individual users to governments and enterprises. For over a decade, SOTI has supported diverse clients, including a leading airline, by managing devices like security scanners, iPads, and operational tools, showcasing expertise across Android, Apple, Windows, and Linux platforms.
Recently consolidating operations in Microsoft’s former Canadian headquarters, SOTI’s growth is evident. In India, with hubs in Gurugram and Cochin, the focus remains on talent retention, scalability, and cost-efficiency. Its clientele spans Fortune 100 firms to mid-market players, with tailored solutions for police, armed forces, healthcare, education, and logistics sectors.

TP-Link replicating success from Consumer vertical to Enterprise segment

Mr. Sumith Satheesan
Head - Enterprise Solution Consulting Pan India, TP-Link

TP-Link, a brand renowned for its consumer products, is expanding into the Enterprise Solutions segment. Many may already be familiar with TP-Link’s routers at home, but the company is now focusing on enterprise-grade solutions. The Enterprise Solution Consulting team develops and implements these advanced offerings to meet evolving technological demands.
Headquartered in the United States, TP-Link is a global provider of reliable networking devices and smart home products, consistently ranked as the world’s top provider of Wi-Fi devices. The company is committed to delivering innovative products that enhance people’ lives through faster, more reliable connectivity. With a commitment to excellence, TP-Link serves customers in over 170 countries and continues to grow its global footprint. Approximately 80% of TP-Link products sold in India are manufactured locally, with facilities in Silvassa and Vapi.

Together, we can Shape the Future of Technology!

Dr. Deepak Kumar Sahu
Editor-in-Chief, VARINDIA

Welcoming the gathering, he emphasized the transformative impact of rapid digitalization, highlighting the fusion of technology and humanity. The rapid pace of digitalization is profoundly transforming our lives, creating an ever-evolving landscape where technology and humanity seamlessly converge. This dynamic "fusion of humans and technology" is redefining the present and shaping the foundation of our future. He shared that for over 25 years, Kalinga Digital Media, through its flagship publication VARINDIA, has been committed to shaping the digital future. "By building a vibrant community of OEMs, service providers, and partners, we contribute to driving growth across B2B and B2C channels while supporting India’s path toward inclusive and sustainable development."

The panel discussion was themed along the same lines as the event – Technology is Redefining Boundaries and it saw participation from a diverse panel from across the industry. The panelists included Tom Sebastian, CEO, Exatron; Pradeepta Mishra, Chief Architect- Data Safeguard; Shaik J Ahmed, Head India - Lenovo Security Solutions; Satish Kumar Dwibhashi, CISO – KreditBee; and Dr. Lopa Mudraa Basuu, Certified Corporate Director, InfoSec Gurukul.
De Deepak Kumar Sahu, Editor-in-Chief, VARINDIA, who moderated the discussion, stated that technology is no longer just a tool. “Technology is a catalyst for a good change. It is revolutionizing industries, transforming societies and redefining the way we live, work and interact. From AI/ ML to Blockchain and IoT, technical advances are reshaping the world."
Explaining the emerging technologies that will significantly reshape the industry in the next year, Tom Sebastian, CEO, Exatron, said that for the next year and in the years to come, without any doubt, it will definitely be AI. “So when we talk about AI, it was something of a fiction once upon a time. From there, it went to the hands of specialists. And today, it has gone into the hands of users. All of us use AI, knowingly or unknowingly in our day to day life today. In the years ahead, while on one hand it will be growing real fast, on the other hand, it will also be penetrating with this equal speed down into the common man's life. It will be found in manufacturing, in the education sector, Fintech, healthcare, mobility, and so on.”
Pradeepta Mishra, Chief Architect- Data Safeguard stated, “The CEO of Microsoft in his year-end speech said that next year is going to be the year of AI agents. So, what are AI agents? These are automated programs which are designed to sense the environment, take decisions and help us make those decisions faster. For instance, I have a couple of PDF files and I would like to understand what is there in those files. I have to spend one - two hours to understand and read those files and then make a conclusion. But today, with the help of Copilot, you can upload those PDFs, and the AI agent will quickly summarize what is there in these files. So, these agents are going to be integrated in each and every endpoint, starting from 2025.”
Shaik J Ahmed, Head India - Lenovo Security Solutions opined, “It’s true that in spite of us accessing only .00001% of the total internet, there is a huge amount of data that gets generated daily. Interestingly, 80% of any cyber incidents take place because of this data. And with artificial intelligence and machine learning gaining momentum around the world, we are already generating tons and tons of data. So going ahead, responsible usage of AI is going to be the key aspect, and securing the generated data is going to be one of the key focus areas from a security and data privacy perspective."

According to Satish Kumar Dwibhashi, CISO – KreditBee, fintechs and NBFCs have already been embracing a lot of these technologies. “The talk of the town is AI. So definitely AI has been there for a while. I come from a typical digital lending platform where the whole underwriting happens by using AI. Also if you at any payment gateways, they all have embedded a lot of risk engines. In fact, risk engines run purely based on certain models. Most of us use many forms of digital channels and they are embedded with a lot of anti-fraud solutions now, which are built using AI. AI has been there for more than a decade now, but the whole buzz is all about Gen AI now.”