Digital vigilance: Strategy for a secure and informed population

This article is authored by Venkatesh Palanidas, chief strategy officer, Arya Omnitalk and Syntel by Arvind.

India’s video surveillance market alone generated over $ 2.026 billion early this year and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.2% through 2030. Meanwhile, the broader Indian security market was valued at $ 8.77 billion in 2024 and is forecast to reach nearly $ 16.97 billion by 2030. These numbers are not just about business growth; they underlie a tectonic shift: security and surveillance solutions are becoming core infrastructure, not mere adjuncts.

Digital privacy (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

In this fraught geopolitical era, where trade sanctions, supply-chain shocks, and technology embargoes are no longer rare, India must no longer be a passive consumer of strategic technologies, especially in security. We must become custodians of our own resilience. That shift is not optional; it's existential. Historically, military power defined security. But today, connectivity, data, networks, and intelligence systems matter just as much. A border fence is only as useful as the sensors, command systems, and secure links behind it.

Global incidents remind us that “tech denial” is a geopolitical lever. Imagine if, in a moment of conflict or tension, critical components of India’s surveillance or communications stack were disabled remotely or embargoed. Suddenly, the invincibility of modern systems transforms into fragility. India’s digital push through initiatives like Digital India, Smart Cities, and Atmanirbhar Bharat gives us a unique opening. We are building the demand, the institutions, and even the data pipelines. But unless we plug strategic gaps, we will remain exposed.

When we talk about “reliable alternatives,” it doesn’t mean “good-enough substitutes” or rebadged imports. It means trust. Communications and data must remain under Indian control, free from foreign backdoors or opaque dependencies. It also means resilience, systems that continue to operate under stress, in remote terrain, during network outages, or even in crisis mode. Finally, it means intelligence. Real-time analytics and contextual insights enable proactive, not reactive, responses. This definition isn’t rhetorical but practical, because just as a fortress is only as strong as its weakest gate, a nation’s security fabric is only as dependable as its least sovereign node.

A modern nation cannot treat security and governance as separate silos. Our GPS-enabled Emergency Response Management Systems (ERMS) exemplify this integration. In a flood, accident, terrorist incident, or urban crisis, government agencies, police, ambulances, and disaster-management teams often operate in siloes, with delayed or fragmented information. ERMS fuses location intelligence, secure communications, and live analytics so that every actor sees a shared, real-time dashboard. The result: smarter allocation of resources, faster response, and ultimately saved lives. Because this entire pipeline is built and hosted within India, we avoid dependencies that adversaries might exploit. That is the hallmark of a “reliable alternative” local, trusted, and decisive.

Surveillance today is far from passive “eyes on the street.” Cameras have become data engines powering command centres, and radios now serve as vital links in real-time response networks. Modern AI-enabled cameras can detect anomalies, track crowd behaviour, and auto-trigger alerts with data securely stored within Indian jurisdiction to prevent leaks or interference. Similarly, advanced digital walkie-talkies and LTE radios are built to stay functional where networks fail in remote terrain, during disasters, or amid infrastructure breakdowns, ensuring that frontline responders remain connected when it matters most.

Nations no longer compete through tanks or aircraft, but through control of technology, chips, firmware, intelligence layers, and standards. India must ask itself: do we truly own the technology that protects us? The answer must be a firm yes. While Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat laid the foundation, the next step is to build secure, collaborative ecosystems where industry, academia, defence, and startups co-innovate. Core technologies, from sensors to operating systems to analytics, must be conceived and built in India, rooted in trust, sustainability, and shared purpose. True sovereignty also means responsibility: developing modular, energy-efficient, and recyclable solutions that make our security infrastructure resilient not just to geopolitical shocks, but to environmental challenges as well.

Every CCTV camera, GPS tracker, and secure radio is more than a device; together, they form the threads of India’s sovereign digital defence fabric. When these systems are indigenous, interoperable, and intelligent, they do more than protect; they project strength, deter coercion, and anchor trust. Dependence on external systems is no longer acceptable. The goal must be clear: to innovate relentlessly for safety, manufacture domestically for sovereignty, and strengthen agencies, industries, and communities through secure technology. In this new geopolitical era, security independence is the truest form of freedom, and reliable alternatives are its cornerstone.

This article is authored by Venkatesh Palanidas, chief strategy officer, Arya Omnitalk and Syntel by Arvind.