"Revolutionary changes will have to be made to make the country a developed economy. It is necessary to emphasize the importance of technology advancement and product development to accelerate economic growth," said Somnath on the sidelines of the convocation ceremony where 516 B.Tech graduates, 200 M.Tech and 29 PhD students conferred their degrees.
He also praised tech mogul Elon Musk for his innovative work in the space sector, noting that Musk's achievements have inspired global efforts, including those within ISRO.
Somanathan made these remarks while addressing students at the 13th convocation ceremony of the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) in Delhi here on Saturday.
"If India aspires to become the third, second, or even the first-largest global economy, a revolutionary change is needed. Growth will not be driven by trade and resources alone. We need to create value in technology that powers product development," he said.