IEEE announces SIG for India; move to propel India’s involvement in the IEEE global standards process

CHENNAI, INDIA: IEEE, the world’s largest technical professional association, today announced the formation of the IEEE Standards Interest Group (SIG) for Bangalore, India. In the works since last year, the IEEE SIG heralds a new chapter in India’s role in the global standards process and will provide a platform for increased involvement of the local technical community in global standards development.

The initiative is driven by IEEE sections in India with active support from IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA), the standards development organization of IEEE. Srikanth Chandrasekaran of Freescale Semiconductors would lead the IEEE SIG as its chair. Cloud Computing and Smart Grid have already garnered significant interest and momentum due to various factors including market demand.

Announcing the SIG, Judy Gorman, Managing Director, IEEE-SA, said: "India is among the largest and most promising markets in the world. A leader in the community of technology-developing countries, India boasts the world’s second largest engineering/technology professionals’ pool.

"Engaging India’s technical professional community in the standards process is therefore a must. The participation of Indian professionals will ensure challenges and factors unique to India are considered in global standards development. The IEEE SIG represents a significant step forward in the organization’s growing engagement with India. Besides providing an established forum to promote and help evangelize IEEE standards interests in India.”

Srikanth Chandrasekaran, chair of the India IEEE SIG, said: "While India’s growing technological prowess is acknowledged widely, there are many technical professionals that are not aware of the importance of standards in technology development, nor actively participate in the standards process. As India becomes the R&D/IT/design hub for multiple industries and verticals it is vital that IEEE engages the Indian technical community in standards development.

"We look forward to building on the initial momentum with active support from IEEE Standards Association—as one of the most credible global standards development organizations in the technical arena. This is surely a boon not just for the country but for its large and growing community of technical professionals."