Cisco unveils first 'Made in India' router

Global networking giant Cisco on Thursday unveiled its first 'Made in India' router, a product that is fundamental to network connectivity and a key enabler to the vision of Digital India.

The router, which is fundamental to network connectivity, and is one of the most popular products in Cisco's core switching portfolio worldwide, was unveiled in the presence of IT and electronics minister Ravi Shankar Prasad

The router, which will cost less than $1,500 (roughly Rs98,500), is suitable for most small and medium businesses, according to Cisco India.

"I would like to compliment the Cisco team that I had requested them to take the initiative of Make in India and today is a great product which will help Internet in office space and other places which is a clear mark of digitising India," Prasad said at the launch.

The global networking giant which is now focused on making a big foray into Cloud, Internet of Things (IoT) and cyber security, recently launched its manufacturing operations in Pune and announced it would build Nagpur as a Smart City with its Next-Gen solutions.

"I compliment John Chambers (Cisco's executive chairman) and the entire team present here. They have established a big premises in Pune. Good luck and keep it up," the minister added.

''Five months ago, we launched our India manufacturing operations. Today we are excited to unveil our first `Made in India' product and deliver on our commitment to support the government's Make In India initiative,'' said John Kern, senior vice-president of supply chain operations and India executive sponsor at Cisco.

''We see today as a milestone in India's journey to becoming a global hub for electronics manufacturing. India is a source of tremendous innovation for Cisco -  across engineering, business functions and now, manufacturing,'' Kern added

"India is an incredible country for Cisco as it represents 360 degree value - a great growth opportunity, world class talent, and now an integral part of our global supply chain," Kern added.

According to industry analysts, there are nearly 23 billion connected devices and the number is expected to double to over 50 billion by 2020.

While Cisco is prepared to help governments and enterprises achieve this goal, Kern said, to achieve this, providing a secured ecosystem - from hardware to software - to the customers is the key.