The maiden edition of the International Blockchain Congress (IBC) was kickstarted in Hyderabad earlier today, to put India on the global roadmap for adoption of this new-age technology across sectors.

The three-day summit is organised by the government think-tank Niti Aayog and Nucleus Vision, in partnership with state governments of Telangana and Goa.

The event will witness over 80 delegates addressing issues like application of Blockchain by Asia and India's role in it, cryptocurrency exchanges, data privacy and security in the age of digital payments.

Amitabh Kant, chairman of Niti Aayog, in his address at the inaugural session said, “India's potential to propel Blockchain technology is immeasurable, especially to prevent data fraud and digital theft.”

Speaking about the role of the government in adopting Blockchain technology applications, Telangana's IT Minister KT Rama Rao added, “Permissioned Blockchain will enable governments to maintain certain control over their transactions -- the technology can be used in various areas such as land records, transportation, managing health records, voting in elections, peer to peer energy transactions, tax and welfare payments.”

IBC will witness close to 2,000 from across the globe participate in workshops and seminars organised by delegates from Tech Mahindra, IBM, Infosys, Accenture, Microsoft and Future Retail amongst others.

Meanwhile Indian information technology major Tech Mahindra is all set to bet big on Blockchain adaptability.

CP Gurnani, chief executive officer, Tech Mahindra, speaking exclusively to CNBC-TV18 added, “Our company has 150 Blockchain architects working with clients across retail, telecom, healthcare and financial services currently. We will not just invest more into human capital for Blockchain but also towards its adoption in end-use applications. It is the future OS on which the IT sector will thrive.”

Tech Mahindra will also partner with the government of Telangana to launch India's first Blockchain district in the state.

“It will be a centre of excellence, an incubator and process development for the emerging technology with innovative infrastructure and facilities to foster growth of Indian Blockchain start-ups and companies," added Gurnani.

The action at IBC shifts out of Hitec City in Hyderabad to the beaches of Goa on Sunday, August 5.

First Published:Aug 3, 2018 5:09 PM IST