Itanagar, July 1 (APAC Media): The Department of IT & Communication, Government of Arunachal Pradesh, hosted the State Consultative Workshop on Strengthening Cybersecurity Frameworks for State Data on 30th June 2026.
The workshop was organised in partnership with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the National e-Governance Division (NeGD).
The workshop was graced by Kardo Nyigyor, Hon’ble Deputy Speaker of the Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly, as the Chief Guest. The welcome address and context setting were delivered by Saikia Yangda, Joint Director, SCIT&eG, Government of Arunachal Pradesh.
Speaking at the Workshop, Kardo Nyigyor, Deputy Speaker, emphasised that cybersecurity must be treated as a core governance priority rather than a mere compliance exercise.
“Cybersecurity is not a technology problem with a technology solution. It is a governance problem that requires a governance response—policy, people, process, and then technology,” Nyigyor said. Highlighting the state’s responsibility towards citizen data, the deputy speaker noted that departments managing land records, health data, education systems, and welfare databases hold information that citizens have entrusted to the government.
Concluding his address, Nyigyor invoked the state’s spirit of resilience, stating, “The land of the dawn-lit mountains has always faced the light first. Let Arunachal Pradesh face the challenge of cybersecurity with that same spirit—early, prepared, and undeterred.”
Saikia Yangda noted that the workshop marks a significant step in Arunachal Pradesh’s commitment to aligning State data governance with national cybersecurity standards. “The outputs of today will not be filed away — they will be acted upon,” he stated.
Highlighting the significance of cybersecurity in the current time, Mini Rani Sharma, Head SeMT, MeitY, Government of India, stated, “We speak of firewalls and encryption. But behind every data record we protect is a farmer’s land title, a child’s scholarship, a patient’s health history. Cybersecurity is not a technical exercise. It is the most human thing a Government is entrusted with. Every byte of citizen data held by a State Government is a fragment of public trust. The real test before us is whether our preparedness matches our commitment, and whether our defences are truly battle-ready to protect every citizen from the serious consequences of a breach.
The closing vote of thanks was rendered by Namgey Wangmu, Deputy Director, SCIT&eG.
Distinguished Speakers & Resource Persons
The workshop brought together an eminent panel of national experts in cybersecurity, policy, and digital governance:
- Adv. Ranganath M.A. — Cyber Security Policy Expert: National cybersecurity threat landscape & DPDP Act obligations for State Departments
- Mini Rani Sharma, Head-SeMT, NeGD — National Initiative Overview
- Bhanu Saini, Director & Head of Public Policy (India & South Asia), Palo Alto Networks — Securing State’s Digital Governance Frontier
- Rakshit Tandon, Consultant, Cyber Crime HQ, UP Police & Founder, RT Cyber Academy — Cyber Suraksha from Ground Up
- Dr. Marshal R, Scientist D, CERT-In, MeitY, GoI — CERT-In’s Framework for State Cybersecurity
- Prof. Sandeep Shukla, Director, IIIT Hyderabad — Critical Information Infrastructure Protection for State Governments
Workshop Highlights
The day-long workshop comprised technical keynote sessions in the forenoon covering the national cybersecurity threat landscape, obligations under the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023, and frameworks for State CSIRT establishment. In the afternoon, participants were organised into six parallel breakout sessions addressing:
- Theme 1: Risk-Based Assessments & Continuous Security Monitoring
- Theme 2: SDC & SWAN Security
- Theme 3: SOC & State CSIRT Establishment
- Theme 4: Legacy Modernisation, Secure-by-Design & Zero Trust
- Theme 5: Data Classification, DPDP Act & NISPG
- Theme 6: CISOs, Capacity Building, Skilling & Awareness (Cyber Surakshit Bharat, Cyber Shakti, iGOT Karmayogi)
Each group’s Rapporteur presented a maturity rating, key challenges, three priority recommendations, and support requests from the Government of India in a plenary report-back session. The consolidated State Input Document will be submitted to NeGD by 10th July 2026, directly informing the national summit in August 2026.
Participating Departments & Organisations
Over 150 delegates attended the workshop, representing a broad cross-section of State Government departments, central Government organisations, academic institutions, and the private sector, including:
- Budget Department, Government of Arunachal Pradesh
- Directorate of Audit and Pension
- Directorate of Information and Public Relations
- Directorate of Printing and Stationery
- Department of IT & Communication
- Department of Labour and Employment
- Department of Power, Arunachal Pradesh
- Department of Tourism, Government of Arunachal Pradesh
- Tax, Excise & Narcotics Department
- Urban Local Bodies
- Public Works Department (PWD), Arunachal Pradesh
- Environment, Forest & Climate Change (O/o PCCF)
- Gazetteers Department
- APEDA
- eHealth / National Health Mission (NHM), Arunachal Pradesh
- SIRD&PR (State Institute of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj)
- Arunachal Pradesh Space Application Centre (SRSAC)
- Centre for Earth Sciences and Himalayan Studies, Itanagar
- Geological Survey of India, State Unit Arunachal Pradesh
- National Informatics Centre (NIC)
- Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), MeitY, GoI
- NIT Arunachal Pradesh (Computer Science Engineering)
Key Outcomes
The workshop is expected to produce a state-specific cybersecurity action roadmap covering departmental maturity assessments, prioritised security interventions, and a plan for the establishment of a state-level Security Operations Centre (SOC) and State CSIRT in partnership with CERT-In. The Deputy Speaker, in his keynote address, emphasised that cybersecurity is a governance imperative, not merely a technical exercise, and called upon all departments to treat the DPDP Act, 2023 obligations with the seriousness they deserve
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