A path-breaking conference on “Bridging Academia and Industry in Cybersecurity Education” was organised by the NFSU Delhi Campus in collaboration with I4C and AICTE, marking an important step towards reshaping India’s cybersecurity education ecosystem.

The initiative opened up long-overdue discussions on standardisation, skill development, deeper industry integration, academic reforms, skill-based credits, indigenous certifications, outcome-driven internships, and structured career pathways. Together, these elements have the potential to bring transformative change to how cybersecurity talent is developed in the country.

During the deliberations, I highlighted several critical imperatives, including the need for skill-based, role-aligned courses and structured, outcome-oriented internships. Most importantly, I reiterated the urgent requirement for a Joint Working Group (JWG) on Digital Forensics and Incident Response (DFIR)—a foundational capability for national cyber readiness and a need I have consistently raised across multiple forums.

Lt Gen Pant (Retd.), Former National Cyber Security Coordinator, strongly underscored the importance of a unifying national motto for cybersecurity—one that can inspire collective responsibility and catalyse meaningful action. Shri Rajesh Kumar, IPS, CEO of I4C, set a strong tone with his clear, pragmatic, and forward-looking vision for building cybersecurity capacity at scale.

Dr. Gaurav Gupta offered fresh perspectives, emphasising that students should be evaluated not only on successful outcomes, but also on the rigour of their approach, depth of critical thinking, and the complexity of problems addressed—even when projects do not succeed. Prof. Nidhish Bhatnagar concluded the conference by succinctly capturing the essence of the discussions, noting that the outcome document will serve as a cornerstone for the future of cybersecurity education in India.

The key message was clear: cybersecurity curricula must continuously evolve with the threat landscape, and academia, industry, and government each have an equal and indispensable role to play.

The journey from intent to impact has begun. Suggestions and insights are welcome and can be shared in the comments or via direct message for inclusion in the final outcome document.