The Indian government has said that various initiatives taken under the newly conceptualised WAVES movement, apart from other measures, has contributed to strengthening of the country’s animation, visual effects, gaming and comics or AVGC ecosystem

Detailing the various government steps initiated for the growth of the creative technologies, including AVGC exports, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan told Rajya Sabha (Upper House) that formation of the AVGC Task Force in 2022 and a national centre of excellence for AVGC-XR operationalised as the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) were few examples of such measures.

The AVGC Promotion Task Force was set up by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in April 2022 bringing together industry and government to outline how India could scale skills, jobs and investment in animation, VFX, gaming and comics; and position the country as a global hub for M&E industry. A report, submitted in December 2022, recommended a National AVGC Mission, centres of excellence, stronger infrastructure and dedicated support for Indian IP and exports.

Replying to questions from fellow parliamentarians in Rajya Sabha on December 19, Murugan said IICT Mumbai has been established and is being developed as a specialised Centre of Excellence to strengthen high-end training and research.

With a focus on expanding high-quality production capacity, developing talent and improving access to international markets, the World Audio-Visual Entertainment Summit (WAVES) 2025 was held in May 2025 as a global platform for the entire media and entertainment sector, the Minister stated.

The National Centre of Excellence (NCoE) for AVGC-XR has been operationalised as the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT). It is the premier institution for creative technologies, located in Mumbai and is being developed with a total allocation of Rs. 391.15 crore, modelled on the lines of specialised tech and management IITs and IIMs for the creative technologies (including AVGC-XR). It has started operating from the NFDC campus in Mumbai, the Minister explained.

IICT has partnerships with leading global companies such as Google, Meta, NVIDIA, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe and WPP for curriculum co-development, access to advanced tools, mentorship and industry collaboration.

IICT also supports startup incubation and IP creation, helping creative technology startups of India connect with global studios, investors and markets, thereby advancing the objectives of Create in India and Brand India.

Further, the Minister added, WAVES supports the AVGC sector and startups through verticals like the B2B platform WAVES Bazaar, WAVEX, which is a dedicated startup accelerator and incubator for AVGC-XR and emerging media technologies and Creatosphere, a talent-discovery initiative that conducts 30–35 national competitions annually across animation, gaming, webtoons and digital storytelling.