Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister for Education and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship said that ancient India was the land for innovations and today, modern India, acting as Vishwa Mitra, is leveraging technology to bridge the gaps and reach new heights.  Destined to be Viksit Bharat by 2047, India aims to make research, innovation and entrepreneurship the key drivers of its transformation. The Minister stated this while delivering his keynote address at the inauguration of the second edition IInvenTiv, R &D Innovation Fair of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) at IIT Hyderabad today.

            Speaking at the inaugural ceremony, the Minister said that under the guidance of the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, India has taken a ‘Giant Leap in Innovation and Entrepreneurship’. He highlighted that the world now recognizes the Indian Model of Development, which is rooted, futuristic and focused on sustainable development. Our strength lies in recognizing the dynamics of both, market and welfare economy, he added. For this purpose, policymaking has shifted to the ‘Manufacturing Sector’ outlining strategies and focus areas that need attention, Shri Pradhan said.

He further stated that the goal is to make India, a manufacturing hub which would contribute at least  25% to the country’s GDP as compared to 17% currently. Shri Pradhan highlighted that the government has focused on augmenting the manufacturing sector through important policy changes, such as ‘Make In India’, ‘ Invest in India’,  PLI Scheme, and FDI liberalisation. These initiatives will act as a catalyst in India becoming the third largest economy in the future and achieve the target of being a 5 Trillion Dollar economy, he added. The Minister called upon young innovators to seize the India moment for realising the goal of Viksit Bharat.

            Shri Pradhan further added that innovation would be the determinant for the India’s growth story in the future, as our start-ups and human capital are changing the rules of the game. The recent passage of resolution by the US Congress extolling the contribution of IITians in enrichment of American society is a commendable example of ‘Brand India’, he added.

            He further stated, the Digital Public Infrastructure domain today, acted as an enabler with 46% of global digital transactions being done in India, thereby, India becoming an incubator of innovation. He said that the start-up culture had taken firm roots with the numbers having risen manifold to 1.2 lakh more than 300 times rise in 9 years. A critical achievement was the presence of 100+ unicorns making India, the third largest start-up ecosystem in the world: India’s global ranking in the Global Innovation Index rose to 40^th globally in 132 economies from a rank of 81 in 2015, he highlighted. In his address, Shri Pradhan also stressed the government’s focus on Deep Tech start-ups ecosystem in critical sectors like Defence, Drone & Space technology and Robotics. Initiatives such as Green Hydrogen Mission, Indian semi-conductor mission combined with PLI schemes had evinced interest from prospective from investors, he added. Shri Pradhan emphasised that he is confident that our youth will be driven by the motto of ‘Jai Vigyan, Jai Anusandhan’ thereby establishing India as a global Innovation leader.

            Regarding the linkage between the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020) and Innovation, Shri Pradhan said NEP 2020 was instrumental in creating an ecosystem focusing on creativity, critical thinking, encouraging logical decision making and innovation as it encouraged multi-disciplinary and inter-disciplinary education. The NEP 2020 architecture aimed to promote innovation amongst student communities through Hackathons, Atal Tinkering Labs, Innovation Design and Entrepreneurship (IDE) Bootcamps, Prime Minister Research Fellowship (PMRF), development of new textbooks, Professors of Practice portal, establishment of Research and Development Cell (RDC) in HEIs, Atal Incubation Centers at universities, etc. he added.

             Shri Pradhan also inaugurated the exhibition area and took a comprehensive tour of the stalls showcasing innovative tools & technologies. He also interacted with the stakeholders. The exhibition will serve as a platform for fostering connections between industry and academia, paving the way for potential collaborations that promise to advance and benefit society, industry, and academia on a grand scale.

            The inaugural ceremony was also attended by Shri Sanjay Murthy, Secretary, Higher Education, Ministry of Education, and several other heads of leading academic institutions and industry leaders including Dr. BVR Mohan Reddy, Chairman, BoG, IIT-H and IIT – Roorkeee, Prof. B.S Murthy, Director, IIT-H, Ms. Nivruti Rai, MD & CEO, Invest India, Prof. S. Surya Kumar, Dean, Innovations, IIT -H and esteemed Directors and faculty members of HEIs graced the occasion.

            The IInvenTiv-2024 R & D Innovation Fair will present a diverse array of innovative projects, showcasing a total of 120 groundbreaking initiatives from 53 esteemed institutes. The event is targeting five pivotal domains, including Affordable Healthcare, Agriculture & Food Processing, Sustainable Technologies including Climate change, E-mobility, Clean Energy, Defence and Space, and Industry 4.0, aligning with the thrust areas for Atma Nirbhar and Viksit Bharat. Additionally, this 2-day event is set to host five panel discussions on each of these domains, aiming to cultivate profound insights, facilitate knowledge exchange, and ignite collaborative dialogues among industry experts, academics, and innovators.

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