SRINAGAR: Vice-Chancellor, University of Kashmir, Prof Nilofer Khan Friday inaugurated a national-level webinar on Intellectual Property Rights and reiterated her call for hand-holding of young and aspiring innovators “from the very early stage”.
The webinar was organised by the University’s New Generation Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Centre (NewGen-IEDC) in collaboration with the Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs, and TradeMarks, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India, as part of the National Intellectual Property Awareness Mission (NIPAM 2.0) under the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav initiative.
In her presidential address, Prof Nilofer said such webinars give an impetus to the University’s commitment to create a strong ecosystem for innovations and incubations, which, among other things, will foster a holistic understanding among students about the startup culture.
Saying that youth of J&K, especially the young students, are desirous of carving a space for themselves in the new world of startups, the VC called for handholding and professional training of aspiring innovators from the very early stage to make them realise their goals.
“We need to catch them young and it’s our responsibility to see how best we can contribute in this endeavor. Our mission must include awareness programmes so that aspiring innovators know different stages of patenting, IPR and other related things,” she said.
Dr Shahida Umar, Examiner of Patents and Designs, India Patents Office, New Delhi, was the chief resource person, who talked about the NIPAM 2.0, which aims to infuse spirit of creativity and innovation among students of higher education. She also discussed in detail the types of IPR and their importance.
Dr Sartaj Hussain, Coordinator New Gen IEDC said the webinar aims to educate upcoming entrepreneurs about the significance of intellectual property rights, which are important for them to protect their innovative assets legally.
The webinar was attended by students from colleges of Kashmir, scholars and students from KU and other universities in the Valley.