SRINAGAR: Three-day long National Conference on Industrial fest and innovation hunt began on Wednesday at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar.
The conference is being organized by Innovation Incubation Entrepreneurship Development Centre (IIEDC) NIT Srinagar in collaboration with the Indian Army.
Dr. Dinesh Kumar Rajendran and Major BS Shekhawat are the Organizing Secretaries of the workshop.
The event was presided over by Director NIT Srinagar Prof. (Dr.) Rakesh Sehgal and Colonel David was Chief Guest on the occasion. Dr. Tousheef Bhat, CEO Indo Khash Professional was the Guest of Honor at the event.
In his address, Prof. Sehgal said it is an honor to host such conferences on the campus for students of the Valley. At IIEDC NIT Srinagar two startups including seed sowing machine and the Saffron processing machine have already received grants of 15 lahks each, he said.
“With the help of DST, we have got funding of rupees 5 Crores where we have to provide financial help to at least 20 startups over the 2 years in the region,” he said.
Prof. Sehgal said inventions are the new solutions to a technical problems and can be protected through patents. Patents protect the interests of inventors by ensuring that an inventor can control the commercial use of their inventions, he said.
“NIT Srinagar is also part of many flagship programs of Govt. of India like Skill India, Unnat Bharat Abhiyan. Being regional coordinators of UBA, we have 35 colleges associated with us and each college has adopted 5 schools and some villages,” he said.
Prof. Sehgal said they have developed computer labs in adopted schools in far-flung areas of the Valley. Various awareness campaigns were held in many villages to make them aware of water resources,” he said.
On the occasion, Col. David said innovation is one of the most important driving forces behind a successful economy. India is currently focusing on AtmaNirbhar Bharat’ or Self Reliant India, slogan given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“I am sure that this workshop will go a long way to support innovations and nurture ideas. Education only gives you an edge and innovation has no boundaries across the globe,” he said.
Col. David urged participants to take advantage of such programs. If our students can do that then it will be their biggest contribution to the entire country, he said.
Institute’s Registrar, Prof. Syed Kaiser Bukhari urged students to “bring their ideas to reality through the use of technology and knowledge”.
“Innovative ideas can change the course of our lives for the better. It works in all fields – be it education, business, or entertainment. Patent filing is important and provides its owner with the right to exclude others from exploiting the patented technology,” he said.
The inaugural session began with the welcome address of Dr. Dinesh Kumar Rajendran, Organizing Secretary welcoming dignitaries, guests, and participants to the workshop.
“The mandate of IIEDC is to reach out to local youth. This collaboration will provide an opportunity to connect us on the ground and offer solutions to students facing challenges in their careers,” he said.
Director Innovations, Entrepreneurship, Indo Kashmir Professionals Shahid Mir, President SIDCO Industrial Estate Khanmoh Imran Pervez, Founder Fast Beetle Aabid Rashid, Senior Industry Consultant Qaiser Paraiz and Prominent Business industrialist Shakeel Qalandar delivered special lectures on various topics.
A formal vote of thanks was presented by Pinak Dixit to the guests, faculty members, and students for making the event successful.