Bhubaneswar, Nov. 26: More than 500 academic leaders, policymakers, incubation managers, start-up founders, mentors, and ecosystem enablers representing various higher education institutions in the east attended the regional meet of the Institution’s Innovation Council (IIC) for 2025 at the Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University (SOA) here on Tuesday.
The event, which was held under the aegis of the Innovation Cell of the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), Ministry of Education, provided a vibrant platform for knowledge exchange, startup showcasing, and institutional collaboration to strengthen India’s innovation and entrepreneurial landscape.
The IIC framework had evolved into a national movement connecting more than 16,000 institutions and enabling countless student innovators to benefit from mentoring, knowledge networks and pre-incubation support, Dr. Dipan Sahu, Assistant Innovation Director, AICTE, informed the participants.
Prof. T.G. Sitharam, Chairman of AICTE, addressed the audience live from AICTE headquarters in New Delhi, in which he spoke about the central government’s mission to institutionalize innovation practices across the country while transforming higher education campuses into engines of technological leadership.
The speakers included Dr. Jadumani Jena, former CEO of Telecom Sector Skill Council, Government of India, Dr. Bijay Kumar Sahu, Regional Manager, National Research Development Corporation, Ravi Eswarapu, CEO, Ratan Tata Innovation Hub and Prof. Deepak B. Pathak, IIT Bombay, who shared their insights on India’s emerging innovation ecosystem, the increasing relevance of market-ready technology solutions and the rising potential of academic incubators in driving knowledge-based entrepreneurship.
Rashmita Panda, CEO of Startup Odisha, elaborated on the state government’s proactive initiatives to encourage young innovators, promote institutional incubation capacity, and build a world-class startup culture in the state.
Prof. Pradipta Kumar Nanda, Vice-Chancellor of SOA, spoke about the university’s continued commitment to fostering innovation-led academic excellence and nurturing student-driven research with societal impact. Prof. Renu Sharma, Additional Dean (Student Affairs), delivered the welcome address.
Prof. Ashok Jhunjhunwala of IIT Madras, who delivered the virtual keynote address, articulated the challenges and milestones of India’s innovation journey, stressing the importance of risk-taking mindsets, market exposure, and perseverance among budding entrepreneurs.
During the central inauguration of the event, streamed live from AICTE headquarters, Vice Chairman Dr. Abhay Jere and Member Secretary Prof. Shyama Rath underscored the need to build globally competitive innovation ecosystems within Indian universities and announced new pathways for funding and collaboration.
The event transitioned into a parallel technical track, which covered institutional innovation frameworks, IPR and technology transfer, and financial sustainability for incubators. Speakers from various IIC institutions informed the participants on innovation strategies, IP and TRL frameworks, mentor engagement, national innovation repositories, and opportunities under AICTE schemes.
The highlight of the day was the Innovation and Startup Showcase, which was inaugurated by Prof. Damodar Acharya, former Chairman of AICTE and former Director of IIT Kharagpur. He interacted with YUKTI-supported innovators and appreciated the quality of prototypes and research-driven initiatives exhibited by the participating institutions.
Prof. Manas Kumar Mallick, Director, AIC-SOA Foundation and Institute of Technical Education and Research, conferred the awards and motivated innovators to keep refining their projects and actively leverage national-level platforms to access funding and market linkages.
