Bhubaneswar, April 30: Aspiring entrepreneurs, start-up ecosystem experts, and government representatives converged to discuss innovative ideas for start-ups at ‘Impulse’--a day-long conclave organised by Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan Deemed to be University (SOA) here on Tuesday in collaboration with Start-up Odisha.
The conclave was addressed by SOA Vice-Chancellor Prof. Pradipta Kumar Nanda, who spoke on the vital role universities required to play to foster an entrepreneurial mindset in the students. The program included a series of expert sessions highlighting critical themes such as government funding opportunities, transforming student ideas into start-ups, and crafting effective business pitches.
It included a panel discussion on ‘Bridging the Gap: Start-ups, Incubators and Funding—The Odisha Ecosystem Advantage’ in which key leaders from academia, government, and industry participated. It was moderated by Rajeev Kumar, Deputy General Manager, SOA’s Centre for Innovation and Incubation (SOA-CII). The session featured Sivankit Das from Start-up Odisha, Sri Sudha from National Research Development Corporation (NRDC), Abhishek Mohapatra from Plantery, Sakti Swarup Pati from IIT- Bhubaneswar, and Prof. Pravat Kumar Sarangi of SOA.
The discussion brought to the fore valuable insights into the evolving start-up landscape in Odisha while highlighting collaborative models, funding mechanisms, and policy-driven support for entrepreneurs.
Eleven pre-selected student teams presented their innovative ideas during the ‘Next Big Idea’ pitching competition held in the afternoon, which were evaluated by a distinguished jury of investors, incubators, and academicians.
At the beginning of the program, Prof. Santosh Kumar Rout, Dean of SOA’s Institute of Agricultural Sciences, addressed the gathering. It followed speeches by Prof. Manas Kumar Mallick, Director of Atal Incubation Centre-SOA Foundation, SOA University, Surya Kumar Pattanayak, Director, Software Technology Park of India (STPI), Bhubaneswar, and Prof. Subhransu Ranjan Samantaray of IIT-Bhubaneswar.
A major highlight of the event was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between AIC-SOA Foundation and the Research and Entrepreneurship Park of IIT-Bhubaneswar.
Prof. Manas Kumar Mallick, Director of AIC-SOA Foundation, and Prof. Subhankar Pati, CEO of Research and Entrepreneurship Park of IIT-Bhubaneshwar, signed the MoU. This collaboration aimed at strengthening innovation and incubation support for emerging start-ups in Odisha, creating new pathways for knowledge sharing, technical mentoring, and access to advanced infrastructure. Prof. P.K. Sarangi of the Institute of Agricultural Sciences moderated the program.
Prof. Renu Sharma, Additional Dean of Student Affairs, SOA’s Institute of Technical Education and Research, came up with the closing reflections.
