In a first, all IITs to collaborate for a mega R&D event on October 14-15

In a first of its kind in India, the 23 IITs have come together for a mega Research and Development (R&D) fair to be held from October 14-15, 2022 at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. The fair, called IInvenTive, will showcase 75 projects to mark the 75th year of India’s Independence in accordance with Azaadi ka Amrit Mahotsav. The event will be attended by Union Minister for Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Dharmendra Pradhan.

These 75 projects have been shortlisted based on their future potential and Technology readiness level (TRL), a measure which can ascertain the commerciality of the projects. Some of the projects like Bahubhaashak, have been in development for over 10 years and will enable a real time online translation from one language to another without any grammatical error. Other researches include a 6G project, whose first prototype will be available only after 2030.

The event will cover ten broad themes focussed on Defence and aerospace, Healthcare (including devices and digital health), Environment and Sustainability (including air, water, rivers), Clean Energy & Renewables (including Hydrogen and EV), Manufacturing (including smart, advanced and industry 4.0) , AI/ML/Blockchain technologies (including quantum computing),Smart Cities & Infrastructure (including smart mobility),Communication Technologies (including education and 5G) ,Robotics, Sensors & Actuators and finally, Semiconductors, Flexible electronics & Nanotechnology.

Dr. Pawan Goenka, Chairman, Board of Governors (BOG), IIT Madras said that the economic growth has to be led by the latest technology and hence this event would help develop more affordable technologies for the benefit of all. He stressed on the importance of investments in R&D across the nation which was unfortunately lacking in the country. He said that India’s GDP on R&D is around 1 percent whereas South Korea’s contribution was around 4 percent. Out of the one percent, industries spend 20 percent on R&D whereas South Korea spends around 60-70 percent. Hence, there was an urgent need to address the issue.

Dr. BVR Mohan Reddy, Chairman, BoG IIT Hyderabad and IIT Roorkee said that “In a path to self-sufficiency as enunciated by the Atmanirbhar Bharat, requirement demands research which translates into innovation which then can be commercialised.” He also mentioned that the disturbance in the geopolitics like Brexit and Ukraine crisis has forced countries to look internally to become self-sufficient. This further demanded more focus on R&D programmes to foster economic growth.

Apart from the 75 projects, the event will also have six showcase projects. IIT Kanpur will lead a presentation on the ongoing R&D in drone technology and how diverse its utilities have become; IIT Bombay will lead a presentation on the Bahubhaashak project, which enables speech-to-speech translation, NPTEL, SWAYAM, MOOCs videos in vernacular languages, in-line with the vision of National Education Policy 2020; IIT Madras will lead a presentation on 5G Core and allied technologies; IIT Delhi will lead a presentation on the R&D in the broader areas of climate change, agriculture, rural technologies, sanitation etc; IIT Kharagpur will lead a presentation on affordable healthcare devices and technologies; and IIT Hyderabad will lead a presentation on the technological innovations in the electric vehicle (EV) sector.