New Delhi, February 15 (IANS). Union Minister of State Dr. Jitendra Singh on Sunday praised the consortium-driven innovation model of IIT Madras Research Park. He said that this has enabled quick and proper commercialization of the technology and it is now being adopted by many other academic institutions and universities across the country.
Dr Jitendra Singh said this during his visit to the Immersive Technology and Entrepreneurship Labs (ITEL) Foundation and other advanced research facilities at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras.
“This model is now being adopted by other academic institutions and universities as well,” he said.
During this visit, Dr. Singh reviewed the ongoing projects in areas like urban mobility, space technology, medical devices and brain research.
“The consortium approach, which involves industry partners from the early stages of research and development, ensures that innovations are relevant to real-world needs,” said Dr Singh.
“This integrated model allows research results to be transformed into practical and market-ready solutions more quickly,” he added.
ITEL Foundation, which was formed as a not-for-profit Section 8 company in July 2024 and approved by the Department of Science and Technology, aims to make India a global technology leader.
It brings together academic institutions, industry leaders and investors to jointly develop deep-tech innovations and transfer them directly to the commercial sector.
A special demonstration during the visit was the HASHTIC Mobility Initiative, which aims to tackle traffic congestion in Indian cities.
The project proposes to run AI-enabled small electric vehicles on elevated tracks above existing roads, with the aim of reducing the 15-km commute to about 20 minutes.
Dr Singh also reviewed the work of Agnikul Cosmos, a private space startup incubated within the IIT Madras ecosystem.
The company develops launch vehicles for flexible, on-demand satellite launches and successfully completed its first mission in May 2024 with support from the Indian Space Research Organization and In-Space.
The startup is now preparing for the commercial mission of its reusable rocket later this year, which reflects the growing role of private players in India’s space sector.
–IANS
SCH/DKP