Ashwini Vaishnaw, Hon Union Minister of Railways, Communications, Electronics & Information Technology, Government of India, visited the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN) today and interacted with start-ups, industry partners, and students at the Institute.
In the first leg of his visit,Vaishnaw visited an expo and product demonstration session by start-ups supported by the IIT Gandhinagar Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (IIEC) and industry partners in the IIT Gandhinagar Research Park. He took a keen interest in the innovations and products being developed by them. Around 25 companies from diverse domains showcased their innovative technologies and products, including e-mobility battery solutions, plastic waste to 3D-printed products, a pocket-sized device to assess the quality of fruits, a hybrid solar gas cook stove, virtual reality-based rehabilitation system for stroke patients, augmented reality and virtual reality-based solutions for business enterprises, robotics applications for industries, on-board hydrogen generation from diesel, utilisation of human urine through a treatment system, and so on. Sharing his thoughts at the start-up and industry expo,Ashwini Vaishnaw said, “It is great to see so many start-ups working on innovative technologies at IIT Gandhinagar. It is a very good example of how industries are working on their Research & Development projects with IIT Gandhinagar students and faculty.”
In the evening,Ashwini Vaishnaw participated in a lively and light-hearted interactive session with the students and community in the jam-packed auditorium at IITGN on the theme of ‘Entrepreneurship and Innovation’ in which he talked about various technological developments happening in the country, how young students and entrepreneurs can be part of that journey, and the rapid strides being made by India in the field of semiconductors. Giving examples of some of the key technological developments happening in India, including building world-class trains, rockets, weapons, AI systems, telecom systems, and so on, Ashwini Vaishnaw said, “We in India today can achieve whatever we want to because that confidence and ecosystem has got developed in the country. Make in India, Start-up India, and Digital India have transformed the lives of millions of people.”
He exhorted the youngsters to get funding, good mentors, incubators, and work on their start- ups to leverage the opportunity to grow big and superior. He also talked about a series of public digital goods developed by the government that can be utilised to develop solutions that can make a huge difference in people’s lives.
Talking about the rapidly growing semiconductor industry in the country, Vaishnaw said, “There are lots of opportunities coming up in the 5G technology development. By the end of this year, we will have the first semiconductor fab in the country.” He also asked IITGN to prepare a proposal and offered to develop a 5G use case laboratory and a semiconductor laboratory at the Institute.
Prof Amit Prashant, Officiating Director, IITGN, thanked Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw for visiting the Institute and holding an energetic interactive session with students and start-ups at IITGN.