Sixteen startups have been chosen for advanced training under the India Innovation Growth Programme (IIGP) 2.0, a joint initiative of the Government of India’s Department of Science and Technology (DST), Lockheed Martin, and Tata Trusts.
The winners, which were awarded a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh each, were picked from 3,000 applicants who were asked to propose innovations to create large scale social impact and bring industrial change in India.
These startups will receive advanced training for product commercialisation, readiness for market, business models, and intellectual property right, analysis of the commercial potential of their technology among others. Also, the entrepreneurs behind these ventures will get access to U.S. and global investor markets.
“Over the past decade the quality and quantity of entrepreneurs have dramatically increased in India,” says, Robie Samanta Roy, vice-president, technology and innovation, Lockheed Martin. “Our goal is to be a strategic partner in the Indian science and technology ecosystem,” he adds.
The programme which provides mentoring, handholding and seed funding to startups and innovators was launched in 2007 as a public-private partnership between the DST and Lockheed Martin, a global security and aerospace company. In 2017, with Tata Trusts becoming a co-sponsor, the scope of the programme was extended to include innovations addressing societal and developmental challenges.
The trust helps innovators understand what the community needs at the grass-roots level and also helps them scale up their technology, according to Ganesh Neelam, executive director, Collectives for Integrated Livelihood Initiatives (CINI), associate director Tata Trusts.
According to the organisers of the programme, five winners from the last year’s edition have begun to market their products in India and overseas. Two others have conducted field trials, while three have successfully created a proof concept and product validation.
Though the government over the years has been pushing hard to build a thriving entrepreneurial and innovation climate through various initiatives such as Startup India, National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI) or initiative like IIGP, yet India is ranked 57th in the global innovation index, lagging behind nations such as China, Bulgaria and the UAE.
Here’s the full list of the winners and their products
Social innovations:
Aarna Biomedical Products (Poorti)
Poorti is an affordable, light-weight post mastectomy kit designed to cater to the needs of breast cancer survivors who have undergone mastectomy.
Green Farming Forever Innovations (Moksh)
Moksh is a radiation-based dryer that picks rice straw from harvested land. It converts the straw into powder form 110 times faster than conventional dryers.
Torchit Electornics (Saarthi)
Saarthi is an affordable handheld device for the visually-impaired to manoeuvre around obstacles. The sensors in the device provide feedback to the user in the form of buzzing sounds and vibrating sensations.
22bate7 Software Pvt Ltd (piCards)
piCards, a low-cost continuous feedback, audience polling and formative assessment solution, lets teachers assess comprehension levels in classrooms and improve learning outcomes.
TouchVision Tech (TouchVision)
TouchVision is a multisensory inclusive education platform for the visually-impaired.
CareNX Innovations (IIT Bombay) (SelfCervi)
SelfCervi is a device for real-time self-screening of cervical cancer.
Shira MedTech (Shira Clamp)
Shira Clamps are aimed to make microsurgery possible for all surgeons in all domains.
Genrobotics Innovations (Bandicoot)
Bandicoot is a semiautomatic robotic system for manhole and sewer line cleaning aimed at eliminating manual scavenging and positioning the pressurised water jet for cleaning sewer lines.
Industrial innovations
IIT Madras (AQUA-FI)
AQUA-FI is an adaptive underwater wireless acoustic modem, with a vision to become the world leader in underwater acoustic communication systems.
Delectrik Systems (Redox Flow Battery)
Redox Flow Battery provides decentralized electricity.
DRIVAMP LLP (DrivAmp)
DrivAmp Level 2 comprises smart electric vehicle charging stations and system controllers.
Etrix Technologies (BlinkIN)
BlinkIN is an augmented reality- and artificial intelligence-based visual communication and assistive tool for tech support and training anytime, anywhere.
Irov Technologies (EyeROV)
EyeROV makes underwater inspections for critical infrastructure efficient and smarter. With an aim to be the leader in critical infrastructure inspection such as dams, bridges, offshore structures etc. through user-friendly reports of inspected critical infrastructure and to design, manufacture and assemble in India.
MakerInMe Technologies (Cretile)
Cretile is a kit comprising plug-n-play robotic, automation, Internet of Things and electronic modular building blocks, making it an excellent education tool for science, technology, engineering and math.
Manastu Space Technologies
Green propulsion technology for low thrust applications using premixed hydrogen peroxide and alcohols for replacement of current hydrazine based toxic mono propellant systems.
Sastra Robotics India (SR-Dimenzio)
An intelligent robot to automate real device human machine interface testing. The product aims to facilitate precise, risky and accurate jobs through realistic human arm capabilities.
