The challenge, running from April 2015 to January 2016, is worth Rs.1.5 cr
Bringing together Intel’s tech expertise and government’s bold Digital Vision, there is a thrust on creating a local technology ecosystem with the announcement of “Innovate for Digital India Challenge.”
A collaboration between Intel and government has IIM Ahmedabad’s Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE) as the execution partner for the challenge.
Who can participate and what’s the prize
It will be open to aspiring and existing entrepreneurs, innovators, academia, designers, engineers and makers from diverse backgrounds.
The challenge, running from April 2015 to January 2016, is open to academia, aspiring entrepreneurs and startups. The total grants is worth Rs.1.5 cr and the top three winners will get access to seed fund of Rs.20 lakhs each.
Participants will be provided mentoring by industry stalwarts and Intel experts, assistance in terms of technical know-how, access to product kits and infrastructure, and commercialization opportunities. They will also be offered market linkages and access to funds at various stages to help make their ideas a reality.
Speaking at the event, Shri Ram Sewak Sharma, Secretary, Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY), Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Government of India, said, “We are delighted to see industry leaders like Intel contributing to nation building and joining forces with the government in its journey to transforming India into a knowledge economy. With this challenge, we expect to see breakthrough ideas and ingenious innovations that will solve some of India’s key challenges.”
What’s the challenge all about
The challenge aims to encourage the creation of intuitive, easy-to-use solutions that can increase access to critical services imperative for development.
Eventually the best ideas will get help for commercialization leading to the creation of a local technology ecosystem furthering the government’s Make in India vision.
The challenge will encourage the application of the principles of frugal innovation and a strong understanding of Indian lifestyles. It will focus on innovation in two broad areas. The first is innovation to create the ideal citizen’s device platform, including biometric sensing capabilities, peripherals using other sensors, intuitive user interface, gesture recognition, multilingual support and voice support. The second area is innovation to deliver eKranti/MyGov applications to accelerate delivery of e-governance services on a mobile platform.
“The MyGov platform is designed to link government and citizens,” said Mr. Gaurav Dwivedi, CEO, MyGov. “We are proud to support this challenge by connecting the government with entrepreneurs and innovators to come forward with solutions made in India, for India.”
Speaking about the role of CIIE-IIMA, Professor Rakesh Basant said, “Incubation centers play a critical role in helping entrepreneurs scale up and are an essential part of the Indian ecosystem to build a digitally empowered country. We are excited to collaborate with the government and Intel to create a platform for young innovators across the nation to showcase their ideas and support them in their journey from ideas to products.”
Innovation not just government job
H K Mittal, Member Secretary, National Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board (NSTEDB), said, “Innovation always leads the way to finding the most creative solutions to societal challenges. Generating innovation is not the job of the government alone. Therefore it gives me great optimism to have Intel come forward – through Public Private Partnerships – to accelerate innovation and entrepreneurship in India
[Source: SupportBiz]
