Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurates two-day 100 Cube Start-up Conclave at IIT, Bhubaneswar

Creating an enabling ecosystem for talented youth necessitates a comprehensive societal approach—Pradhan

Bhubaneswar: Union Minister of Education and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, inaugurated the two-day 100 Cube Start-up Conclave at IIT Bhubaneswar, Research and Entrepreneurship Park (REP). Secretary, Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Shri Sanjay K. Murthy; Secretary, Department of School Education & Literacy, Shri Sanjay Kumar; Director, IIT Bhubaneswar, Prof. Shreepad Karmalkar; Chairman, Board of Governors, Dr.Rajendra Prasad Singh; representatives of foreign governments, delegates from the industry, particularly the deep tech sector, academia, start-ups, students, and other eminent business leaders were also present at the event.

While addressing the audience Shri Pradhan said that the opening of the Research & Entrepreneurship Park of the IIT Bhubaneswar is a landmark day for Odisha and with the 100 Cube Conclave, the foundation to catalyse the entrepreneurial spirit of eastern India has been laid. Like the Konark temple, which is a symbol of architectural excellence of Odisha, this initiative will also be a 21st-century temple that will encourage and support youth to dream big, innovate and create value, Shri Pradhan said.

He also said that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s initiatives for the youth have ensured that the AmritKaal turns out to be the golden age for the young generations. Expressing his gratitude to the corporates and investors who have signed MoUs and have generously contributed to support the initiative, he urged for handholding the youngsters.

He also added that the world looks at India and its youth with hope and therefore it is a must to provide an enabling ecosystem to the talented youth with a whole-of-a-society approach.

Shri Pradhan also said that innovation is in the DNA of Odia society and the academic institutions have the potential to provide solutions to global problems. Initiatives like 100 Cube Odisha will tap the untapped potential of the youth and engineer solution-driven innovation and start-up revolution, he said. The trinity of youth, faculty and industry will drive this initiative, Shri Pradhan added. He invited everyone to leave a legacy of innovation and enterprise that will inspire the world in the years to come.

The Minister also inaugurated the new auditorium and digitally laid the foundation stone of several infrastructure projects. A short film on the REP was also shown in the programme. MoUs were exchanged between 16 startups and REP. Four startups incubated at IIT Bhubaneswar received grant cheques from Oil India Ltd. An exhibition of startup products was set up that the dignitaries visited before the inauguration of the Conclave.

Current focus areas of the REP are Health & BioTech; Battery/EV/ClimateTech; Artificial intelligence (building models and applications), SpaceTech, Drones, UAVs; Semi-conductors; and Enterprise software (Developer Infra/Tools, Info/Enterprise Security).

Earlier in the day five parallel sessions were organised titled 100 Cube: Confluence of Culture, Entrepreneurship and Vision (Moderator: Dr.SeemaBahinipati, IIT Bhubaneswar); 100 Cube: Industry Catalyst igniting Purvodaya Start-up Mission (Moderator: Mr.Arindam Mukhopadhyay, Partner, India Accelerator); Nurturing New Ideas for Viksit Bharat @2047 (Moderator: Ms. Mona Singh, India Accelerator); Industry Startup Relationship: Nurturing a Successful Partnership (Moderator Ms.Madhusmita Dash, Assistant Professor, IIT Bhubaneswar); and Sustainable Approach for Institutionalizing Innovation and Startup Ecosystem Development in Educational Institutions (Moderator Mr.Dipan Sahu, Assistant Innovation Director, MOE’S Innovation Cell).

Shri Pradhan on 10 February 2024 participated in a fireside chat during which he shared his insight on building a robust ecosystem comprising entrepreneurs and startups. This informal conversation served as a prelude to the inauguration of today’s Conclave. During this discussion, he mentioned that Odisha and eastern India have no dearth of talent and ideas and the conclave will be a catalyst in making innovation and entrepreneurship a way of living.

It will provide a broad canvas to the youth to leave a lasting imprint of their entrepreneurial talents and abilities, Shri Pradhan highlighted. He mentioned Eastern India, particularly a knowledge hub like Bhubaneswar has the solutions to the most complex challenges of the world and the Conclave will act as a bridge between knowledge and 21st century opportunities. With this initiative, it is envisioned to make Bhubaneswar and Odisha an epicentre of solution-centric start-ups that will give momentum to Purvoday, boost India’s growth trajectory and ensure global well-being, the Minister said.