SRISTI has taken this initiative for promoting originality among young tech minds. Goal also is to link industry and informal sector with academia through the help of students volunteers from different parts of the country but mainly at SVNIT, Surat led by Hiranmay Mahantha ( see names and comments of other student team members at www.sristi.org/anilg ). Earlier, Ajay Garg had mobilised a few hundred projects from Polytechnics and colleges in Maharashtra. Many more volunteers are being sought to takle up various activities to strengthen this portal.

There are about six lacs technology students who spend at least six months in their final year for doing a project. And yet, nobody knows the fate of these projects. There is no requirement from UGC or AICTE that every student put at least summary of their project on a national portal ( some day it will become obligatory for every student). Neither the problems of small and tiny industries are posed to the students nor the good projects of the
students are used by the industries. The grassroots green innovations ( www.nifindia.org www.sristi.org ) already developed in the informal sector also do not get an opportunity for being valorized by these students.

What will such a portal do: promote originality, and eliminate incentives to purchase the projects from third party vendors. The problem is that once a technical mind cuts corners and gets projects done by outsiders, he/she may not have compunction to cut any corner in future. At the same time, every time a person solves a real life problem, he/she becomes a better human being. How to get more and more students take up real life problems from MSME. If even one per cent projects become new products, industry would get at least 6000 ideas to invest in and stimulate demand for new products and services.

Further, the students cannot create a relay or kho kho model of project development by building upon each other’s ideas without a portal of such projects. Let us say, an idea which came to a particular stage at place ‘a’ could be taken forward to next stage in place ‘b’ and then further developed at ‘c’ and may be in a few cycles it will become a product.

Different kinds of monetary and non-monetary Incentives can be given to the students who work in teams within the institutions or across the institutions to address the problems of micro and small enterprises. Retired scientists, professionals and technopreneurs can be engaged to in

National Mentors Network to mentor the country wide half a million small enterprises through such students. Similarly, incentives and awards can be given to the students who find outstanding low cost process and products options for the industry or add value to grassroots innovations or develop business plans to become entrepreneur based on technologies developed by them or other students. Climate change related innovations can be given special importance, just as problems of economically backward regions many of which are conflict prone and women can be priotised.

By creating a techpedia, we will thus solve several problems and also identify the centres of excellence among thousands of B or C level technology institutions [apart from similar hotspots in “A” Class institutions]. Ranking by the peers and by the experts will also generate
information about places where inspired teachers have guided innovative projects. The experts can be of two kinds, one by invitation and the other on one’s own. Their comments will enhance confidence and also indicate direction in which the said technology can be taken forward.

We could in due course post *technology challenges* from large companies in private and public also at such a portal so that simultaneous attempt is made by many students at cracking their problems. Their advantage will be that (i) they will learn about multiple heuristics aimed at solving same problem, (ii) identify bright young students who they could hire for their in house R and D projects, and (iii) strengthen departments in which promising mentoring and guidance is being provided. We have to develop distributed capacity for nurturing talent in hundreds of small towns and villages through a network of large number of second and third tier of Institutions. Many of these institutions may have top quality departments of specific subjects, which will be uncovered through Techpedia.sristi.org or techpedia.in. Synergy between all kinds of technology institutions will emerge in due course.

India can become an innovation based incubator of the world. Ideas from all over the world may come to India for incubation, product development, design and fabrication. Let us pool our spirit and resources to make this happen. suggestions, offers of sponsorship, and other ideas can be sent to : Anil K Gupta ( anilg@sristi.org or anilgb@gmail.com)