Prof KS Chandrasekar
vc@clujammu.ac.in
“Necessity is the mother of innovation”. As the world grows, countries grow and the people grow as such grow looking for necessities which were once already available. Behind every new one coming up, there are gaps that were not addressed earlier by people and the unmet needs that transform to something new. There lies the entrepreneurial spirit which alone can transform an economy. Lijjat Papad, started by seven housewives on a rooftop, now has 45,000 working women and a turnover of Rs 1600 crore (Rs 16 billion). N R Narayana Murthy put together Rs 10,000 and started Infosys in his small 700 square feet apartment. Its market capitalization as of now is more than Rs 6.16 trillion. India jumped to claim the 39th position in the latest IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) 2024 as it gained significantly on various parameters, such as economic performance, government efficiency and business efficiency, but still lagged on the infrastructure front. IIT-Madras has developed a rural ATM machine for about Rs 30,000 as compared to the Rs 7-8 lakhs (USD 15-17,000) price of the global manufacturers. In IT hardware, Proton dot matrix printer from TVS Electronics has revolutionized rural retail stores and set a record through its “least expensive dot matrix printer in the world”. Philips India introduced a Hand Wound Radio that can be powered by hand winding. In the consumer product business, the use of “sachet” to dispense shampoo is the oft-quoted example from India. Use of polythene packets to package milk and the “no refrigeration, yet six months life” packaging of milk, is really “Made for India”.
India needs to focus on the research and development to ensure that they are on top in innovation and the same needs to align with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. There is a need to increase both public and private spending on research and development. Existing industrial technology needs to be developed with a focus on green and clean energy solutions. There is a need to support domestic technology development and industrial diversification in developing nations.
In a major boost to the R&D ecosystem in the country, the Prime Minister launched the 1 Lakh Crore Research Development and Innovation (RDI) Scheme Fund.The scheme aims to promote private sector-driven research and development of ecosystems in the country. This will be a great boost to the economy in fostering innovation in the country. This fund will not be offered as grants. Long-term low or zero-interest loans, equity investments, and contributions to Deep-Tech Fund of Funds will be the focus. Thus, it is result oriented. Advanced Materials & Manufacturing, Artificial Intelligence, Bio-Manufacturing, Blue Economy, Digital Communications, Electronics & Semiconductor Manufacturing, Emerging Agriculture Technologies, Energy, Environment and Climate, Health and Medical Technologies, Quantum Science and Technology, Renewable energy and Space Technologies will be focusing area where India can make major jump.
India needs to invest in robust infrastructure, including transport, energy, and information and communication technology (ICT) to support sustainable development and follow the SDGs. The major road network including expressways, green roads and quality roads can ensure new innovations catering to the convenience of road users. By providing an annual pass worth Rs.3000, the major bottleneck of the highway users has been addressed. They will be willing to spend on possible conveniences while on road. This is where new innovations including food, FMCG and services can be provided. E-mobility can provide more charging stations in food joints which will be a win win situation. India has the second-largest road network in the world, with over 6.3 million kilometers as of March 2025. The total car population in India is expected to reach about 108.6 million vehicles by 2030, a doubling from 54.4 million in 2020. Hybrid technology, e-mobility and other options for fuels need to be addressed and here the innovations can be of help. India’s air traffic is projected to grow significantly by 2030, with passenger numbers expected to reach between 500 million and 600 million which is equivalent to the population of USA and Indonesia put together. The consumption of products and services enroute can increase manifold. Car hailing to automated car systems, mass rapid systems including metros can provide ample opportunities for entrepreneurs.
India has 7,500 km of coastline and 14,500 km of navigable waterways. Freight transport by waterways is currently underutilized, but there is potential for growth, especially in areas where there are some issues pertaining to the road transport. India has a goal of reaching 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel power by 2030, with strong growth in solar and wind. Sardar Swaran Singh National Institute of Bioenergy, a nationally important institute that is involved in education and research in this area will be tapped by the Cluster University of Jammu to offer innovative programs in this specific area with employment opportunities. India is yet to fully tap the semiconductor wave sweeping across the world. Innovation in line with the UNSDGs can be opted. Curricular innovation in offering Certificate and Diploma programs in Semiconductor technology can offer skilled labor in the market. Cluster University of Jammu is in the process of addressing this issue and trying to work with India Semiconductor Workforce Development Program (ISWDP).
Government of India and the State Governments are trying to ensure a favorable regulatory environment and market infrastructure that drives innovation. Through NEP2020, there is every effort made to develop a skilled workforce through education and training in R&D. Connecting basic education to technical and skill training, technical skill training to labor market entry, and labor market entry to workplace and continuous learning and recognition of prior learning is given utmost importance now. The innovative eco system needs to be fostered through. The Indian government’s “Startup India” initiative has played a key role in the sector’s expansion.The number of DPIIT-recognized startups has grown significantly, from around 500 in 2016 to over 159,000 as of January 2025. The ecosystem has created over 1.6 million direct jobs.India is now ranked as the third-largest startup ecosystem globally. Funding by the GOI has been the biggest backbone for the young entrepreneurs in India. By launching several plans, Indian government has assisted the start-up firms a lot to perform and sustain both in domestic and global market. There are numerous government and semi-governmental initiatives to assist startups.Start-Up India initiative is a great relief for start-up firms that will give them a final break from the conventional License Raj of India. The program includes three-year tax and compliance breaks intended for cutting arduous government regulations and red tapism.’Make in India’ has identified 25 sectors in manufacturing, infrastructure and service activities and detailed information is being shared through interactive web-portal and professionally developed brochures. FDI has been opened up in Defence Production, Construction and Railway infrastructure in a big way.To facilitate the growth of startup firms, SETU (Self-Employment and Talent Utilization) fund had been set up by the government. Under this program, Rs 1,000 crore has been allotted by the government in order to create opportunities for self-employment and new jobs mainly in technology-driven domains.
There are innovative areas that are going to offer higher returns in India for the start ups and entrepreneurial areas like Home Automation, Urbanization/ Space Utilization, Online Reputation Management, Eat Natural and Stay Healthy, Mentoring, Consulting, Event management, Online tutoring and Design management to name a few. Some of the well-known universities have already started giving credits and financial support to some of the startups which have become a fully grown companies over the years. If we see a brand like Groww, which was a startup from BITS, Pilani has now come out with equity issue in BSE. Cluster University of Jammu has already started a Section 8 company for this Institution Innovation cell with Government MAM College being designated as a Hub for the same. Already there were excellent ideas that were put forth by the students which will be taken to the next stage. Reserve Bank of India’s Green Deposits Framework, effective from June 2023, gives direction to banks and NBFCs to disclose how they deploy funds raised via green deposits. This has given rise to Green Fixed Deposits-a novel and innovative category of products that retail and institutional investors would be exposed to invest in, knowing their capital will be deployed in environmentally positive sectors such as renewable energy, clean transport, and pollution control. This will pave ways for more innovative investing in future. As mentioned in ArthSastra, those with ethical governance (Dharmic rule) can only survive in any period of time and it is now that innovations can actually influence such rules. The Taittiriya Upanishad quotes, “Let us come together, let us speak together, let our minds be in harmony.” Combining the best brains, best infrastructure and best governance can ensure that more innovations and accolades can be created. What is needed is the extra effort from every individual for the benefit of the society and for mankind.
(The author is Vice Chancellor, Cluster University of Jammu)
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