IIT Bombay sets up ‘Research Park’ to support student start-ups

Students of the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B) might no longer need to seek help from outsiders to support their start-up ideas, as work on a ‘Research Park’ will finally start in 2017.

With Phase 0 being set up in the academic area, the Park aims to establish an innovation hub through industry-academia collaboration, build a strong industrial relationship by starting R&D centres in the institute, and promote entrepreneurship.

The Research Park has already successfully been set up at the IIT-Madras campus and few other IITs across the country have been selected by MHRD for this venture.

“The plan for the park started in 2014. Phase 0 (an interim arrangement)—that looks to make its debut in 2017 — will be established in the academic area. Phase one—scheduled to be completed by Jan, 2019 – will have the first dedicated building of the Research Park,” states an article released in the institute’s in-house magazine, Insight.

The IIT-B Research Park, ASPIRE (Applied Science Park for Innovation Research & Entrepreneurship) will be located on the outskirts of the campus, behind the Renaissance Hotel. The first phase will cover about 2,50,000sq ft, while phases two and three of the park are to be completed by 2023, according to proposal, with a total projected area of 10,00,000 sqft.

The Research Park aims to facilitate an interaction between IIT-B students and professors on one side, and industry and national R&D organisations on the other, through various modes of engagement. “This ensures that institute faculty and the companies collaborate effectively, and students can get an exposure into real-world applications of their chosen fields, under the supervision of corporate experts who share their passion for R&D,” states the article. Applied Materials, a US-based company, has already joined the IIT-B Research Park as the anchor client in 2015.

IIT-B management has stated how the Research Park will significantly increase industry-IITB R&D interaction and thereby enhance the output of translational research, especially research with direct societal and industrial relevance and benefit. “The Park can also help students get internships and placements as companies may recruit students for the Park. It’s an exciting new chapter which will change the face of research and development in IIT-B,” the article explains.

 News Source : HT