450 Innovation Ambassadors and 600 Students for India’s Innovation Mission

GRIET Recognized as One of Only Eight Institutions Nationwide to Host the Prestigious IIC Regional Meet

Innovation Leaders from AICTE, MoE, TSCHE and Industry Emphasize R&D, Entrepreneurship and Youth-Driven Innovation for Viksit Bharat 2047

Hyderabad: The IIC Regional Meet 2025 commenced with an insightful report by Dr. Ramasundhari, IIC In-Charge, GRIET, highlighting the institution’s innovation-driven culture aligned with the frameworks of AICTE, Ministry of Education (MoE), and the Government of Telangana. She emphasized that GRIET, which earned a 5-Star rating for its IIC in the very first year, is functioning as an active ecosystem enabler through sustained initiatives under IIC, AAC, EDC, AICTE IDEA Lab and various other innovation cells.

She further shared that GRIET encourages student ideation through platforms like TEDx, E-Talks and G-Talks, enabling interaction with entrepreneurs and industry experts. The GRIET Idea Lab is serving as a product-creation hub with facilities for 3D printing, chip design, GISMO Board design and more. As part of its social responsibility, the institution also participates in large numbers in 4K/5K ecosystem awareness walks.

Presiding over the event, the Director of GRIET expressed pride in GRIET being selected as one of only eight centres across India to host this prestigious meet, thanking AICTE and MoE for their trust. Noting that India currently ranks 38th in the Global Innovation Index, he urged the community to contribute towards making India a $30 trillion GDP economy with a GII rank below 25 by 2047.

He also highlighted GRIET’s commitment to R&D, mentioning that 1.5% of the institution’s annual budget is dedicated to R&D activities, along with mandatory AICTE-prescribed courses.

Mr. Beema Lingeshwar Reddy, Guest of Honour, elaborated on how MoE has strengthened the innovation ecosystem over the past 7–8 years. He noted that the Yukthi Idea Repository now holds 2.5 lakh innovative ideas, and that 88 IDEA Labs in Telangana offer cutting-edge facilities that students must leverage.

Prof. Sri Ram Venkatesh, Secretary, TSCHE, emphasized that strengthening the manufacturing sector is crucial for India’s transition from a developing to a developed nation.

Aditya Ravishankar, AVP, T-Works, highlighted that advanced prototyping technologies today make “idea to reality” more achievable than ever. Citing examples like Thomas Edison and The Beatles, he encouraged students to remain persistent despite failures.

In his video and online address, Prof. Sitaram, Chairman, AICTE, stressed the need for higher R&D budgets, recommending 5% of institutional turnover be invested into R&D. He pointed out that while there are 16,400 IICs, only 2.5 lakh ideas are available in Yukthi, indicating immense opportunity for contributions. He noted that 79,000 staff and 1.6 lakh students have already benefited from IIC activities in the past seven years and announced that R&D Cells will soon be mandatory for institutional permissions.

Prof. V. Balakista Reddy, Chairman, TSCHE, the Chief Guest, highlighted that innovation is timeless but the transformation lies in how it improves lives today. Calling the current era a Knowledge Revolution, he asserted, “He who possesses intellectuality will lead the world.” With India at the forefront of the Asian growth century and home to the world’s largest youth population, he stressed the importance of Academic Social Responsibility (ASR) in higher education.

At the valedictory ceremony, Mr. Pankaj Diwan, Founder – Idea Labs & Future Tech Ventures, addressed the gathering as Chief Guest. He reflected on how attitudes toward innovation have shifted—from mere syllabus completion to embracing entrepreneurship and startup culture. He emphasized that every student may not create a startup, but every student has entrepreneurial potential, and it is the responsibility of faculty to nurture it. He encouraged building communities of innovation to make it a culture rather than a moment.

During the prize distribution, Best Poster Awards were presented to students from Vardhaman Engineering College, GRIET, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavans, CMRIT

Best Innovation Ambassador Awards were given to faculty from BEIT, GPTCET, St. Joseph’s, MJCET, GCET, VCE, Mahaveer, MRITS, SVIT, MLRIT, AVNET, GNIT, VBIT, GNITC, VCE.

Participation certificates for best stalls were awarded to Bandhaar Kalankaari House, Sri Ethinics, Waste Works, House of Swasha, and Eco-Friendly Products Stall.

The event concluded with a Vote of Thanks by Dr. S. Govindh Rao, Convenor.