The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has nominated Prof. Amitabha Bandyopadhyay, Professor In-charge, Innovation and Incubation, IIT Kanpur, to the National Startup Advisory Council. The news comes at an opportune moment as Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC), under Professor Bandyopadhyay's leadership, gears up to usher socially relevant innovation and transform India's entrepreneurial ecosystem.

The National Startup Advisory Council has been set up to advise the Government on nurturing entrepreneurship across the country and boost employment opportunities by giving a well-deserved push to the sector. Prof. Bandyopadhyay is one among the 28 non-official members nominated to Council. They have been nominated to account for the multidisciplinary representation of the ecosystem's stakeholders, including startup founders, persons responsible for investments and industry associations, and incubators. The nominated members will promote multi-sectoral innovation across industry and academia to bring purpose-driven ideation under the purview of the public and private stakeholders. The Council, through the collective insight of all the members, will target challenges from promoting ease of accessing capital to navigating regulatory compliances for startups and entrepreneurs.

Honored at his nomination to the esteemed Council, Prof. Bandyopadhyay shared, "I am humbled to be a part of this august body. I shall devote my sincere efforts to realizing the Council's objectives while upholding the value, culture, and pioneering spirit of technology-driven innovation at the helm of solving civic challenges. I passionately look forward to working with the entire team on fostering in a new era of promoting innovation and transformation in entrepreneurship."

Prof. Bandyopadhyay, a member of the Biological Sciences and Bioengineering faculty of IIT Kanpur is the current occupant of KENT Entrepreneurship and Innovation Chair. Under his expertise and support, SIIC has reached new heights and continues to be one of the most sought-after deep tech incubators nationally. His keen insight for harnessing the capacity of pathbreaking technological solutions to address developmental challenges has given wings to the technology incubator at IIT Kanpur. He spearheaded the task force that delivered world-class ventilators in 90 days when the country's health systems were grappling with COVID-19. He was also instrumental in facilitating the production of N-95 grade SWASA mask from the premises of SIIC.

About Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC), IIT Kanpur

Startups and social enterprises are widely regarded as the key to addressing developmental challenges, especially in emerging economies such as India. With pathbreaking innovation brewing at incubatee startups, SIIC IIT Kanpur aims to create impact at the bottom of the pyramid. Established in the year 2000, Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC), IIT Kanpur, is one of the oldest technology business incubators with many successes under its belt. The multifaceted, vibrant incubation ecosystem nurtured over two decades aims to fill all the gaps on the road to convert an idea into a business. SIIC has developed the experience base and ecosystem that become critical ingredients in developing early-stage, technology-focused startups disrupting paradigms across the domains such as agriculture, healthcare, aerospace, energy, water, and education.