• SIIC IIT Kanpur, in association with iDEX-DIO, organized an awareness session on 'Funding opportunities for startups in the defence sector'.

• The session was addressed by Mr. Dayanand, Deputy Program Director, iDEX DIO, DoPP, MoD and Group Captain Pallav Haldekar, Indian Air Force who joined the event virtually.

• The event was conducted in a hybrid mode at IIT Kanpur's campus, with participation from 50 people in person and 55 people in online mode.

Kanpur, May 9, 2022: The Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre, IIT Kanpur (SIIC IIT Kanpur) has recently signed an MoU with the Defence Innovation Organisation to nurture and support startups and SMEs in the defence sector through its flagship program iDEX Prime. To facilitate this partnership with SIIC IIT Kanpur, the team at iDEX organized an awareness session on May 6 on the pool of funding opportunities available to the innovators who are developing innovative solutions for serving the requirements of the defence services. Mr. Dayanand, Deputy Program Director, iDEX DIO, DoPP, MoD addressed the event, and Group Captain Pallav Haldekar, Indian Air Force joined the event virtually. The session received participation from notable dignitaries, Mr Vipin Sharma from Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), Mr. SK Siddhartha, and his team from Gliders India Limited (GIL), Kanpur.

Mr Dayanand shared his aspirations to leverage significant innovation-driven changes in the Indian Defence Services through the iDEX Prime program. He said, "iDEX was launched in 2018 with an agenda to cater to day-to-day requirements of the Border Services through technology solutions. The program will foster product development for the Indian Military Services and expose innovators to the Defence infrastructure to achieve promising outcomes."

iDEX Prime has launched a total of 6 problem statements along with 38 challenges under DISC 6 that have been gathered from the Armed forces, Coast guards, DPSUs, and Ministry of Home affairs. Some of these challenges are listed below:

• Scalable Wireless Communication Network for Autonomous Mobile Platforms.

• Design of Active Hydro Pneumatic Suspensions with variable dampening characteristics to meet Different Road profiles.

• Development of A.I. enabled welder's helmet for real-time display of welding parameters like Voltage, Current, traverse speed, electrode stick out etc., for immediate corrective control by welder during MIG & TIG welding processes.

• A.I. Based Condition Monitoring System for Yard Assets.

Dr. Nikhil Agrawal, CEO-SIIC IIT Kanpur, expressed his excitement about this new partnership with DIO, and said, "I'm pleased and excited about this partnership with Defence Innovation Organisation under the iDEX Program. India has consistently been a generous importer of defence equipment. iDEX will allow us to reverse this trend from importing to innovating technology within our own country and serving our Military forces. I am glad about the participation we've received for this event and look forward to our innovators giving us their deep-tech solutions."

Group Captain Pallav Haldekar, who joined the event virtually, said, "The iDEX Program offers the Indian Armed Forces an opportunity to connect with Indian startups directly. The idea of Atmanirbhar Bharat drives the spirit behind the program, and I'm excited to witness the potential of startups that have now started venturing into defence and aerospace manufacturing. My heartiest congratulations to the team for a successful event with the partner incubator at IIT Kanpur."