August 12, 2020
The SEP 2.0 initiative will allow student innovators to work closely with Dell volunteers
As many as 1,500 innovations were submitted in the last season of the ATL Marathon
Atal Mission aims to create over 1 million neoteric innovators and potential job creators
This initiative will be key to boosting the economy, mainly in post-COVID-19 scenarios
Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog, in collaboration with Dell Technologies on August 11 launched Student Entrepreneurship Programme 2.0 (SEP 2.0) for the young innovators of Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs). Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) is the Government of India’s flagship initiative to promote a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship in the country. AIM’s objective is to develop new programmes and policies for fostering innovation in different sectors of the economy, provide platform and collaboration opportunities for different stakeholders, create awareness, and a platform to oversee the innovation ecosystem of the country. AIM has been set up as part of efforts to build a future-ready economy.
The SEP 2.0 initiative will allow student innovators to work closely with Dell volunteers. The students will receive vital mentor support; prototyping and testing support; end-user feedback; intellectual property registration and patenting of ideas, processes, and products; manufacturing support; as well as the launch support of the product in the market. The SEP 1.0 initiative had begun in January 2019. Through a 10-month-long rigorous programme, the top six teams of ATL Marathon—a contest where students identify community challenges and create grassroots innovations and solutions within their ATLs—got a chance to transform their innovative prototypes into functioning products, now available in the market.
As many as 1,500 innovations were submitted in the last season of the ATL Marathon. After two rigorous rounds, 50 teams were selected for the Student Innovator Programme. More than 75 per cent of the winning teams were from tier-2 cities and/or rural areas, and more than 60 per cent from government schools. Additionally, around 46 per cent of the winning team students were girls. These teams were then mentored by Atal Incubation Centres for months via the Student Innovator Programme 2.0. The top eight teams were then felicitated by President of India Ram Nath Kovind on November 14, 2019. The top 8 will now take their prototypes to product development through the SEP 2.0 stage.
“As we conclude SEP 1.0 and launch SEP 2.0, I am excited to see the impact that these innovations will create in the country,” said NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Dr. Rajiv Kumar. The Atal Innovation Mission aims to create over 1 million neoteric innovators and potential job creators of the country. Dell Technologies India President and Managing Director Alok Ohrie said, “…Our strong partnership with NITI Aayog has further enabled us in expanding our vision of technology for social good and encouraging budding entrepreneurs.” This initiative will be the key to boosting the economy, mainly in post-COVID-19 scenarios.