IIT Kanpur's Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC) along with the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) hosted its 6th edition of the annual flagship event BIG Conclave on November 27, 2020.
The sixth edition of the event by IIT Kanpur was themed, 'Resilience Redefined' has brought global business leaders, innovators, technical experts, and entrepreneurs on a virtual platform. The event unveiled innovations supported by BIRAC through its Biotechnology Ignition Grant (BIG) programme.
Mr Jayant Singh, Member of the Parliament and former Union Minister, Indian Government was the chief guest of the BIG Conclave 2020, who graced the inaugural ceremony of the event.
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The guest of honour was Padma Vibushan Dr RA Mashelkar, the former director-general CSIR along with Dr Renu Swarup, Secretary Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, and Chairperson, BIRAC welcomed the investors, startups, panellists, and others from the BIRACs innovation ecosystem.
Jayant Singh encouraged the innovation community and suggested, entrepreneurs and other partners that India must follow a development model which is unique and different from what China, Japan have been following. He said that we need to solve the problems of Jhanda Chauk and not Times Square.
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During the fireside session, Padma Bhushan Dr Ajay Chowdary, the cofounder of HCL shared his wisdom to the entrepreneurs saying that doing a rigorous sensitivity analysis on the numbers is extremely essential as you're linked to milestones, which is a key for building a better and trusted partnership with the investors in the long run.
Following this, Padma Dr Saurabh Shrivastava also asked the entrepreneurs to not run away fearing the complex regulations or claims but they should be able to solve these problems with logic and reasons with an open mind.
Padma Bhushan S. Gopala Krishnan, Chairman, Axilor Ventures, and co-founder of Infosys, concluded Day 1 with a special session 'Voice that Inspires'. During the conversation with the Head, Strategic Partnership and Entrepreneurship Development of BIRAC, Dr Manish Diwan, Gopala spoke about the multiple changes in the healthcare field due to the exceptional circumstances of the pandemic covid-19.
He expressed a strong desire to have a collaborative environment between the corporates, academia, and startups to make the acceleration sustainable.
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Day 1 also had some interesting stories of resilience from the Startups namely Nano safe solutions, Ayu Devices, and MicroGo LLP, which are supported by BIRAC. The panellists also discussed Covid-19 challenges and strategies.
Dr Nikhil Agarwal, CEO, SIIC IIT Kanpur, said that there were hundreds of innovators, startups, and students from cities across the country present at the BIG Conclave 2020. Their enthusiasm and energy were excellent and contagious.
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