Mumbai: A technology startup at a college in Nagpur may soon be able to access specialised laboratories of other institutions, seek mentorship from experts at IIT Bombay and pitch its ideas to a wider network of investors. The initiative is part of a national network being developed by IIT-B’s incubation centre, the Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SINE), which was set up more than two decades ago.
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Prof Milind Atrey, deputy director (academics, research and translation) of the institute, said, “India’s deep-tech ambitions require us to strengthen the pathways through which research capabilities across institutions and regions translate into entrepreneurial ventures. The hub-and-spoke initiative seeks to connect institutional strengths with incubation expertise, industry engagement and access to capital. By bringing institutions together, we can create a stronger foundation for innovation, technology commercialisation and entrepreneurship across the country. Download the TOI App.
IIT-B and SINE held a stakeholder meeting at Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (VNIT) Nagpur on Oct 12, bringing together representatives of 10 colleges in the region. ‘SINE’s initiative seeks to take its incubation expertise, institutional practices, networks and ecosystem connections beyond its own campus and make them accessible to institutions and incubators across the country,’ mentioned a statement released by IIT-B. SINE also signed an MoU with VNIT Ventures Vault Foundation, marking the first institutional partnership under the model.
Nagpur has been selected as the first regional ecosystem under the initiative. SINE will serve as the hub, sharing its incubation expertise, mentoring resources and investor connections with partner institutions, which will function as spokes in the network. SINE plans to gradually extend the model to other cities and states, particularly targeting promising technology and deep-tech ventures emerging outside established startup centres. The discussions recognised Nagpur’s considerable strengths, including its academic and research institutions, strategic location, industrial base and infrastructure. They also identified gaps in the regional startup ecosystem, particularly access to early-stage investors, specialised mentoring, technology commercialisation support and collaborative funding networks. Sector-specific opportunities have been identified in deep technology, healthcare and medical technology, agriculture, food processing, manufacturing, mining, veterinary sciences and fisheries. The next phase will involve formalising partnerships, identifying potential pilot startups and establishing regular coordination mechanisms. Monthly interactions between incubators, institutional visits and knowledge-sharing sessions for students and faculty are among the proposed activities.