BioVoice News July 2017 Issue 2 Volume 2 | Page 15

are not big enough. Thankfully, several incubators having an agri focus have come up and we can expect them to nurture start- ups in the agricultural sector. Please tell our readers about the key milestones achieved by the FITT since its inception? What are the latest activities at the FITT? FITT has been the foremost and a comprehensive technology transfer organization from academia in India since 1992. Besides conventional activities towards technology development and transfer, capacity building, consultancy and IP management, FITT has adopted new partnership models to strengthen engagement with industry as also support programs to boost the techno- entrepreneurship platforms (Incubators, There is no denying the usefulness of multi- disciplinary research which ought to be encouraged. Both the academia and publicly funded research organizations should take the lead in this direction Research Parks) in the country. It’s Professional Candidate Registration and Pfizer-IIT Delhi Innovation programs are a few examples of novel outreach and support activities. What has been outcome of the Pfizer-IIT Innovation & IP Programme so far? How many startups have benefitted from it? This is an interesting industry-academia partnership model designed to enable healthcare innovations in India. This pioneering program supports both innovation and start- up ideas and IP filing. In the first year, four start-ups have been given unencumbered grant support of up to Rs 50 lakh each for incubating at IIT Delhi. Also, seven inventions have been supported – for Rs 3 lakh each. This unique program sets the template for more such partnerships in the country. BIOVOICENEWS.COM 15