Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) launches Atal Community Innovation Centre (ACIC) Program

ACIC to boost innovation to address needs of society: Shri Dharmendra Pradhan

In yet another step to foster innovation in India, the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), flagship initiative of NITI Aayog,launchedthe Atal Community Innovation Centre (ACIC) program in NITI Aayog, New Delhi today. The programme aims at spurring community Innovation in underserved and unserved areas of the country.

Union Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Steel, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated the ACIC program. Stressing upon the significance of innovation, he said that through innovation, India can become a USD 5 trillion economy by 2024-25.He emphasized on how ACIC can serve as the bridge between the knowledge base existing in communities and the advanced technical ecosystem prevalent in the market base, addressing the needs of society. 

Minister said that India will become the largest consumer of fossil fuel in the next 15 years, so there is a dire need to reduce India’s crude oil import bill which is pegged at ₹ 6 lakh crore per annum. He asked Atal Community Innovation Centre to come up with innovative methods, which will help India in reducing its fossil fuel import bill.

Recalling Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s statement of focussing on Waste to Wealth, he said, “AIM through ACICprogram should encourage innovation potential for domestic power sector byusing real strength of non-fossil and sustainable sources of energy”.

He further said, “The ACIC program should be connected to every Panchayati Raj Institutions to help innovators at grassroots level become part of the policy framework and leverage their creativity to translate their products/ services into innovation led commercial utilization for society. Extending his support to the initiative, he said that his ministry wouldencourage the larger participation in ACIC programme, including the mobilization of resources from CSR funds of PSUs.

In his opening remark, AIM Mission Director R Ramanan stated that the new initiative aims to encourage the spirit of innovation in the country’s specific areas that lack the required infrastructure and facilitating innovation ecosystem.The purpose of ACIC is to enable establishment of socially inclusive innovation ecosystem as well as to encourage equitable distribution of necessary infrastructure for stimulating innovation across the country, he added.

Addressing on the occasion, VC NITI Aayog Dr Rajiv Kumar stated that the new initiative offers opportunity to talented youth and researchers in Tier 2, Tier 3 cities, Smart cities, Aspirational Districts, North East, J&K, Rural and Tribal regions of India, unserved and underserved regions of Tier 1 / Metro cities.

CEO NITI Aayog Shri Amitabh Kant said that the ACIC programme would focus in over 484 districtslocated in unserved/underserved regions of India.

ACIC Program Director Dr. Unnat Pandit also expressed that the program would play a major role towards establishing India as Innovation and Technology led Start-up nation and improve the ranking of India in Global Innovation Index.

Community innovation program links grassroots innovators to technical ecosystems, targeting underserved regions and mobilizing local institutions. The Atal Community Innovation Centre program creates localized innovation hubs to connect community knowledge with technical and market ecosystems, promoting translation of grassroots ideas into commercial products across underserved regions, and linking ACICs with Panchayati Raj institutions while mobilizing CSR and public resources to build inclusive district level innovation infrastructure.