Uttar Pradesh, Dec 11: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha today addressed the young innovators participating in the ‘Smart India Hackathon 2024 – Hardware Edition’ Grand Finale at Galgotias University, Greater Noida.
In his keynote address, the Lieutenant Governor praised the Government of India’s pioneering initiative, which celebrates the spirit of innovation and collaboration, providing a dynamic platform for the brightest minds to develop and showcase creative solutions to real-world problems.
The Lieutenant Governor highlighted the transformation in India’s innovation landscape over the past 10 years under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He stated that India has emerged as a global leader in new inventions, critical to the future well-being of society and the nation’s economic growth.
Encouraging the youth, he said, “Translate your ideas into socially useful and commercially viable applications, ensuring the benefits of new inventions reach all sections of society.” He emphasized that new innovations are transforming the lives of common people in ways that are difficult to fully imagine today. He urged participants to focus on innovations that benefit society, such as water and energy conservation, waste management, precision agriculture, and e-governance.
The Lieutenant Governor stressed that India needs cutting-edge technologies to remain a leader in technological inventions while also promoting environment-friendly innovations for sustainable development. “To achieve the goal of a Developed Nation by 2047, we need the knowledge, capability, and commitment of innovators, collaborations, support for new ideas, discoveries, and the commercialization of innovations,” he said.
He also encouraged young innovators to explore sectors like agriculture, focusing on soil health, pest infestation, climate change, and real-time data, and emphasized the importance of inclusive development and economic growth as the core objectives behind every innovation.
The Lieutenant Governor further discussed the role of Industry 4.0 in driving India’s economic growth, with innovations like Augmented Reality (AR) in product development, design, maintenance, and quality control. He emphasized that innovations should address social challenges such as food, water, environment, and energy, and promote intelligent and integrated devices for smart factories.
“Innovation should lead us to social change and economic growth. The core components of Industry 4.0 technologies, including the Internet of Things, Big Data, AR, AI, robotics, and simulation, will profoundly impact traditional sectors such as space, atomic energy, and defense technologies,” he noted.
The Lieutenant Governor also underscored the need to strengthen partnerships between academia, industry, and policymakers to address societal challenges and called on mentors and faculty members to focus on the “Problem First” approach and foster the entrepreneurial ecosystem in universities.
He concluded by emphasizing the role of educational institutions in establishing India as a knowledge economy and the importance of implementing the National Education Policy 2020.
On the occasion, the Chancellor of Galgotias University, at the request of the Lieutenant Governor, announced a 50% scholarship for students from Jammu and Kashmir.
The event was attended by Sh Ashok Bajpai, Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha; Sh Suneel Galgotia, Chancellor, Galgotias University; Dr. K. Mallikharjuna Babu, Vice Chancellor; faculty members; students of the university; and young innovators from various regions.
