India will establish a centre for graphene engineering and innovation to support budding tech startups

 India will establish a centre for graphene engineering and innovation to support budding tech startups

A graphene engineering and innovation facility will soon be established in Kerala by India to promote the commercialization of the cutting-edge material and to support nascent digital businesses.

Electronics and IT Secretary of State Alkesh Kumar Sharma introduced the "Graphene-Aurora programme" on Monday (August 14) at a gathering in Maker Village Kochi, Kerala. He also disclosed that a section 8 company (not to earn profit) called the "India Graphene Technology and Innovation Centre (I-GEIC)" will be set up, with initial operations beginning from the recently opened services of the Government of Kerala at Digital technology Science Park in Trivandrum.

Sharma claims that the I-GEIC would bridge the gap between R&D and commercialization by giving startups and industry a full range of facilities.

According to a statement from the Ministry of Electronics and IT, Sharma stated that it will help the deep/emerging graphene technology and innovation ecosystem that can direct, develop, execute, and enable SMEs and startups to commercialise developed graphene innovations for scale adoption.

A commercialization eco-system for graphene, an emerging technology, was also cited by him as a way for India to dominate the global market for novel materials.