Dikhyaa Mohanty 
ISRO’s eastern zone Space – Technology Incubation Centre (S-TIC) at the National Institute of Technology – Rourkela (NIT-R) is all set to play significant role in exploring untapped opportunities.
According to the news, ISRO and NIT-R had signed an MoU to support young academia engage in innovation and research in space technology on March 25.
NIT-R registrar Prof PK Das stated that in the first phase, a total of 37 product development project proposals have been submitted to ISRO from the eastern zone. Majority proposals were from NIT-R. The proposals are being scrutinised and if approved, new starts-up are likely to come up.
Former director of NIT-R Prof SK Sarangi stated that the Central government is putting fresh impetus on private participation in non-military space technology and applications.
The S-TIC at Rourkela is the nodal centre in eastern zone comprising Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Meanwhile, NIT-R is also in talks with the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) to set up an incubation centre at the institute to help find out solutions for defence-related problems.
