Government Launches Aatmanirbhar Bharat Arise Challenge

Ashish M. Shaji

17 Sep, 2020

The Atal Innovation Mission, a flagship initiative of the Indian Government’s policy think tank, launched the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Arise- Atal new India challenges.

What is Aatmanirbhar Bharat Arise- Atal New India Challenge?

The AB Arise- Atal New India Challenge Program launched by the Central government is a national initiative to promote research and innovation and increase the competitiveness of the Indian start-ups and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises. 

What is the objective of this initiative launched by the government?

 The objective is to proactively collaborate with ministries and the associated industries to promote research, innovation, and facilitate innovative solutions to sectoral problems.

The objective is also to give a steady stream of innovative products and solutions where the central government ministries/departments will become potential first buyers of the new products and technology.

What is Atal Innovation Mission (AIM)?

Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) is the Indian government’s flagship initiative to promote a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship in the country. Its objective is to create new programs and policies for fostering innovation in different sectors of the economy, provide platform and opportunities for different stakeholders, create awareness and create an umbrella structure to see the innovation ecosystem of the nation. 

Who is responsible for the administration of this initiative launched by the Central Government? 

It may be noted that the initiative will be carried under the Atal Innovation Mission ^[1](AIM), and the program will be driven by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and four ministries.

These four ministries are as follows:

• Ministry of Defence;
• Ministry of Food Processing Industries;
• Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; and
• Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

What are the main features of Aatmanirbhar Bharat Arise- Atal New India Challenges?

The main features of this initiative are as follows:

• The initiative will help in promoting techno-prenuers who deserve to be supported due to their immense potential of taking India forward.
• A total of 15 sector-specific challenges would be chosen where three challenges are kept for every ministry.
• The ANIC programme will support deserving applied research-based innovations by catering funding support of up to 50 lakhs rupees for 9 to 12 months for start-ups to come up with a minimum usable prototype.
• The innovators will also be attracted by the method of Mahatma Gandhi challenge. This was launched on the 150^th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. It gives a platform for every child in India to conceptualize innovative solutions for a sustainable India of their dreams with principles of Gandhi.
• The programme is in line with the mandate of Make in India, start-up India, and Atmanirbhar Bharat.

A look at the expert speech at the launch of Aatmanirbhar Bharat Arise- Atal New India Challenges Programme

At the launch of this initiative, the CEO of the NITI aayog Amitabh Kant said that this support for the MSMEs and start-ups in product development would make India innovative, resilient, tech-driven, and R&D oriented. He further stated that the program gives a great opportunity for the government to become the first buyer of indigenous Made in India technology solutions. He further expressed hope that the Atal Innovation Mission through this initiative would help in breaking new ground, and this would be a path-breaking approach for driving India in the innovation field. 

The Vice-chairman of Niti Aayog, Rajiv Kumar hailed the day as a red letter day for the country as the Atal Innovation Missions’ ANIC programme brings together some of the brightest scientific Indian minds together to work for the prosperity of India’s MSME sector.

The MSME Minister Nitin Gadkari also spoke at the event and asked Niti Aayog to formulate a digitized system where the decision-making process pertaining to the program may be completed in 15-20 days. 

K. Sivan, the Chairman of ISRO, also sounded highly optimistic and stated that the flagship program would promote innovations and entrepreneurship across the length and breadth of the country.

Conclusion