Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Gandhinagar had organized a national conclave on “Women in Science & Technology: Fostering Innovation” for women researchers, scientists, and engineers on September 29 and 30, 2022 in coordination with the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), the Government of India and the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN).
Professor Verma said that “I am glad and thankful to all the illustrious speakers and participants to gather and discuss the future of women in STEM and how government programme can be sharpened further to gain the most out of it. We are glad to partner with IITGN in creating the right footprint to bring together the Indian women researchers’ community. The interactions and deliberations of this event would provide them exposure to the real-life icons who have broken the glass ceiling with their determination. Their shared experiences would motivate the younger female researchers to utilize all the opportunities with their hard work. With four verticals under the SERB’s POWER scheme, including the two newly launched grants, our women researchers would have the right kind of funding to come up with their original ideas and take them forward to the level that they can be benchmarked globally.
The event focuses on encouraging women working in science, technology, and engineering fields to translate their innovative ideas into technology, fostering the spirit of entrepreneurship in the participants, and facilitating discussions about translational research and its challenges. More than 150 women scientists, researchers, engineers, students, and postdoctoral fellows from industry and academia across the country are going to participate in the conclave. All these participants are recipients of SERB grants and fellowships and are working on diverse research projects.
The two-day conclave had several exciting technical sessions, including Women in Leadership, Women in Industry and Technology Innovation, Challenges for Women in Industrial/Translational Research, Start-up Opportunities for Women Researchers, and Networking Session with Researchers, among others. A number of leading experts and researchers from industry and academia will enlighten the participants with their experiences and insights on various aspects of the discussion topics. IITGN has arranged a daycare facility for taking care of toddlers of participating women scientists and researchers so that they can attend the sessions without worrying about their children.
