Best practice

Best practice I:

Title of the practice: Innovation and student-start-up

Objective of the practice:

• To empower students to create, innovate and succeed
The context:
Fostering entrepreneurship among Indian youth is crucial for economic growth, social development, and poverty reduction. NITI Aayog advocates the “Startup India” initiative to nurture and support startups in higher education institutions. NUCSER provides students with a dynamic environment to create, innovate, develop, translate, and succeed. Creativity and innovation are not only incorporated in their curriculum but also a part of their extracurricular activities. We aim to enhance our students’ ability to excel in competitive business aptitudes.

The practice:
Students of NUCSER have constituted an innovation club that meets once a month and brainstorms on local problems and issues that can be solved by applying science and technology. A credit-based “Creativity and Innovation” course is introduced in the final year of the undergraduate year. The innovation council cell meets regularly, conducts hackathons, and discusses mitigating problems using creative/intelligent solutions.

Evidence of success:
On February 3rd, 2024, the first student startup of Nitte University was launched at NUCSER. In a momentous collaboration, NUCSER, in association with DST-TEC and the Institution Innovation Council, proudly launched its first student-led start-up, NatureMark Systems, founded by Mr. Mh. Saif Hasmani and Mr. Shivakiran Alva. NatureMark Systems developed a tool named “ArborTag.” This revolutionary technology aims to assist corporations in collecting and analyzing carbon sequestration data with unparalleled accuracy, minimizing the likelihood of human error. Notably, the device can generate analysis reports directly on the device with just one tap. NatureMark Systems is poised to make a lasting impact, and NUCSER remains committed to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship in the academic realm.

Problems Encountered and Resources Required
Inadequate funding and time: The initial funding provided by the Atal incubation center was meagre for the entrepreneurs to convert the idea into a product. The curriculum does not accommodate time for such activities. Thus, attendance to regular classes is always a challenge for start-up entrepreneurs.

Best practice II:

Title of the practice: Establishment of Centres for Excellence (CoEs)

Objectives of the practice:

• To establish Centre’s of Excellence conducting research in the thrust areas of Climate Action Plan, One Health and Aquamarine Innovation

The context:
CoE on Climate Action Plan: NitteDU believes in the motto “Nurture Nature.” It thrives on creating and fostering an ecosystem that facilitates sustainable growth, ambiance for learning, improved quality of life, and a healthy society. It emphasizes the need to explore green options in all plans. It is working towards creating awareness of biodiversity, energy conservation, and waste management on campus.
CoE on Aquamarine Innovation Plans to develop synergy between the expertise and laboratory infrastructure at Nitte University and other institutions and biotechnology-related industries to develop and commercialize innovative technologies and contribute to capacity development in academia, industry, and young entrepreneurs. This can contribute to the sustainable utilization of vast marine resources along the coast of Karnataka and help the industry move up the value chain.

The CoE on One-Health focuses on strengthening and driving research in cutting-edge environmental, marine biotechnology, and Anti-microbial resistance (AMR) areas. The CoE connects with other institutions in areas such as pharmacology, pharmaceutical chemistry, and hospital setup for pre-clinical and clinical studies of marine molecules and nutraceuticals from marine organisms. The significant domains to be addressed would be enhancing farm productivity in aquaculture using gene editing, health management using rapid diagnostics, vaccines, phage therapy, and other approaches; aquatic biotechnology for bioremediation and environment management; marine bioprospecting for novel molecules, nutraceuticals, utilization of algal bioresource and culture technology for sustainable production of bioactive molecules and marine oils.

The practice:
The University offers the prestigious DBT-funded MSc in Marine Biotechnology, thus providing an avenue for self-employment through this hub. The University has established the DST-funded Technology Enabling Centre, the NITI Ayog-funded Atal Innovation Centre at NU, and the FAO Reference Centre for Antimicrobial Resistance and Aquaculture Biosecurity at NU.

Evidence of success:
NitteDU believes in the motto “Nurture Nature”. It thrives towards creating and fostering an ecosystem that facilitates sustainable growth, ambience for learning, improved quality of life and healthy society. It emphasizes the need to explore green options in all plans. It is working towards creating awareness of biodiversity, energy conservation, and waste management on campus. The Institute has always supported the “Clean City Green City” concept in college by adopting various initiatives related to sustainable development goals. Programs include afforestation and tree adoption, plant a tree on your birthday, biodiversity conservation through outreach programs including vanamahotsava, carbon footprint management. The university curriculum includes environmental science to educate and create student awareness. Nitte (Deemed to be University) ranked 244th in the UI GreenMetric World University Rankings 2023.

Nitte (DU) is collaborating with the Norwegian University of Life Sciences NMBU on developing a One-Health Approach to control antimicrobial resistance in humans, animals & aquatic environments in China, India, and Norway. The primary objective is to establish a one-health consortium comprising environmental, animal (marine and terrestrial species), and human health experts to control antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in China, India, and Norway.

Nitte DU is involved in an ongoing research project with the Norwegian University of Life Science, Oslo, to explore biotechnological approaches to prevent and control fish disease in aquaculture (BIOAQUA). This ongoing project has been financially supported by the Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India, with a budget of Rs. 45 lakhs. The aim is to promote scientific renewal and the development of disciplines, generate new knowledge about issues relevant to both societies in mutually agreed fields, and achieve world-class, bilateral scientific results in the field of bioeconomy.

Problems Encountered and Resources Required
A limited workforce and limited space for establishing laboratories are the major problems in establishing CoE.