The students of Vadodara- based University have again showcased their innovation prowess as a group of 18 budding student innovators bag a cumulative grant of Rs. 11,18,070. Parul University has been endeavouring to develop its teaching and learning processes by nurturing and imparting within its students the much needed competencies in the field of technology. In the recently held inauguration of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav centred on Incentivizing Innovations and Empowering Startups: Towards the Building of Atmanirbhar Bharat organised at the Knowledge Consortium of Gujarat (KCG). The gathering was part of Gujarat Student Start-up and Innovation Hub’s initiative Mind to Market M2M, dedicated towards identifying key startups and supporting them till they reach a market suiting level.
The University through its Entrepreneurship Development Cell has been pushing towards developing a sound start-up and innovation ecosystem within Parul University’s campus and across the State. Throughout the course of academics, the University has been displaying its unwavering commitment toward promoting start-up platforms and creating startup opportunities for its students by nurturing them to be innovative business leaders. The guides and mentors of the University have been amongst the key figures who constantly prepare the students to participate on platforms such as the Mind to Market initiative by Gujarat Student Start-up and Innovation Hub. The start-up of the University has not only been impacting the University’s learning processes, but it has also been shaping the business environment of the State of Gujarat.
The awarded teams received the grants across the two major streams of the M2M initiative which include the M2M Herbal Ayurveda Innovation Challenge and M2M Toy Innovation Challenge. A total of 12 teams were awarded the grant under the M2M Herbal Ayurveda Innovation Challenge while 6 teams were selected under the M2M Toy Innovation Challenge. Under the “Herbal Ayurveda Innovation Challenge” the participating students of Parul University managed to showcase the power of innovation in shaping the ancient health care practises of ayurveda as well as in promoting the numerous healthcare needs of the society at large. The other 6 awarded teams in the Toy Innovation Challenge were awarded for their ability to blend creativity and innovation to transform the scope of the toy industry across the industry. 
The event was graced by the presence of honorable guests including Shri Jitubhai Vaghani, Cabinet Minister of Education, Technology, Government of Gujarat, S J Haider, Principal Secretary, Education Department, Government of Gujarat, Shri Kuberbhai Dindor, Minister of State, Education Department, Government of Government, Shri M Nagarajan, IAS, Director Higher Education,Government of Gujarat amongst others who felicitated the winning students. The awarded projects will be proceeding further for incubation under the support of Parul University’s Entrepreneurship Development Centre. “We are proud to see many of our students making such strides in entrepreneurship and innovation. Such achievements reinforce the impact of our teaching and learning processes and we will continue providing such opportunities in the course of their academics”, said the University’s President Dr. Devanshu J Patel.
