CM Siddaramaiah introduces 'Innovate Karnataka' initiative for tech revolution

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah has unveiled ‘Innovate Karnataka’ in Bengaluru in order to make the state a global first choice for innovation.

‘Innovate Karnataka’ will act as an umbrella brand for all innovation in the state, whether it’s in emerging technologies such as blockchain, robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), nanotechnology, etc, or in the vibrant startup ecosystem that has become a part of the new, young and exciting identity of Karnataka.

Unveiling the brand narrative for ‘Innovate Karnataka’, the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said, “Development cannot happen without innovation, and no innovation is truly big unless it helps people. With ‘Innovate Karnataka’, we hope to start on the path to Mission 2025: where technology will help in the inclusive development of the state, where better governance can be delivered to the citizens.”

“Our vision is to put people first in all our schemes in programmes, and ‘Innovate Karnataka’ will both fulfill the vision, and be a driving force for it,” he added.

The vision of ‘Innovate Karnataka’ is to see Karnataka as a global first choice of innovation and technology by adopting policies which spur 100% digitization of health, agriculture and other domains and enable inclusive digital growth across geographies and all strata of society.

The brand was launched with an eye on the future, by a government mindful of evolving with the times. Which is why, ‘Innovate Karnataka’ will be spearheaded by the Department of Innovation and Technology.

Not just this, the government launched several Centres of Excellence (CoE) across Karnataka at the program, including the Centre of Excellence for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, in association with NASSCOM; Centre of Excellence for Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics, in association with ABAI; Centre of Excellence for Machine Learning & Robotics at IIITB; Centre of Excellence for Cyber Security.

An Electronics System Design & Manufacturing (ESDM) Cluster was announced for Mysore, and a Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) Incubator in Hubli was launched, clearly putting the focus on not just Bengaluru, but the rest of the state as well. An amount of Rs. 4cr will be spent on each facility.

The minister also announced a roadmap for use of blockchain technology in Karnataka, and said that it will be used extensively in governance and service delivery, in a manner that has maximum social impact.

The event also saw the launch of two portals for the youth of the state to participate in ‘Innovate Karnataka’: The Yuva Yuga portal will act as the one-stop-shop for all the information related to the state’s skill development program, and the e-Margadarshi will help youth who are looking for employment to fulfill their dreams.

Tags: CM Siddaramaiah, Innovate Karnataka, tech revolution, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah, blockchain, robotics, artificial intelligence, AI, nanotechnology, vibrant startup ecosystem, vision of Innovate Karnataka, varindia