German tech company SAP SE on Tuesday signed a pact with NITI Aayog’s innovation unit under which the company will adopt 100 Atal Tinkering Labs (ATL) in 2018 for five years to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in schools.

SAP SE will select among secondary schools from Delhi, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, the company said in a statement.

The collaboration will allow SAP SE to further ignite innovation in India’s large student population by providing right guidance, knowledge, and infrastructure, said Bernd Leukert, Executive Board member - Products & Innovation, SAP SE.

NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said India’s growth for the next few decades will depend on the innovation coming out of these tinkering labs under Atal Innovation Mission (AIM).

Mission’s Director Ramanathan Ramanan said so far AIM has selected 2,441 schools across the country to establish ATLs, out of which 1,100 tinkering labs are operating.

By this calendar year, at least 2,000 tinkering labs will be functioning, he said.

NITI Aayog in a separate statement said the 2,441 schools cover 93 per cent of the total districts and 98 per cent of the upcoming smart cities representing all states and 5 UTs.

“In the last one year, more than 50,000 school students have been engaged in ATLs,” the statement said.

It further said the mission aims to expand ATL to every district and establish over 30,000 ATLs over next three years.

Till date, 213 schools in Kerala have been selected for ATL, followed by 193 schools in Maharashtra and 186 schools in Uttar Pradesh.

ATLs are play workspaces with state-of-the-art technologies like 3D printers, robotics, sensor technology kits, Internet of things (IoT), miniaturised electronics to stimulate innovation among students of class 6-12th.

SAP SE has a strong presence in the Indian market. India is the second largest R&D facility for SAP with about 8,000 employees, according to the company statement.

comment COMMENT NOW