Posted: December 6, 2007

Bangalore Nano to shape the future of nanotechnology in India

(Nanowerk News) The first edition of Bangalore Nano organized by Dept. of IT, BT and Science & Technology, Government of Karnataka, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) and MM Activ was inaugurated today by H. E. Shri. Rameshwar Thakur, Governor of Karnataka in the presence of Prof. C. N. R. Rao, Chairman, Science Advisory Council to the Prime Minister & Honorary President, JNCASR and Dr. Patrice Millet, European Commission amidst some of the leading Investors, Industry stalwarts, Scientists, Heads of Research & Development Organizations, Premier Institutions and Multinational Companies. It is the first major event of its kind in India in bridging the Research-Industry Gap in Nanotechnology.
The event witnessed Prof. C N R Rao being conferred the first Bangalore Nano National Award, recognizing his awe-inspiring achievements in the field of Nanotechnology. A Nano calendar prepared by the Reliance Industries was also unveiled during the event.
Inaugurating the event, H. E. Shri. Rameshwar Thakur, Governor of Karnataka, said, "The two-day Bangalore Nano convention would be an ideal forum for researchers and industrialists to interact and explore possibilities of applications on Nanotechnology in different sectors of economy. There is a vast scope for application of Nanotechnology in Electronics, Biopharma, Engineering etc. The conference would be of immense value and content to the participants as it is being structured by the Vision Group on Nanotechnology comprising eminent scientists headed by Prof. C N R Rao."
Addressing the audience Prof. C. N. R. Rao, Chairman, Science Advisory Council to the Prime Minister and Honorary President, JNCASR said, "Bangalore Nano is the 1st public function in Nanotechnology in India. Nanotechnology is creating great excitement in the field of science. The technology cuts across all disciplines and appeals everyone from scientists, engineers, industrialists, investors and governments. We do not know the future of Nanotechnology but this particular unknown future excites us.
"I am extremely happy to know that India have joined the race in Nanotechnology and Bangalore Nano is the first large scale nanotechnology event in India. Bangalore Nano would bring in all stakeholders in the field to discuss and share their ideas and to envision a roadmap for India in Nanotechnology", he added
Mr. M N Vidhyashankar, Secretary Department of IT, BT and Science & Technology, Karnataka Government while addressing the gathering of over 400 delegates included scientists, technocrats and industry leaders said, "The promise of nanotechnology is endless. The Bangalore Nano would take us to the Golden Age the field of Nanotechnology could open. The number of consumer goods using nano materials has been increasing worldwide and it has touched over 600 products so far. Nano Technology has revolutionalised every sphere of human life and our economy. The new found boon science has a rich potential offering commercial value of over one trillion billion USD by 2015."
Dr Patrice Millet, Programme Officer, European Commission participating in the event as a country partner said, "Public funding in Europe has become the largest investor in the world into Nano Science and Nano Technology."
"International co-operation is increasing in this field for the development of Nano technology worldwide. The funding from the European Commission is also going to increase for the research and development in the field of Nano Sciences and Nano Technology," he said
Eminent researchers and industrialists in the field of Nanotechnology across the world would address the delegates during the two-day event. The two highlight events of Bangalore Nano are Research Industry Collaboration Hub [RICH] and the poster session. RICH aims in bridging the gap between research and industry. There would be 18 teams of researchers from leading institutes in India making their presentations in front of industrialists and venture capitalists. After making the presentation the researchers would get to meet them in closed doors to discuss about the possible commercialization of their work. Poster Session would see researchers from institutes across the country presenting their papers. In total there would be 54 research papers from four IITs, BITS Pilani, JNCASR and more.
For more information on Bangalore Nano, visit: www.bangalorenano.in
Source: Bangalore Nano