Mohali, March 12
The Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Mohali successfully organised a high-level Industry-Academia Meet on March 11, 2026, at its own campus. Policymakers and researchers from IISER Mohali, Industry leaders from Punjab and neighbouring regions, engaged in extensive deliberations to determine how IISER Mohali can participate with industry to address the gap between industrial challenges and academic innovation.
The event was chaired by Prof. Anil K. Tripathi, Director of IISER Mohali, who underscored the critical importance of translational research in addressing immediate societal and industrial needs. “The time has come for academia to step beyond the laboratory and engage directly with the challenges that industry faces every day,” Prof. Tripathi remarked, urging faculty to leverage their cutting-edge research capabilities in the service of the broader economy and community. He further stressed that the industry should be willing to engage with academia to enable long-term, fruitful associations.
Industry leaders engaged in candid dialogue, articulating the pressing challenges their sectors face — from sustainable waste management and technology scale-up to the integration of artificial intelligence for reduced human intervention in industrial processes. Participants also highlighted structural and policy-level hurdles that have historically impeded productive industry-academia collaboration, while identifying concrete avenues for forging new and meaningful partnerships.
Faculty members of IISER Mohali presented a compelling showcase of state-of-the-art translational research across multiple high-impact sectors. Select innovations on display included Antiviral Therapeutics, Bioenergy and Waste Management, Soil Enhancement for the Punjab Region, Microbots for Cancer Treatment, Blue Lasers for futuristic applications, Carbon dot nanomaterials for environmental and pharmaceutical applications, and Biomedical Devices for Deep Tissue Diagnostics.
The Industry-Academia meeting served as a unique and timely platform for open exchange, enabling industry leaders to present real-world problems directly to researchers capable of delivering scientifically grounded solutions. The breadth of topics — spanning sustainable clean tech and bio-engineering, advanced manufacturing, healthcare innovation, and artificial intelligence — underscored the wide-ranging applicability of IISER Mohali’s research portfolio.
The event concluded on a highly promising note, with industry leaders expressing significant interest in pursuing active collaborations with IISER Mohali faculty. Several of the institute’s technologies and expertise have immediate potential to elevate industrial efficiency and business economics.
This initiative reflects IISER Mohali’s unwavering commitment to ensuring that world-class scientific research translates into tangible societal benefit. By fostering direct dialogue between researchers and industry, the institution reaffirms its role not only as a centre of academic excellence but also as an engine of innovation for India’s growing economy. IISER Mohali affirmed that this event marks the beginning of industry engagement, with many more to come.
