IIT Madras has once again been adjudged as the Top Innovative Educational Institute in India for the second consecutive year by the Government of India.

The Institute has been Ranked #1 in the Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARIIA) launched last year by the Innovation Cell of Ministry of Education (formerly Ministry of Human Resource Development) in ‘Centrally Funded Technical Institutions’ category. Around 674 Institutions have participated in the ARIIA Rankings this year compared with 496 Institutions last year.

Shri. M. Venkaiah Naidu, Hon’ble Vice President of India, announced the results today (18th August 2020) in a virtual event in the presence of Shri. Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’, Hon’ble Union Minister for Education, Government of India, and other officials.

ARIIA endeavours to systematically rank education institutions and universities primarily on innovation-related indicators. It aims to inspire Indian institutions to reorient their mindset and build ecosystems to encourage high-quality research, innovation, and entrepreneurship. More than quantity, ARIIA focuses on the quality of innovations and measures the real impact created by these innovations nationally and internationally.

IIT Madras excelled in ARIIA owning to its strong entrepreneurial eco-system that encourages students to become job-generators. The IIT Madras Incubation Cell (IITMIC) in the IITM Research Park is India’s leading deep-technology startup hub with Innovation and Impact as key differentiators/drivers.

 While IITMIC handles the startups, there are other innovation platforms for students even before they graduate. They include Nirmaan, a pre-incubator, Center for Innovation (CFI), which provides a platform to the students to ‘walk in with an idea and walk out with a product’, and the Gopalakrishnan Deshpande Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship that grooms wannabe entrepreneurs.

 Thanking the Education Ministry for according this recognition to the Institute, Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Director, IIT Madras, said, “IIT Madras is known for its world-class innovation ecosystem consisting of the Research Park and several other centres, that has already produced world-class companies and disruptive technologies for India. We are proud to be recognized a second time in succession as India’s lop innovative educational institution under ARIIA.”