IIT Kanpur hosts the 3rd National Workshop of Technology Innovation in Cyber-Physical Systems (TIPS) organized by the DST, GoI.

Kanpur : C3iHub, a cybersecurity Technology Innovation Hub (TIH) of The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK) hosted the 3rd National Workshop on Technology Innovation in Cyber-Physical Systems (TIPS). The workshop was organized by the Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India, under the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS). NM-ICPS is a comprehensive Mission that brings together academia, industry, government, and international organizations and has created an ecosystem that fosters entrepreneurship, develops next-generation skilled manpower, catalyzes translational research, and promotes the commercialization of CPS technologies. The workshop has been organized to facilitate direct interaction between the NM-ICPS Mission Office, its expert Committee members, and TIH fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange.
Dr. V K Saraswat Member (S&T) NITI Aayog, Government of India inaugurated the workshop in the presence of Dr. Akhilesh Gupta, Sr. Advisor DST and Secretary- SERB, Dr. Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chairman, Axilor Ventures, Bengaluru, Prof. S Ganesh Officiating Director, IIT Kanpur and Dr. Ekta Kapoor, Mission Director, NM-ICPS DST.
The dignitaries also inaugurated an expo where 25 TIHs showcased their cutting-edge technologies and research advancements.
Dr. V K Saraswat, emphasized the need for cyber physical systems beyond Industry 4.0 and society 5.0. “If the two are combined, cyber-physical systems can translate into new areas like cyber social systems, cyber biological systems and cyber enterprises systems. The common element in all such systems is sensors, communication and algorithms and the hubs need to pay attention on these,” he added.
Dr. Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chairman, Mission Governing Body (MGB), NM-ICPS pointed out that research should create technology that can impact in society and can also be commercialized. He said that sustainability of hub activity should be ensured through multiple revenue streams keeping in mind the roadmap of what is to be achieved.
Dr. Akhilesh Gupta, Senior Adviser, DST and Secretary Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) elaborated that the NM-ICPS has led to the creation of more than 550 technologies, generation of more than 12,000 jobs, more than 100 collaborations have been initiated, and led to more than 1400 publications and 50,000 trained manpower. He emphasized that the time has come for consolidation and rationalization, and the workshop, with 5 thematic areas such as infrastructure, agriculture, health, defence and environment, was a step in this regard.
Dr. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, DST said, “The mission hubs have been established in the best technical institutions of the country at 25 places, and they have been working on all important aspects of cyber-physical systems like agriculture, energy, water, transport and so on. After a period of 4 years, it can be seen that the mission has led to a significant outcome in terms of not only the technologies and the products that have been developed, but also scientific publications in high-impact journals.”
Dr. Ekta Kapoor, Mission Director, NM-ICPS and Head, FFT Division, DST said that the mission has been successful in achieving its aims of making India a leading player in CPS technologies, achieve translation of CPS technologies for societal and commercial use, and nurture startups and increase opportunities in the job market and also produce next generation technocrats in CPS technologies.
Prof. Manindra Agrawal, Project Director C3iHub, IIT Kanpur said, “The C3iHub which is one of the 25 TIHs is the first of its kind Cyber Security Center in India, that is in the process of building solutions to safeguard critical infrastructures such as water and sewage systems, power grid, nuclear plants, and rockets and missile control.”
Prof. S Ganesh, Officiating Director, IIT Kanpur said,
“The C3iHub has delivered many major cutting-edge technologies, starting from blockchain-based digital degrees to security operations center facilities at National Highway Authority, Ports and for cybercrime inspection tool to help police. In addition, C3iHub has been employing a two-pronged approach through training students to create a dedicated cadre of cyber security professionals and provide hands-on training to executives of utilities so that they can be aware of cyber security threats, and how to prevent such attacks.”
The National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS) was launched to be implemented by Department of Science &Technology (DST) at a total outlay of Rs. 3660 crore for a period of five years in December 2018. The Mission addresses the ever increasing technological requirements of the society, and takes into account the international trends and road maps of leading countries for the next generation technologies.
As part of the Mission implementation, 25 Technology Innovation Hubs (TIHs) have been established in advanced technologies in reputed institutes across the country. These TIHs focus on technology development and translation, human resource and skill development, entrepreneurship and start-ups development, and international collaborative research. For effective implementation of the Mission and to carry out the mandated activities by the TIHs, a series of workshops are being conducted for direct interaction between the Mission Office and its Expert Committee members and the TIHs.
Each hub is a Section-8 Company, an independent entity within the host institute, and has been assigned a technology vertical in the areas of advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning; technologies for the Internet of Things & Internet of Everything; Data Banks & Data Services, Data Analysis; Robotics & Autonomous Systems; Cyber Security and Cyber Security for Physical Infrastructure; Quantum technologies, etc. The NM-ICPS Mission aims to develop technology platforms to carry out R&D, translational research, product development, incubating & supporting start-ups, and commercialization.