The first International Science & Technology Clusters Conference, hosted by the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (OPSA) to the Government of India (GoI) on December 4-5, 2025 at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi, resulted within the signing of 12 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and the launch of a brand new academic platform.
The agreements cowl a variety of vital domains, together with clear vitality, healthcare, and superior applied sciences, reflecting a shared dedication to translating analysis into sensible purposes.
Eight Science & Technology (S&T) Clusters entered into 12 MoUs with varied nationwide and worldwide companions from Australia, France, Germany, Israel, Norway, Denmark, and Switzerland. These collaborations are designed to drive innovation and supply in clear and renewable vitality, environmental sustainability and round financial system options, superior applied sciences and Industry 4.0, agriculture and bio-innovation and healthcare and life sciences.
This occasion signalled a shift the place India’s S&T Clusters will evolve into nationwide know-how accelerators, translating analysis into deployed options for vital sectors like water, agriculture, and local weather resilience.
The theme of the Conference was “Making Lives Easier Through S&T”. The convention was inaugurated by the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India, Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood. He was joined by Scientific Secretary, Dr. Parvinder Maini; United Kingdom (UK) Chief Scientific Adviser, Prof. Sir John Edmunds; and Dr. Vishal Choudhary, Scientist ‘F’, OPSA.
Welcoming the delegate, Maini defined the significance of the Quadruple Helix mannequin that guides the functioning of the cluster. She emphasised the need of scaling cluster-led improvements by way of broader engagement throughout ministries, state departments, and worldwide partnerships.
Sood, in his keynote tackle, highlighted that the convention demonstrated the S&T Clusters are actually efficient “instruments of delivery,” having efficiently moved past the conceptual stage. He emphasised the convention as a global platform to alternate concepts, showcase scalable options, and strengthen worldwide partnerships.
Talking concerning the long-standing ties of scientific collaboration between the 2 nations, Prof. Edmunds, highlighted India’s strengths in vaccine manufacturing, biotech, software program and extra, making it a useful accomplice.
Choudhary set the context for the convention by presenting an summary of key achievements from every Cluster. He confirmed the worldwide scope of the agreements signed through the two-day discussions. “As an end result of the 2 days discussions within the convention, the S&T Clusters have signed 12 MoUs with International companions from Australia, France, Germany, Israel, Norway, Denmark, and Switzerland.”
In addition to the MoUs, the convention noticed the revealing of CHEM AMAZE, a gamified studying platform. The deliberations established a forward-looking roadmap for India’s S&T clusters, outlining priorities for his or her subsequent part of evolution into nationwide sources.
The 42-stall exhibition on the occasion showcased scalable, technology-led options developed by the S&T Clusters throughout six thematic areas – Smart Agriculture, Healthcare, Environmental Sustainability, Industry Automation & Startups, Plastic & E–Waste Management, and Technologies Empowering Livelihoods. The exhibition additionally featured improvements from worldwide stakeholders and RuTAG, highlighting India’s rising innovation ecosystem.
The convention concluded with a forward-looking roadmap for India’s S&T Clusters, outlining priorities for the following part, the place Clusters will evolve into nationwide know-how accelerators enabling deployment of options in vital areas comparable to water, agriculture, local weather resilience, and sustainability.
The S&T Clusters initiative is a flagship programme of the OPSA, conceptualised on the advice of the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC). At current, eight Clusters function throughout the nation in Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jodhpur, the Northern Region (J&Okay, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh), Pune, and (*12*).