Goa Innovation Council gets 320 new business ideas: Official

The Goa State Innovation Council's portal has received 320 new business ideas, including 43 from established startups, an official said.

This indicates the success of the council's virtual innovation register in reaching out to innovators and tapping new ideas, the council's chairman Jose Manuel Noronha told PTI onMonday.

He was speaking after the Goa State Innovation Council released its annual report for 2019-20 and submitted it to the state Assembly.

Noronha said the council convened four meetings in 2019-20 and organised various activities, included a hackathon to identify the challenges faced in solid waste management and disposal.

During the hackathon, students from various engineering colleges in the state came up with 19 ideas for disposal of tube-lights, LED lights and sanitary pads, he said.

The council earlier launched the 'Young Innovator' awards, as part of which students from various schools in the state came up with more than 200 new ideas, including for oil spill removal, aquaculture and digital microscopes, he said.

"In 2019-20, the council organised around 20 boot camps focusing on technology, innovation and entrepreneurship which were attended by 1,561 college students," Noronha said.

The council also conducted a financial literacy workshop for students of Class 8 from rural schools of Goa on a pilot basis. It included topics like money management and entrepreneurship, he added.