By Our Correspondent
NEW DELHI: Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan today chaired the ‘Industry Leaders Roundtable’ under Bharat Innovates 2026. On the occasion, he held extensive discussions with global industry leaders and eminent institutional partners on strengthening India’s deep-tech and research-based innovation.
Shri Pradhan said that India’s innovation ecosystem today is driven by the talent pool of prestigious institutions like IITs, IISc, as well as Tier-II and Tier-III cities of the country. These talents are creating world-class solutions in the areas of AI, semiconductors, climate-tech, mobility, health-tech and advanced manufacturing.
Quoting French President Emmanuel Macron, Shri Pradhan said that the question now is not whether India innovates, but “who innovates with India”. France has emerged as a key partner of India in this regard. Shri Pradhan described the India-EU Free Trade Agreement, signed in early 2026, as the “mother of all agreements”. He described it as a transformative economic partnership, connecting a quarter of the world’s GDP and nearly 2 billion people. He said that the special session to be held in Nice, France in the coming days will provide a major international platform for networking between Indian startups, global investors and research institutions.
Under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, India has today established itself as a trusted technology partner to the world. Shri Pradhan said that while moving towards a ‘Developed India’, India believes in co-creating solutions for the entire world.
