Amritsar-With the focus to nurture innovation, creativity, design thinking, an entrepreneurship (IDE) Boot Camp Conference for School Principals and Teachers was inaugurated today at Khalsa College of Engineering & Technology (KCET). The three-day long camp is being organized under the aegis of department of School Education and Literacy, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell (MIC), in collaboration with Wadhwani Foundation.
The inaugural ceremony commenced on a spiritual note with Shabad Gayan, invoking divine blessings for the successful conduct of the program. This was followed by a floral welcome of the dignitaries including Rajinder Mohan Singh Chhina, honorary secretary, Khalsa College Charitable Society), Yogesh Wadhawan and Vikas Verma, AICTE–MIC Experts, Raman Kumar, State Resource Person (Academics & Humanities), SCERT), Vaani Gandha and Gauri Madaan from the Wadhwani Foundation.
RMS Chhina in his address underscored the crucial role of educators in shaping young innovators and encouraged teachers to foster curiosity, creativity, and innovation among students. He lauded AICTE–MIC for its visionary initiatives aimed at strengthening innovation ecosystems across the country.
Vaani and Gauri, who would mentor participants through interactive sessions, group activities, and hands-on workshops during the bootcamp, shared valuable insights on innovation, design thinking, and entrepreneurship in school education. They motivated principals and teachers to actively implement the learnings from the bootcamp in their respective institutions.
Dr. Manju Bala, Director, KCET, emphasized the importance of nurturing innovation, creativity, and design thinking at the school level, highlighting that empowering teachers with entrepreneurial and problem-solving approaches is essential for building a future-ready generation aligned with the vision of Atma Nirbhar Bharat.
More than 190 Principals and Teachers from across Punjab are participating in the program, aid she, adding that participants will engage in immersive workshops, collaborative activities, hands-on IoT sessions, and guided exposure visits to advanced facilities such as the AICTE IDEA Lab, AWaDH Lab (in collaboration with IIT Ropar), the UltraTech Centre of Excellence, and the NCC Simulation Lab, along with a dedicated display of innovative student-developed projects.
The IDE Boot Camp aims to equip school leaders and educators with practical tools to cultivate critical thinking, creativity, empathy, and an entrepreneurial mindset among students, thereby strengthening innovation-driven education at the grassroots level.