Jitendra Singh Inaugurates SIM in Agartala
- By Thetripurapost Desk, Agartala
- Feb 26, 2026
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Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology and other key portfolios, Jitendra Singh, on Wednesday inaugurated India’s first State Innovation Mission (SIM) in Agartala, heralding a transformative chapter in the decentralisation of innovation and technology-led development.
Addressing the gathering, Singh asserted that innovation must transcend laboratories and metropolitan enclaves to permeate districts, villages and grassroots communities. The aspirations of ordinary citizens, he said, must define the contours of a “New India.” Characterising the North-East as the nation’s “new engine of growth,” he described Tripura’s initiative as a decisive stride toward the democratisation of opportunity and the diffusion of technological empowerment.
The ceremony was attended by Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha, NITI Aayog Chairman Suman Bery, NITI Aayog Member V. K. Saraswat, along with senior officials, startup founders, innovators, students and industry leaders.
Singh described the launch of SIM as a natural progression of the Atal Innovation Mission, envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Recalling that the concept of an institutionalised innovation mission was once unfamiliar within government systems, he observed that the initiative has since evolved into a nationwide movement. Nearly 10,000 Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs) have been established across the country, with plans to expand the number to 50,000, thereby embedding a culture of innovation among school students in districts and smaller towns.
He noted that the Union Cabinet’s decision to promote State Innovation Missions across states and Union Territories reflects a spirit of cooperative and competitive federalism. Tripura, under the stewardship of Chief Minister Manik Saha, has emerged as a frontrunner in this endeavour, exemplifying the “dual-engine” model in which national vision and state-level execution operate in seamless synergy.
Reflecting on the Prime Minister’s sustained emphasis on the North-East since 2014, Singh highlighted the region’s remarkable transformation over the past decade. From a landscape once marked by separatist challenges, it has evolved into an active participant in India’s development narrative, bolstered by enhanced rail and air connectivity, expanding tourism and deeper national integration.
Underscoring Tripura’s entrepreneurial momentum, Singh revealed that the state now hosts more than 150 registered startups, registering an average growth rate of approximately 66 percent in recognition over the past five years. A substantial proportion of these ventures are women-led, positioning Tripura as a vanguard of inclusive innovation in the North-East. The State Innovation Mission, he asserted, will further catalyse the commercialisation of ideas and fortify the startup ecosystem.
He also highlighted Tripura’s robust MSME landscape, with over 3.13 lakh enterprises registered on the Udyam portal by early 2026. These include more than 1.18 lakh formal Udyam registrations and nearly two lakh micro-enterprises under the Udyam Assist platform. The SIM, he said, will invigorate this sector, stimulating employment generation and broad-based economic expansion.
At the national level, Singh observed that India’s startup ecosystem has expanded exponentially—from a few hundred ventures in 2014 to more than two lakh today—generating upwards of 2.1 lakh jobs, nearly half of which originate from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. Women-led enterprises constitute a significant share of this growth, reflecting the widening ambit of entrepreneurial aspiration across the country.
Drawing attention to Tripura’s unique strengths in bamboo and rubber, he suggested that these resources could underpin high-value manufacturing, including defence applications, aerospace biofuels and advanced materials. Leveraging local competencies to serve national priorities, he said, will define the next trajectory of growth.
Singh further referenced recent policy interventions aimed at nurturing technology-intensive and research-driven enterprises, including a ₹10,000 crore fund for deep-tech startups and a ₹1 lakh crore Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) fund to enable scalable growth. These measures, he said, underscore the government’s commitment to fostering calculated risk-taking, innovation and dynamic public-private partnerships.
Citing the recently convened AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, he emphasised that the future of governance and entrepreneurship will be shaped by technology aligned with human welfare. He expressed confidence that SIM Tripura will integrate artificial intelligence and digital tools into state programmes, in harmony with national initiatives such as Digital India and Ease of Living reforms.
Terming innovation a collective national responsibility, Singh articulated a vision of an ecosystem in which a student from a remote village, a startup founder from a small town and a researcher from a state university are equally empowered to contribute to India’s developmental journey. He called for sustained collaboration among the Centre and states, the public and private sectors, and science and society—so that India’s decade of innovation may well evolve into its defining century.