Alumni donates $1.2 million to BITS Pilani for Centre of Innovation

The amount will be used to fund the creation of a state-of-the-art Centre of Innovation. The 40,000 sqft facility will include innovation labs in technology and hardware and co-working spaces.  

Largest alumni donation  

BITS Pilani has announced that it has received the largest gift in its history — a $1.2 million (INR 10 crore) commitment from Rakesh Kapoor, one of the institute’s alumnus.

The gift will be used to fund the creation of a state-of-the-art Centre of Innovation. Designed by architect Hafeez Contractor, the 40,000 sqft facility will include innovation labs in technology and hardware and co-working spaces.  The innovation centre will also be home to the Pilani Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Society (PIEDS), the business incubator of BITS.  

The Kapoor Centre of Innovation’ 

The Centre of Innovation will be named ‘The Kapoor Centre of Innovation’. The announcement comes on the back of the recently announced “BITS innovation and start-up policy of 2022”, which allows both student and faculty to take up to a year off to start their own ventures.  

Prof Souvik Bhattacharyya, Vice-Chancellor, BITS Pilani, said, “BITS has, in its own way, contributed significantly to India’s heritage of entrepreneurship. From a small technical school at one time, it is today among the nation’s foremost ‘entrepreneur factories’. This act of philanthropy by Rakesh Kapoor will undoubtedly have a lasting impact, as it aligns with one of the top institutional priorities and reinforces the culture of innovation and entrepreneurship that BITS has championed for several decades.”  

Rakesh Kapoor said: “Innovation and entrepreneurship are the lifeblood of economic and societal progress. I feel privileged to be able to further the already strong entrepreneurial ecosystem at BITS. My hope is that this gift will foster the talent of young engineers and scientists to create innovative products, solutions and services that benefit our planet and our people.”  

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