OPPO India in collaboration with NITI Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) as its knowledge partner has announced the establishment of an Atal Tinkering Lab (ATL) in Kerala. This collaboration marks the establishment of the first-ever Atal Tinkering Lab, based on the PPP (Public-Private Partnership) model.

The lab at St Paul’s CEHSS in Kuriachira, Thrissur, was inaugurated on July 10, 2023 by Rajeev Chandrashekar, the Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Electronics and Information Technology. The primary objective of this initiative is to create an empowered future-ready workforce and nurture entrepreneurship and technological skills among the youth.

Till 2022, 10,000 ATLs were established across 35 States and UTs in India though government grants. “The establishment of the first PPP Atal Tinkering Lab in collaboration with OPPO India is a significant milestone in India’s School Innovation journey. Through this new modality of partner-established ATLs, we hope to democratise tinkering and make it available to many more students across the country. I invite more partners to this new and exciting initiative to establish many more ATLs in India, thus empowering more young innovators,” Chintan Vaishnav, MD, Atal Innovation Mission, said.

The ATL has been set up to empower school children in grades six to 12th to develop innovative solutions. The students can harness cutting-edge technology tools such as 3D printing, the Internet of Things (IoT), robotics, miniaturised electronics, space technology, drone technology, and technology-inspired textiles.

This collaboration between the AIM and OPPO—with Learning Links Foundation as the implementation partner—adapts the ‘Hub n Spoke’ strategy to create an innovative learning environment through practical experiences and regular training sessions. The ATL in the nodal school will act as a ‘Hub’ for the students from neighbouring government schools to come and conduct experiments in the lab. This approach will also extend its assistance to three community schools.

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Through the ATL, children with exceptional potential will be identified and nurtured through the Student Innovator Programme and the ATL Marathon to provide them with mentorship opportunities from eminent entrepreneurs and prepare them to compete in national/regional contests, fostering lifelong learning.

With inputs from PTI