C-RAFT

Roadmap for C-RAFT

Introduction

C-RAFT is centre for technology research and development, which envisages contributions in the Rural Sector as well as in the High end Technology domain. To Start with, C-RAFT will currently focus on Adoption and Commercialization of Rural Technologies and looks towards the contribution from the faculty members with students in the form of rural based projects. Idea is to provide solutions to local problems and scale up to extrapolate the same at the global level making it to the internationally acceptable standards.
C-RAFT looks forward to improve the living standards of the Rural and Urban Populace through contribution in technological domain useful for processes and products. C-RAFT has been designed to cater to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals envisioned by the United Nations and also to take forward the dream of Atmanirbhar Bharat. C-RAFT aims to achieve these through technological interventions at all levels of the society per say.

Vision

C-RAFT envisions creation and implementation of suitable technologies towards fulfilling Sustainable Developmental Goals and Contributing to Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Philosophy

C-RAFT strongly believes in inclusive development and will initially work on the Philosophy of D-I-D or Document – Improvise – Disseminate. C-RAFT will go to society, identify problem, design a solution based on the problem statement, document the design and if it is in crude form, improvise the design and finally disseminate and deploy the same. C-RAFT based on the success of the solutions will also replicate the same if need be to other areas with similar problems. C-RAFT also envisages technological grouping into interdisciplinary domain so as to create an effective work group directed towards the fulfillment of its vision. C-RAFT will identify future needs and will strive to develop technologies that will satiate the future needs of the generations to come. C-RAFT will initiate work into the following technology verticals:

Appropriate Technologies based on Human powered drives

User Interaction Design for Low Literacy

Digitization of Education under Education for ALL initiative

Tackling Epidemics and Pandemics

Defence Technologies

Electric Autonomous Vehicles

AI and ML

Objectives of C-RAFT

C-RAFT will work around the following 5 objectives

To participate in Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA) Activities

To provide Socially acceptable and sustainable solutions

To generate opportunities in Intrapreneurship for creating profit centres in the mentioned verticals and pave the way to Entrepreneurship after exploring the potential in a given vertical

To generate Intellectual Property and explore the opportunity to commercialize the same

To collaborate with government and private agencies for joint projects contributing to the SDGs and Atmanirbhar Bharat

To improvise and replicate solutions to meet international standards

Roadmap

C-RAFT intends to achieve the aforementioned objectives through creation of technologies and intellectual property that will fuel the next technology research and/or deployment. The development of C-RAFT will be in a Phased manner with the following phases:

Incubation (Phase 1) Define the C-RAFT Ignition

Define Scope and Boundaries of C-RAFT

Identify Skills for Technology Development

Develop and Deploy Societal and Rural based Projects

Start scouting for Government funded STEM and Non-STEM Projects Start the Incubation of other projects

Development (Phase 2)

Explore more actionable research that can be both, Localized and Globalized

Create ecosystem for Product Development

Getting enough funds to carry out cyclical research

Explore the Commercialization of the technologies patented in Phase 1

Scout for Latest Technology Trends and align C-RAFT philosophy accordingly

Follow up (Phase 3)

Take a review of both the phases

Review Skills requirements as per the then current and future trends

Review Investments and ROI to take corrective action if any

Goals for the next 1 year

Deployment of atleast 5 Appropriate and Rural Technologies in the next 1 year

Development of atleast 2 indigenous technologies that can be patented.

Land atleast 3 government funded projects and Submit publications to reputed journals

Set up atleast 3 verticals