IIT Palakkad Hosts Buimerc Nava DISHA Puraskaram 2025 - Celebrating Social Entrepreneurship
The Buimerc Nava DISHA Puraskaram 2025, an award initiative celebrating social entrepreneurship, was held at IIT Palakkad’s Agora Auditorium. Organised by IIT Palakkad Technology IHub Foundation (IPTIF) in collaboration with the Buimerc India Foundation, the event recognised emerging innovators working to solve pressing social challenges through technology solutions. The ceremony began with a welcome address by Dr. Saishyam Narayanan, CEO, IPTIF, followed by a program overview jointly presented by Dr. Narayanan and Mr. Vinayarajan, COO, Head of Social Initiatives at Buimerc India Foundation. The keynote address was delivered by Prof. A. Seshadri Sekhar, Director, IIT Palakkad, who emphasized the need for technology-driven models in social problem-solving.
The highlight of the evening was a live pitching round by the five shortlisted social innovators, who presented their solutions before an expert jury. Based on real-time evaluation and an Interactive Q and A session. The jury selected the top three winners of the 2025 Buimerc Nava DISHA Puraskaram. Shri. R.Balachandran, Chairman and Managing Trustee of Buimerc India Foundation announced the winners Ms. Sruthi Babu, Dhanvantri Biomedical Pvt. Ltd, Suraj Kumar, Impact Solutions Pvt. Ltd, and Mr. Vinay Balakrishnan, VIR Naturals Pvt. Ltd. and delivered a visionary address emphasizing the need for industries to support innovations with societal impact.
Mr. Sriram Sankaran, Chairman and Managing Director of Synchron Group and a strategic investor focusing on social and impact investments and sustainability sector, announced the selected 10 Entrepreneurs in Residence (EiRs), Mr. Abhishek M Kajagar, Mr. Arjun N, Mr. Aswath Sivakumar, Dr Chidambareswaren Mahadevan, Mr. Jerom Palimattom Tom, Mr. Nandagopan K, Mr. Nikhil P S, Dr. Praveen G Pai, Dr. Shilpa Nair, and Mr. Siddharth Rajagopal, who presented short overviews of their future plans.
The event also featured a special address from Prof. Satyajit Majumdar, Managing Director, Tata Institute of Social Sciences Incube Foundation who emphasised the need for social innovation, and an inspirational address by Prof. Venkataraman S., IIM Kozhikode.
