The 5th in the series EMPI-Indian Express Indian Innovation Awards was held on 4th May, 2012. The Awards were given away by the Chief Guest Dr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, Government of India at a glittering ceremony attended by senior government official, diplomats, top company executives, media and other distinguished guests.

 

The organizations selected for the National Innovation Star Award were the Election Commission of India for the Electronic Voting Machine for transforming Electoral Processes by Implementing Electronic Voting in the World’s largest Democracy; The Honeybee Network and National Innovation Foundation for Empowering Grassroots Innovators and Opening New Pathways for Inclusive Innovations; Pulse Polio Immunization Programme of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India for it’s successful management of zero failure immunization in Indian diversity: Making India Polio Free and SPIC MACAY for stimulating and cultivating appreciation and pride in classical forms and values amongst a globalizing youth.

 

The National Innovation Stars then shared their innovation insights and stories in a Panel Discussion led by Shri. Arun Maira, Member, Planning Commission.

 

The other award winners were, in the Gold Trophy Category, Palkhed Irrigation Division, Nasik, and Pratibha Syntex Limited. The Silver Trophy was won by CoCubes.com, Tata Motors Limited and Vadodara Municipal Corporation. Impact India Foundation and NUEPA won the Special Commendation Awards.

 

Congratulating the award winners, Dr. Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, said that “Recognizing, honouring and encouraging these success stories will definitely lead many to emulate their success and think differently. He said that it needed lot of courage and determination to do things differently and make it succeed. He advocated for a mechanism, which could support such innovations. “India needs mechanism which can allow and support Innovation which can make a major difference to the living of society,” he said, adding, “Such innovations should not be always seen frm a perspective of bottom line result. We need to make an environment where individuals at every level are stimulated to think differently.”

 

Mr. Gurnam Saran, President, EMPI Group of Institution, said “With these awards, we create an environment which encourages our students to work and improve eco-system of the country. This is in accordance with our belief that the personality of a student is groomed by the environment he/she lives in,”

 

The Awards-the first of its kind in India for accelerating India’s Organizational Innovation Movement, were conceptualized by Mr. Pankaj Saran and Dr. Ashok Jain, Vice-Presidents, EMPI Group of Institutions in the year 2003, when they felt the need to recognize innovative organizations, that are the real engines of socio-economic growth as distinct frm individual inventions. Thus, EMPI identified the missing link i.e. A mechanism that should focally enthuse organizations to do things innovatively.

 

The awards are part of the larger ‘MISSION INNOVATIVE INDIA’ which was blessed by the President of India Hon’ble Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, in 2005.

 

The entire movement also received fillip in the year 2006 when EMPI joined hands with The Indian Express and thereafter the Awards were re-christened as the EMPI-The Indian Express Indian Innovation Awards. Further, the association of the Boston Consulting Group with the Awards in the same year as the Research Partner and Process Validator, further helped in strengthening and giving credibility to the Awards.