What :

• On 25th May 1998, the then Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, announced that 11th May would henceforth be celebrated as Technology Day. He urged the industry to forge powerful partnerships with the national laboratories and to create knowledge networks with academic institutions to promote research and development and to gain entry into global markets. In this background, Government of India decided to give National Award for the successful commercialization of Indigenous Technology
• The Award is given to an industrial concern which has successfully developed & commercialized an indigenous technology. In case, the technology developer / provider and technology commercializer are two different organizations; each one would be eligible for award of Rs. 25 lakh and a trophy.

What is the recent news :  A Bangalore based start-up has received the National Award 2021 from Technology Development Board (TDB) for developing a commercial solution for conversion of CO2 to chemicals and fuels.

DETAILS:

• Breathe Applied Sciences, a start-up incubated at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) developed efficient catalysts and methodologies for the conversion of CO2 to methanol and other chemicals.
• It has led to improvisation of process engineering to enhance the production of chemicals and fuels from anthropogenic CO2 generated from various sources including coal and natural gas power generation sectors, steel industry, cement industry, and chemical industries and integrating multiple components involved in the CCUS (Carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration) to develop a complete solution for the environmental issues due to global warming.