Grassroots Innovators Take Centre Stage at RTIH Summit

Vijayawada: The Grassroots Innovators Summit held at the Ratan Tata Innovation Center (RTIH) on Tuesday underlined the growing importance of creating an inclusive innovation ecosystem that recognizes and nurtures solutions emerging directly from communities.

Addressing nearly 250 grassroots innovators from different regions, RTIH CEO P. Dhatri Reddy outlined the Hub’s vision of bringing diverse, locally rooted innovations to a single collaborative platform. He said RTIH is committed to fostering innovation at all levels of society by creating structured pathways for grassroots ideas to become viable and scalable solutions.

Dhatri observed that as communities face numerous social and economic challenges, grassroots innovators are responding with practical, context-specific solutions often shaped by lived experience. Reaffirming RTIH’s enabling role, he highlighted support mechanisms such as access to markets, ecosystem partnerships and Innovation Clinics aimed at improving, validating and scaling grassroots products. He also praised the booth presenters for demonstrating socially powerful solutions, noting that innovation doesn’t always have to originate from laboratories or boardrooms.

Adding depth to the negotiations, Brig. Pogula Ganeshan (retired), founder of Palle Srujana, shared insights from decades of grassroots engagement. He emphasized the importance of constantly raising awareness, exchanging ideas and nurturing individual excellence among rural innovators. Observing that ideas disconnected from real-world problems are meaningless, he said innovation must address real societal pain points.

Quoting from Palle Srujana’s comprehensive study at the village level, Brig. Ganeshan spoke about the organization’s relationship with rural innovators who continue their efforts despite limited resources and recognition. By respecting local knowledge systems and building trust, Palle Srujana has identified and supported more than 800 grassroots innovators across two Telugu States, he said. He emphasized that trust remains the foundation of effective knowledge sharing, acceptance and innovation discovery.