CAILIC Team of ACEM Participates in Interactive Session with Hon. Mahabir Pun

The Center for Academia-Industry Linkages and International Collaboration (CAILIC) team from Advanced College of Engineering and Management (ACEM) participated in an interactive session with Hon. Mahabir Pun, Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, at the Ministry's office in Singha Durbar, Kathmandu on Friday, Ashadh 26, 2083 (10 July 2026). The session focused on Nepal's overall Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) environment.

The ACEM delegation was led by Associate Professor Dr. Shanker Dhakal (StructE/DRM), Chief of CAILIC, and Dr. Binayak Ojha, Assistant Professor and Research Faculty, Department of Electronics and Computer Engineering, ACEM and the team.

During the session, Hon. Minister Pun shared the Ministry's policies, plans, and ongoing initiatives, including the preparation of early calls for innovators. A dedicated website for the initiative is reportedly expected to be launched soon.

Drawing on the team's experience with the Nepal Innovation and Digital Network (NIDN) at NAST, the discussion highlighted that idea protection and intellectual property rights (IPR) can be a challenge in such open calls. The CAILIC team also emphasized that these challenges can be addressed through the integration of intelligent systems and ethical standards in the review process.

In particular, the session aimed to present CAILIC's ongoing Research and Development (R&D) project, undertaken with its partners, on monkey (Human-Wildlife Conflict) control and farming damage mitigation in Nepal through a holistic approach with Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) at its core. The proposal was presented directly to Hon. Minister Pun, his secretariat, and other experts present during the session. The discussion on the issue and the proposal was engaging and interactive.

The session also provided an opportunity to discuss avenues for fast-track and year-round funding and grants for projects such as monkey-farmers conflict management, which, in the team's view, can be classified under emergency and disaster management categories.

With the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation now in place, the CAILIC team remains hopeful that researchers will no longer have to conduct research for the benefit of society by investing from their own pockets or other private sources, and that they will not have to wait months for innovation grants. Dedicated to the country and its people, the CAILIC team remains committed to continued contribution, support, and engagement.

Please click to take a glimpse of the session.