16th January 2017 New Delhi, India
I attended a workshop on nano- bio materials for water purification in the picturesque district of Kottayam in Kerala. It was a Newton Bhabha funded researcher link workshop led by British Council in collaboration with Royal Society of Chemistry. Researcher links workshop is one of the many programs run under the ‘people’ pillar of the […]
26th October 2016 Delhi, India
One of the commonly used buzz word today is ‘ecosystem’ especially when it comes to Technology Business Incubator (TBI) and start ups. So to find out more I spoke with Karthik Durgaprasad, who works in South East England for local government. Karthik has over ten years plus experience of delivering start-up programmes in London for […]
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30th November 2015 Mumbai, India
Last month, I participated in a one-day India-UK workshop on innovation and technology commercialisation. This programme was jointly organised by my colleagues from the UK Science and Innovation Network and UK Trade and Investment in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. See press article here. I was one of six panelists in a discussion on Internationalising Innovations – Opportunities […]
1st July 2015 Bangalore, India
I recently visited the City of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala with my colleague Sam Kumar from the British Deputy High Commission in Chennai. Our aim was to see how the city has grown as a hotspot for research and innovation activity in India. My predecessor, Dr Tom Wells, visited with the same aim in 2012 – and to […]
17th November 2013 Chennai, India
The sudden absence of adrenaline, imminent deadlines, last-minute glitches and 10 things to do at once has actually brought a massive and slightly dreary sense of anti-climax. I probably shouldn’t be that surprised that several colleagues have fallen ill: like a car, human beings aren’t designed to go from fifth gear into first instantaneously. Even […]
15th November 2013 Chennai, India
That’s it. It’s all over. Just under an hour ago, their Royal Highnesses flight took off for the short hop to Colombo and what could be a more difficult Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting than is usual. The day dawned beautifully for the Prince of Wales’ 65th birthday – divine intervention in God’s own country? […]
14th November 2013 Chennai, India
Yesterday was simply amazing. The visit to Cochin shipyard to see the extent of UK involvement in this thriving operation, including by Rolls Royce and MTS, was a much bigger event than any we could ever have managed. Thousands of workers stopped and cheered, and His Royal Highness seemed to engage with all of them. […]
13th November 2013 Chennai, India
Today is the most challenging day. Two separate programmes for their Royal Highnesses mean that all our staff will be in the field, leaving limited surge capacity to handle any unexpected issues. and weather forecasts predicting the start of the monsoon add to the risks. His Royal Highness will visit Cochin Shipyard where UK companies […]
12th November 2013 Chennai, India
It’s hard to describe the maelstrom that is a big, high-level visit. The calm before the visit is transformed instantly into high-octane excitement. Impressive convoys that had been sitting idle moments earlier roar into action. Massive crowds seem to suddenly materialise everywhere, many with hastily written welcome placards. The first visit was to the hugely […]
11th November 2013 Chennai, India
We all woke up early a few hours to see the horrifying death toll in the Philippines. A reminder of the power of nature. The resilience of the people is humbling. And the impressive speed at which NGOs and Aid Agencies – including DfID – have moved is impressive and will save many lives. We’re […]