The Indian Maritime University (IMU), designated as a Maritime Innovation Hub (MIH) under the Sagarmala Startup Innovation Initiative (S2I2), has onboarded its first batch of maritime start-ups to drive innovation across India’s port and maritime sectors.
The selected start-ups have signed Memorandums of Agreement (MoA) with IMU and received initial funding support through a ₹50 lakh seed grant provided by the Maritime India Foundation (MIF), an institution established by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.
The initiative follows MAR-a-THON, a national innovation challenge conducted by MIF to identify start-ups capable of addressing critical operational and technological challenges across Indian ports through innovative, scalable solutions.
As a Maritime Innovation Hub, IMU will provide incubation support, mentorship, research collaboration, and industry linkages to help the start-ups develop and deploy solutions for the maritime sector. The programme is designed to foster stronger collaboration among academia, industry, researchers, and entrepreneurs while accelerating the growth of India’s maritime innovation ecosystem.
The onboarding of the first cohort marks an important step in advancing the objectives of the Sagarmala Startup Innovation Initiative and supports the Government of India’s vision of building a robust Blue Economy through technology-driven entrepreneurship and innovation.