New Delhi, June 6 (IANS) Ten thousand Atal Tinkering Labs have been established in the country in the last 11 years, said Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday.

In a post on social media platform X, Sitharaman said that Atal Tinkering Labs, under the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) of the NITI Aayog, is fuelling innovation among school children.

“10,000 Atal Tinkering Labs have been set up in the country since 2016. Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s reforms are fuelling a maker mindset, where curiosity leads to innovation from schools,” Nirmala Sitharaman’s Office stated on X.

The Atal Tinkering Labs have contributed to over 12 lakh innovation projects. It has actively engaged more than 1.1 crore students in innovation and creative problem-solving.

Maharashtra has the highest number of Atal labs (1,033) followed by Tamil Nadu (975), and Uttar Pradesh (955), as per data from the Ministry of Planning.

In the Union Budget 2025, the finance minister announced plans to establish 50,000 Atal Tinkering Labs in government schools in the next five years. The initiative has been taken to cultivate the spirit of curiosity and innovation and foster a scientific temper among young minds.

Further, to enable the country to become a global science player, the government set up the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) with an investment of Rs 50,000 crore over five years.

The initiative is aimed at building a strong research ecosystem in Indian universities, institutions, and labs, making India a global hub of science and innovation.

The country also opened the gates of global research through the One Nation One Subscription initiative.

The initiative has benefitted more than 1.8 crore students, researchers, and faculty members across the country with access to more than 13,000 prestigious journals from 30 leading international publishers.

“This is a massive step in democratising knowledge and fuelling innovation across every classroom and lab,” the government said.

–IANS

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