Addressing the gathering, Cmde. Amit Rastogi (Retd.), Chairman and Managing Director, NRDC, reflected on the organization’s seven-decade journey and emphasized its renewed focus on deep-tech commercialization, startup and MSME support, and bridging the gap between research and market deployment. Aligning NRDC’s initiatives with national priorities such as Viksit Bharat@2047, Startup India and Atmanirbhar Bharat, he reiterated NRDC’s commitment to developing globally competitive indigenous technologies. The occasion also witnessed the exchange of a Memorandum of Understanding between NRDC and the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) to strengthen systems engineering capabilities and collaborative innovation.

A key highlight of the celebrations was the inauguration of the Systems Engineering Facility, established by NRDC in collaboration with Pimpri Chinchwad College of Engineering, Maharashtra. In her address, Dr. Kalaiselvi highlighted the importance of systems engineering in managing technological complexity and accelerating innovation. The Foundation Day also featured technology licensing agreements, seed funding support for innovative startups, the launch of the MSME–Technology Transfer Facilitation Centre, and the presentation of employee excellence awards, underscoring NRDC’s role as a national catalyst for technology transfer, deep-tech innovation and inclusive growth.