India’s Vice President, C. P. Radhakrishnan, inaugurated two new research facilities at Panjab University in Chandigarh on 4 September 2026. The move aims to strengthen the university’s scientific infrastructure and support for innovation-driven research. The Vice President also serves as the ex-officio Chancellor of the university.
What was inaugurated
Two major facilities were opened:
- An Advanced Instrumentation Facility at the Sophisticated Analytical Instrument Facility and Central Instrumentation Laboratories (SAIF/CIL), which now houses five new scientific instruments: an Atomic Force Microscope, Raman Spectrometer, DNA Sequencer, Flow Cytometer and FTIR Spectrometer.
- The Panjab University Tech Innovation Forum (PU-TIF), created by transforming an earlier structure called Bio-NEST into a Section 8 not-for-profit company.
These facilities are designed to support academic research, applied work, and technology development. They will provide analytical tools, incubation support and entrepreneurial assistance to researchers, innovators and industry partners working across nanotechnology, materials science, environmental science and genomics.
The Vice President also announced that following the death of a PhD student, a comprehensive campus safety audit has been ordered. An internal committee has been set up to review existing infrastructure and submit a detailed report on security measures.
What this means for you
If you are a researcher or student at Panjab University, you now have access to advanced scientific equipment that was previously unavailable. The new Tech Innovation Forum creates pathways to turn research ideas into commercial ventures and connect with investors and industry partners. The university’s focus on campus safety means review of existing security infrastructure and likely implementation of new measures to protect students and staff on the premises.