Startups Valley TBI — Amal Jyothi College of Engineering
Amal Jyothi's innovation ecosystem is one of the most distinctive in Kerala — built over two decades from a student project contest (I2U, 2006) into a fully-funded, DST-supported Technology Business Incubator with 37+ active startups, national awards, and the only BioNEST incubator in Kerala. AJCE is the first self-financing college under KTU to receive a multi-crore TBI project from the Government of India.

Most students of Amal Jyothi come from the rural agrarian regions of Kerala. The practical problems of farming were taken as technical challenges to be solved through engineering education. We initiated a project contest named I2U (2006) — and to provide students with greater entrepreneurial exposure, an Entrepreneurship Development Cell was established in 2006 under the mentorship of Technopark TBI, a Govt. of Kerala initiative.
This centre was recognised and funded by NSTEDB, Dept. of Science and Technology, Govt. of India in 2009 — one among only 5 Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Centres sanctioned by DST across India, and the first Govt. of India-supported IEDC in Kerala. The experience earned through the IEDC inspired a Technology Business Incubator, sanctioned by DST in 2015. AJCE became the first self-financing college under APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University to receive a multi-crore (₹3.65 crore) TBI project from the Government of India.
Today, Startups Valley TBI operates with world-class infrastructure — a Pre-incubation Zone, Incubation Zone, Fab Lab, Conference Hall, Food Testing Facility, and a Library — with a dedicated 2 Gbps internet facility, mentoring support, laboratory access, and a campus collaboration with SRH University of Applied Sciences Berlin, Germany for innovation and entrepreneurship activities.
🌿 BioNEST Programme — First in Kerala (BIRAC / DBT, Govt. of India)
Startups Valley TBI has expanded with a second incubation facility under the BioNEST programme supported by BIRAC (Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council), Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India — with a financial grant of ₹4.87 Crores. This is the first TBI established by BIRAC/DBT in Kerala, focusing exclusively on quality startups in the field of Food Technology. With its dedicated Food Testing Facility, this incubation centre bridges academic innovation and agri-food industry needs.

NIRF Innovation Rank 101–150 Band (23rd edition)
ARIIA Ranking 2021 — Excellent Band (sole engineering college from Kerala)
Top Performing IEDC 2019–21 — State Award, Kerala Startup Mission (among 346 IEDCs nationally)
4-Star Award — Institute Innovation Council (IIC) 2021–22 (one of only 6 engineering colleges in Kerala at this level)
State Champion — Innovation Premier League 2022, with ₹1 lakh prize money
State Champion with Outstanding Performance Award — Young Innovators Programme 2022 (446 proposals submitted — maximum from any single college)

🎊 Major Events Organised
- 10 seasons of Yuva Mastermind
- IEDC Summit 2018 — Largest entrepreneurship summit in Kerala
- ISBACON 2019 — Biggest gathering of Startup Incubators in India
- First TECHFEST of KTU 2016
- Regular Startup Safari for colleges and Science Excursion / SALT for schools
- 1K Youth Programme — Two-day innovation evangelisation for all first-year students

