Jammu: The CSIR–Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (IIIM), Jammu, celebrated its 85th Foundation Day today. The event brought together senior scientists, dignitaries, and researchers who reflected on the institute’s eight-decade-long journey and its expanding national footprint.
Former Director of CSIR-CFTRI Mysuru, Dr. Sridevi Annapurna Singh, attended the ceremony as the Chief Guest, while Dr. Kannan Srinivasan, Director of CSIR-CSMCRI Bhavnagar, was the Guest of Honour. The celebration was presided over by Dr. Zabeer Ahmed, Director, CSIR-IIIM Jammu.
Delivering the Foundation Day lecture on “Hidden medicines in your food,” Dr. Annapurna Singh emphasised the growing relevance of functional foods, nutraceuticals, and India’s traditional dietary knowledge. She called for strong collaborations between CSIR laboratories and industries to accelerate innovation and ensure scientific validation of India’s indigenous knowledge systems.
Dr. Srinivasan commended IIIM’s strong student–scientist ratio and translational research ecosystem, highlighting the importance of its pilot-scale facilities in bridging the “valley of death” for new technologies. He encouraged researchers to leverage emerging opportunities in clinical research supported by ICMR.
In his presidential address, Dr. Zabeer Ahmed noted that the 85th Foundation Day marks a proud milestone in the institute’s legacy that began in 1941. He shared that over 1,000 students from schools, colleges, and universities visited IIIM’s Jammu, Srinagar and satellite centres today, reflecting the institute’s deepening engagement with society.
Dr. Ahmed highlighted the institute’s evolution from the Drug Research Laboratory to RRL in 1957 and IIIM in 2007 and acknowledged the contributions of past leaders, including Col. Sir Ram Nath Chopra, the father of Indian pharmacology.
He outlined key achievements from the past year, including large-scale women training programs under the Atal Incubation Centre, e-tractor campaign flagged off from IIIM Jammu, National Startup Festival with over 75 participating startups, Lavender and floriculture conclaves uniting farmers, startups, and policymakers.
Dr, Ahmad also underlined Stthe andardisation of traditional medicines and advanced skill development for clinicians, the establishment of the BIRAC–BioNEST Centre at Biotech Park, 748 training programmes under CSIR Skill Initiatives, engagement of more than 3,000 students under JIGYASA, as well as over 125 startups incubated across four incubation centres, with 12 market-ready products
IIIM also received the Bharat Incubator Award, and the CSIR Aroma Mission team earned a national-level recognition this year.
As part of the Foundation Day celebrations, IIIM signed two new Confidentiality Disclosure Agreements (CDAs) with Hapico and Medispace Innovations, strengthening its collaboration with industry partners to advance research and technology development. The institute also marked the filing of 14 patents this year that include 10 international and 4 Indian.
During the ceremony, scientific and technical staff were felicitated with appreciation certificates for their outstanding contributions.