MUMBAI, Dec. 10 -- The Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at IIT Bombay (SINE) on Monday launched India's first deep-tech venture capital fund managed by an academia-linked incubator. The Y-Point Venture Capital Fund, with a total size of Rs 250 crore, aims to transform the country's deep-tech landscape by providing early-stage risk capital to startups built on advanced research. Over the last two decades, SINE has supported more than 500 startups and 1,000 innovators. The new fund is designed to help deep-tech companies overcome challenges such as long development cycles, high capital requirements and limited access to specialised mentorship. Deep tech, a term that has emerged in the last few years, is part of the innovative solution space based on breakthrough science and engineering. The venture capital fund will invest in pre-seed and seed-stage startups emerging from IIT Bombay and other top institutes, supporting 25 to 30 ventures with a maximum investment of Rs 15 crore each. Focus areas include artificial intelligence, advanced computing, nuclear technology, defence, climate tech, life sciences, healthcare and space technology. Prof K Radhakrishnan, on his first visit as chairperson of IIT Bombay's Board of Governors on campus, said the fund would be a "a catalyst for globally competitive ventures by leveraging world-class talent and cutting-edge research" and would accelerate the journey of technologies from the lab to the market. IIT Bombay director Shireesh Kedare said that the fund would strengthen SINE's long-standing role in shaping the institute's startup ecosystem. "Our fund will be the first institute-linked investment manager to back such promising ventures," he said. SINE CEO Shaji Varghese, citing strong interest from alumni, institutions and corporate partners, said that the fund had received SEBI approval and was expected to close fundraising in six to nine months. Prof Radhakrishnan also unveiled IIT Bombay's strategic plan for 2026-2030, built around three themes. The institute plans a major shift towards learning-centric education, with student-driven and experiential learning models, international joint degree programmes and digital education through online degrees and certificates. In frontier research leadership, IIT Bombay will push to strengthen research in areas such as AI/ML, climate technology, medtech, quantum sciences, and space and defence. This will involve new interdisciplinary centres and faculty recruitment. The third pillar, industry and society-relevant research, focuses on stronger collaborations with industry, expanding the startup ecosystem and converting research into market-ready solutions. These efforts will be supported by improvements in infrastructure, financial sustainability, alumni engagement and campus wellness initiatives. Prof Radhakrishnan also inaugurated Hostel 19, a new residence block designed for 1,051 students. The 9-storey building, spread across 300,000 square feet, follows a courtyard-style layout to maximise light and ventilation. Rooms include beds and study areas while the lower floors house shared facilities. The terrace above the dining block will serve as a recreational space for student activities....