ISLAMABAD January 20: Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) on Monday held here an electronic-based ‘Projects’ Exhibition’ to encourage its students to develop market-based innovative ideas that could be commercially viable.

This was the part of the University’s consistent efforts to promote research culture in the country and to motivate the students to come out with innovative ideas in the field of their interest and relevant discipline, while doing study at the higher education level.

About a dozen of projects were showcased at the exhibition that was developed by the students of MSc, Department of Physics. They have undertaken them at the end of their final semester.

The inaugural ceremony was attended by the University’s Executive Director Dr. Muhammad Latif Gondal and Dean Sciences Dr. Syed Zafar Ilyas, who assured that the University would provide all possible support to promote the projects for their proper marketing and usage at the public level.

It was announced that the University will soon give a comprehensive research grants’ package to carry forward those projects that could be productive for the country’s socio-economic development.

Vice Chancellor Professor Dr. Zia-Ul-Qayyum has laid special emphasis on promoting meaningful and socially beneficial education, that helps to address the society’s needs and to solve its socio-economic problems, they added.

It was hoped that the projects exhibited at the exhibition will attract and encourage other students towards creativity and innovation.

Most modern, state-of-the-art laboratories have been set up here at the main campus to facilitate the students to carry out their research-based study, thy added.

The projects which were displayed at the exhibition included Electronic voting machine, GSM-based vehicle accident detector system, Alcohol detection and tracking system, FRID-based pre-paid car parking system, traffic signals controlling system, Ambulance tracking system.

Besides these, they were Home appliances control mechanism through mobile phones and biometric security-door locking system and GMS-based patient health monitoring system.

It may be mentioned here that a separate office of Research, Innovation and Commercialization (ORIC) is already working in the University for promoting commercially viable research-based projects.