Can New NID-East Ignite India’s Design Revolution?

Authors: Safir Anand, Mudit Kaushik and Sehr Anand

The establishment of a new National Institute of Design (NID-East) in India’s eastern region, as proposed in the Union Budget 2026-27, holds the potential to be as transformative for India’s design intellectual property (IP) landscape as the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) have been for engineering and management, respectively.

Just as it’s hard to imagine a world before the IITs and IIMs revolutionized India’s technical and managerial talent pools, NID-East could usher in an era where design IP becomes a cornerstone of India’s economic growth and global competitiveness.

The Revolutionary Impact of IITs and IIMs: A Precedent for NID-East

The IITs and IIMs were not merely educational institutions; they were catalysts for national development. They created a highly skilled workforce that fuelled India’s IT revolution, industrial growth, and entrepreneurial ecosystem. Their success stemmed from:

• Focused Excellence: They concentrated resources and talent to achieve world-class standards in specific domains.
• Industry Linkages: They fostered strong ties with industries, ensuring their curricula were relevant and their graduates job-ready.
• Innovation Hubs: They became centers of research and development, leading to significant advancements and, in the case of IITs, a robust patenting culture.
• Global Recognition: Their graduates gained international acclaim, elevating India’s reputation on the global stage.

Today, the IITs continue to be powerhouses of innovation, as evidenced by IIT Madras’s impressive patent filing and commercialization record. This demonstrates how dedicated institutional infrastructure can systematically convert academic capacity into tangible IP assets and economic value.

NID-East: A Game Changer for Design IP

NID-East is poised to replicate this success in the realm of design IP, addressing a critical gap in India’s innovation ecosystem. The rapid growth in design registrations, outpacing patents, trademarks, and copyrights, clearly signals a burgeoning awareness of design’s strategic importance. However, this growth needs institutional support to translate into sustained IP creation and commercialization.

NID-East can be a game-changer by:

1. Addressing the Talent Shortage: With the AVGC sector alone needing 2 million professionals by 2030, NID-East will be crucial in developing the skilled design talent necessary to meet this demand.
2. Elevating Design as Strategic IP: By embedding IP creation and commercialization into its core mission from inception, NID-East can systematically foster a culture where design is recognized and protected as a valuable asset. This includes specialized infrastructure for visual documentation, design patent prosecution, and integration of market research and brand strategy into design education.
3. Leveraging Regional Strengths: The “challenge route” ensures NID-East will be established in an ecosystem ripe with design heritage (Madhubani, Patachitra, Dokra craft, etc.). The institute can act as a bridge, modernizing and commercializing these traditional art forms through contemporary IP frameworks, thereby empowering local artisans and MSMEs.
4. Building a Robust IP Infrastructure: Learning from the IITs, NID-East must establish:
   • Design IP Support Centers: To guide students, faculty, and industry partners through the IP registration process.
   • Industry Collaboration Platforms: To ensure design projects address real-world commercial challenges and generate protectable IP.
   • Commercialization Mechanisms: Including licensing frameworks, design entrepreneurship incubators, and venture capital connections to bring design innovations to market.
   • Regional Design IP Clinics: To assist local MSMEs and craft sectors in protecting their innovations, while providing invaluable learning opportunities for students.

The Future: A World Where Design IP is Indispensable

Just as we now take for granted the contributions of IITs and IIMs to India’s technological and economic prowess, NID-East has the potential to make design IP an indispensable part of India’s innovation narrative. By fostering a new generation of design thinkers who are IP-aware and commercially astute, NID-East can ignite a design IP revolution, driving competitive differentiation, brand identity, and significant economic value for India on the global stage. Its success will depend on its ability to function as an innovation hub, with IP creation and commercialization deeply ingrained in its DNA from day one.