Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan visits IIT Hyderabad, inaugurates a slew of facilities for strengthening research, innovation and entrepreneurship
New Delhi: Union Minister for Education and Skill Development Shri Dharmendra Pradhan today inaugurated the state-of-the-art facilities, laid the foundation stone for BVRSCIENT & witnessed a landmark MoU for the first-of-its-kind Greenko School of Sustainable Science & Technology at IIT Hyderabad.
Delegates from Japan, BoG Chairman Dr BVR Mohan Reddy; Mr SAITO Mitsunori, Chief Representative, JICA, Mr Anil Kumar Chalamalasetty, Chief Executive and Managing Director, Greenko Group; Mr OP Bhatt, Independent Director and Chairman of Board of Directors of Greenko; Prof BS Murty Director, Deans, HoDs, Faculty, Staff & Students of IIT Hyderabad also attended the event.
The infrastructure inaugurated today is a part of the campus development project under the broader India-Japan collaboration through the JICA. On this occasion, IITH has also exchanged an MoU with English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU) to get support to meander students to accustomed to the foreign languages to be prepared for upcoming global opportunities on the way via various UG & PG programs at IITH with eminent global academic & industrial partners.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Pradhan said that India is going to play a leading role in the fourth industrial revolution and IIT Hyderabad will play a major role in building brand India globally and in carving out a better and prosperous future, especially during the AmritKaal. We have to fulfil Prime Minister’s vision of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat, he added.
The Minister further said that India cannot be just a consuming nation. We have to innovate and establish our own models for achieving self-sufficiency as well as for furthering global welfare. He urged IIT Hyderabad to redefine its role to fulfil societal needs and also to provide affordable global solutions.
The Minister stated that NEP 2020 is a roadmap to situate India among the top in the new emerging world order. He suggested that IIT Hyderabad must endeavour to provide education & skilling in frontier areas, encourage risk taking, transform job-seekers into job-creators and establish new parameters of excellence.
He said that skilling is a lifelong process and NEP 2020 emphasises on integrating skill development into education system. He suggested IIT Hyderabad and experts from the industry to establish a world-class skill development centre at IITH for harnessing IR 4.0 & 21st century job markets. He expressed his confidence that IITH with its thrust on research and innovation will be a role model for emerging and global economies. The Minister thanked Mr BVR Mohan Reddy from Cyient & Mr Anil Chalamasetty from Greenko for taking responsibility and donating generously for strengthening research activities at IITH and also for placing the institute at the forefront of innovation and entrepreneurship.
Dr BVR Mohan Reddy said that both Entrepreneurship & Climate Change are dear to Minister of Education and it is gratifying to have him on the occasion today. He applauded the steps taken by Ministry of Education towards implementing NEP 2020. He expressed his confidence that world-class facilities at IITH will help in realizing the visionary Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s dream of Aatma Nirbhar Bharat.
Expressing delight on occasion, Prof B S Murty that today we are witnessing the uniqueness of IITH, be it Innovation Park, Research Centre & foundation for upcoming school for innovation & Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Science and Technology. We look forward to continued guidance and support from the ministry to ensure IITH does its best in the field of Innovation, he added.
Brief about the event highlights:
1. Signing of MoU between IITH and Greenko for setting up of Greenko School of Sustainable Science and Technology (GSSST):
Greenko, India’s leading energy transition and industrial decarbonization solutions company, and IIT Hyderabad signed an MoU to launch India’s first dedicated school for sustainable science and technology. The Greenko School of Sustainable Science and Technology (GSSST) aims to plug the rising research, education, and skills gaps caused by the imperatives of sustainable development. The school will be advancing knowledge in these key thrust areas:
Climate Change Mitigation
AI & Space Technology
Energy Transition & Industrial Transformation
Circular & Regenerative Economy
ZeroC processes, fuels, materials, and products
Industrial Ecology and Net Zero Clusters
GSSST will open towards the end of this year and, by June 2023, will induct students for MTech and Ph.D. in sustainable science and technology, followed by BTech programs. The experience gained at GSSST will be replicated at other IITs, engineering colleges, and later at polytechnics and schools. This joint initiative demonstrates the national educational establishment’s endorsement of Greenko’s pioneering initiative to accelerate R&D and contextualize education and skills for sustainable development. Greenko is working in consultation with the Ministry of Education, AICTE, NCERT, and NCVET to ensure GSSST both conforms to and advances learning in sustainable science and technology.
2. Foundation Stone Laying ceremony for the BVR Mohan Reddy School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship:
The school is the first of its kind initiative in collaboration with IIT Hyderabad (IITH) by Cyient Foundation (the CSR arm of Cyient Ltd.) and Shibodhi Foundation (the family foundation of Dr. BVR Mohan Reddy). This initiative aims to nurture and develop world-class innovation and entrepreneurial talent from India in the light of the country’s ambition to become Aatma Nirbhar Bharat. The School will offer a wide range of courses, including Bachelors, Masters, Executive Education, PhD programs, and Certification courses consistent with NEP 2020 and envisions providing the best-in-class academic training and creating an enabling ecosystem to nurture economically and socially impactful techno-entrepreneurial ventures.
3. Inauguration of Technology Innovation Park (TIP):
The TIP building, with a total built-up area of 14313 sqm, consisting of 11 blocks with a G+5 structure, is ready to support the incubation activity at IITH. The motto of IIT Hyderabad is Inventing and Innovating in Technology for Humanity (IITH). The Incubation ecosystem of IITH aims at nurturing ideas and innovations into viable technological and business ventures. The establishment of TIP is a major step forward in strengthening the incubation ecosystem of IITH. To date, IITH has incubated more than 100+ startups and sanctioned more than Rs. 5 crores to startups directly while supporting the startups in raising more than Rs. 50 crores from external sources. So far, the IITH startups have generated more than Rs. 100 crores of revenues and created 800+ jobs.
4. Inauguration of Research Centre Complex (RCC):
The Research Centre Complex (RCC) is a five-storied (G+4) building with an interesting oval shape. The total plinth area of the building is 12,325 Sqm. The objective of the RCC is to house sophisticated labs with high-end research equipment. This building is a part of the JICA collaborative project, which has funded both construction and some of the research equipment. The RCC constitutes 48 labs in total, out of which 16 are wet labs, 20 dry labs, and 2 mega labs on the ground floor with double ceiling height. An animal house is also proposed to be set up in the RCC building to carry out high-end research related to the Biotech/biomedical field.