Invited Lecture by Prof. V. Ramgopal Rao

MNIT Jaipur hosted Prof. V. Ramgopal Rao, Vice Chancellor of BITS Pilani for an invited lecture on “Research to Innovation: Bridging the Gap in Indian Higher Educational Institutes” under the aegis of the Institute Lecture Series. Prof. Rao has an illustrious career, serving at institutes of repute, in multifarious capacities. At the outset, Prof. ML Mittal introduced the speaker elaborating his key contributions. The programme commenced with Prof. NP Padhy, Director MNIT Jaipur, welcoming the acclaimed guest speaker. Prof. Rao spoke at length on the three prime tasks of a teacher including teaching, research and innovation. He lamented the fact that practical implementation of research is a grey area and efforts are needed to consolidate the same. With his captivating presentation, he drove the fact that Indian research needs to be practically viable and useful for society. With his witty anecdotes and personal experiences, he elaborated on the need of interdisciplinary research, the need of filing patents and the emerge of start-ups which can bring a transformation in the current scenario. Prof. Rao spoke at length on the selection of the research topic which should not originate from the library but from the practical problems faced by people. He stressed on the better connect between industry and academia which will set new benchmarks for every institution.
At the end of the session, he answered the questions from the audience. Prof. Padhy, Director MNIT gifted him the memento as a token of remembrance. Prof. ML Mittal proposed a formal vote of thanks to Prof. Rao.