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IIT Kanpur in collaboration with Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) inaugurated DRDO-Industry-Academia Centre of Excellence
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur has joined hands with Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to set up a DRDO-Industry-Academia Centre of Excellence (DIA CoE) on its campus for interdisciplinary research in next-generation defence technologies.
A press release issued by the institute said that the latest offering is in line with the DIA CoEs set up by DRDO in premier academic institutions of the country, through which it is creating an ecosystem to facilitate technology development in the academic environment through the efforts of various scientists of DRDO laboratories along with experienced faculty and talented scholars.
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According to the release, the new centre will initially lead focused research in identified research and development areas. These include:
- Printing on flexible substrates to produce devices and systems based on thin films for strategic applications.
- Advanced nanomaterials will provide fundamental contributions to materials selection and design.
- Accelerated material design and development to reduce the number of actual test experiments to reach optimal solutions through high throughput experiments.
- The course will focus on modelling of high energy materials, high performance explosives and predicting the performance of metallized explosives.
- Bioengineering aims to develop technologies for applications ranging from recognizing hazardous agents to wound healing.
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Mr. Sanjay Tandon, former Director of the Institute of Technology Management, Mussoorie, serves as the Director of the DIA CoE at IIT Kanpur. He oversees its strategic initiatives and collaborative efforts.
It is noteworthy that DRDO will fund the projects and establish key technological facilities and modern infrastructure required to enable and promote research and development programmes under the identified areas.
It is pertinent to mention here that the journey towards setting up of DIA CoE at IIT Kanpur began in 2022 through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed during Def-Expo-2022 in Gandhinagar.
The DIA CoE at IIT Kanpur was jointly inaugurated by Dr Sameer V Kamat, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman, DRDO and Professor Manindra Aggarwal, Director, IIT Kanpur. Dr Subrata Rakshit, DS & Director General (Technology Management), Professor Tarun Gupta, Dean, R&D, IIT Kanpur and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.
Research Coordinators from IIT Kanpur, senior scientists from DRDO laboratories and faculty members of IIT Kanpur were also present on the occasion.
Professor Manindra Aggarwal, Director, IIT Kanpur highlighted the importance of collaborative efforts and said that for a truly Aatmanirbhar Bharat, the need for upgrading technology in the defence sector is greater than ever before.
Professor Agarwal said that to achieve this goal, DRDO, academia and industry will have to work together.
He said, “Establishment of Industry-Academia Centres of Excellence by DRDO is a suitable step in this direction. With strong R&D expertise and state-of-the-art facilities in flexible electronics, nanomaterials, materials science and engineering, high energy and bioengineering, IIT Kanpur is well poised to contribute to this collaborative effort.”
Dr. Samir V. Kamat, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman, DRDO said that the Centre will pave the way for indigenisation of various strategic technologies in the long term, making the defence sector self-reliant and sustainable, thereby accelerating the development of new materials for future defence systems, which would otherwise require 10-15 years.
Dr Kamat said, “DRDO and IIT Kanpur will carry out collaborative research in identified technology areas to meet the long-term needs of defence.”
Dr. Subrata Rakshit highlighted that the DIA CoEs will serve as hubs of R&D to meet the future needs of Defence. He said, “They will serve to synergise the domain knowledge of DRDO scientists, the research capabilities inherent in our premium academic institutions and the motivation of our industries to commercialise emerging indigenous defence technologies. The inauguration and first Governing Council meeting is an important milestone in this journey.”
Meanwhile, Professor Tarun Gupta highlighted that IIT Kanpur has, over the years, established itself as a leading institute in technology development, translation, and transfer to industry and government entities.
He said that opening of DIA CoE at IIT Kanpur is a right step as it will promote valuable collaborations with defence laboratories in the country and enable the institute to provide strategically valuable equipment and devices.
Dr N Ranjana, Director, DFTM, DRDO emphasised that the aim of long-term research in defence technology is not to find quick solutions but to sow seeds for future security.
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