The Indian and US governments have partnered to set up an India-US Global Challenge Institute, which aims to further collaborations between the premier research higher education institutions of the two countries in key areas such as sustainable energy, pandemic preparedness, Artificial Intelligence (AI), semiconductor technology and quantum science, among others.
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The development came late on Friday evening, as US President Joe Biden came down to the national capital for the G20 summit and met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his official residence.
Announcing the partnership, Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday said on social media platform X, “As the #G20Summit gets underway, I’m delighted to share the transformative Joint Statement issued by Hon. PM Shri @narendramodi and President Joe Biden @POTUS. This statement celebrates our educational collaboration through the India-US Global Challenge Institute and marks a significant milestone in defence innovation through the India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X).”
He further said the India-US Global Challenge Institute being set up between Indian higher educational institutes and US universities aims to tackle global issues ranging from sustainable energy to pandemic preparedness.
Also, the institute will work on new frontiers in science and technology, spanning collaboration in sustainable energy and agriculture, health and pandemic preparedness, semiconductor technology and manufacturing, advanced materials, telecommunications, artificial intelligence and quantum science.
“India-US bond deepens as collaboration in academic soars with the growing number of multi-institutional collaborative education partnerships between the two countries,” said Pradhan on ‘X’.
According to officials in the Ministry of Education (MoE), an MoU was signed between Indian universities, represented by the Council of Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT Council), and the Association of American Universities (AAU) to establish the India-US Global Challenges Institute, with a combined initial commitment of at least USD 10 million.
“The institute aims to foster collaborative efforts among premier research and higher education institutions from both nations, addressing global challenges that require interdisciplinary solutions,” the ministry said in a statement.
IIT-Council is the top decision-making body for all of the 23 IITs in the country.
Officials said IIT-Kanpur is collaborating with the New York University Tandon School of Engineering to launch the NYU-Tandon Advanced Research Center in critical and emerging technologies.
“IIT-Kanpur, IIT-Jodhpur, IIT-BHU and IIT-Delhi will join forces with the State University of New York at Buffalo to create Joint Research Centers. IIT Kanpur, IIT Hyderabad and other institutions will also participate in the Academia Startup Partnership under the India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X),” the statement read.
Besides, IIT-Bombay has joined the Chicago Quantum Exchange as an international partner. “This will give shape to a shared vision of a global quantum economy,” it said.
According to the MoE, the partnerships serve as a testament to the strengthening ties between India and the US in the key sector of education.
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