The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK), in a collaborative effort with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), has established a DRDO-Industry-Academia Centre of Excellence (DIA CoE) on its campus. This centre is a testament to the shared vision of IITK, DRDO, and the academic community, aiming to foster interdisciplinary research in next-generation defence technologies. It is a part of the DIA CoEs set up by DRDO in key academic institutions in the country, creating an ecosystem that encourages technology development in the academic environment through experienced faculty and bright scholars, in conjunction with the efforts of the different scientists from DRDO laboratories.
The newly launched centre is poised to make significant strides in focused research. It will initially focus on identified research and development verticals, including Printing on Flexible Substrates to build devices and systems based on thin films for strategic applications; Advanced Nanomaterials to provide a fundamental contribution to material selection and design; Accelerated Material Design and Development to reduce the number of actual trial experiments while reaching optimal solutions via high throughput experiments; High Energy Materials to focus on the modelling of high-performance explosives and performance prediction of metalized explosives; and Bio-Engineering to develop technologies for applications ranging from sensing hazardous agents to wound healing. These areas of research hold immense potential for the future of defence technologies.
The event was attended by Research Coordinators from IIT Kanpur, senior scientists from DRDO Labs, and faculty members from IIT Kanpur.
Prof. Manindra Agrawal, Director of IIT Kanpur, expressed his appreciation for the collaborative effort and the key personnel involved. He said:
With the changing times, there is a need for advancement of technology in the defence sector to become Atmanirbhar Bharat in the true sense. For this, DRDO, Academia and Industry must join hands together. Establishing Industry Academia Centres of Excellence by DRDO is an apt step in this direction. IIT Kanpur is well poised to contribute to this collaborative effort with strong R&D expertise and state-of-the-art facilities in flexible electronics, nanomaterials, materials science and engineering, high energy, and bioengineering. I extend my heartfelt congratulations to the entire team and wish all the success to DIA CoE IIT Kanpur.
Sanjay Tandon, former director of the Institute of Technology Management at Mussoorie, serves as the Director of DIA CoE at IIT Kanpur, overseeing its strategic initiative and collaborative endeavours. DRDO will fund the projects and establish key technical facilities and modern infrastructure to enable and boost R&D programmes under identified verticals.
Dr Samir V Kamat, Secretary Dept of Def R&D and Chairman DRDO added:
The Centre will pave the path for the indigenization of the various strategic technologies in the long-term, making the defence sector self-reliant and sustainable. This will accelerate the development of new materials for futuristic defence systems, which may otherwise have required 10-15 years. DRDO and IIT Kanpur will undertake collaborative research in identified technology domains to fulfil the long-term needs of defence.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signed in Gandhinagar during Def-Expo-2022, marked the beginning of the journey towards establishing DIA CoE at IIT Kanpur in 2022. The DIA CoE at IIT Kanpur has been jointly inaugurated by Dr Samir V Kamat, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman, DRDO, and Prof. Manindra Agarwal, Director, IIT Kanpur, in the presence of Dr. Subrata Rakshit, DS & Director General (Technology Management), Prof. Tarun Gupta, Dean, R&D, IIT Kanpur, Shri Sanjay Tandon, Director DIA CoE at IIT Kanpur, Prof Kantesh Balani, PI DIA CoE IITK, Shri LC Mangal, OS & Director DEAL, Dr. Mayank Dwivedi, OS & Director DMSRDE, and Dr. N Ranjana, OS & Director, Futuristic Technology Management.
Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur was established in 1959 and declared an Institute of National Importance by the Government of India through an Act of Parliament. The institute is best known for its high standard of education in science and engineering and its seminal R&D contributions over the years. Its research resources span 19 departments, 25 centres and three interdisciplinary programmes in engineering, science, design, humanities, and management disciplines, with more than 580 full-time faculty members and approximately 9000 students.
