🤝 Strengthening the Bridge Between Academia & Industry!
A significant step towards shaping the future of engineering education as Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (VNIT), Nagpur and Tata Indian Institute of Skills (Tata IIS), Mumbai signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to foster collaboration in advanced skill development, industry-oriented education, applied research, innovation, and emerging technologies.
The MoU was formally exchanged between Prof. (Dr.) Premlal Patel, Director, VNIT Nagpur, and the Tata IIS delegation comprising Mr. Kunjan Savaratkar, Director, Tata IIS Mumbai; Mr. H. N. Shrinivas, Senior Advisor, Tata Skills Projects; and Mr. Naveen Krishna Pandikkadavil, Lead Manager – Strategic Projects, Tata IIS, in the presence of faculty members and officials from both institutions.
✨ Key Highlights of the Partnership:
🔹 Industry-oriented training and curriculum enrichment
🔹 Collaborative research and technology development
🔹 Internship opportunities and innovation-driven initiatives
🔹 Skill development in AI, robotics, automation, digital manufacturing, and electric mobility
Speaking on the occasion, Prof. (Dr.) Premlal Patel, Director, VNIT Nagpur, emphasized that strong industry-academia collaboration is essential to prepare engineers for the rapidly evolving technological landscape. He highlighted that this partnership will create new opportunities for students and faculty through industry-oriented training, collaborative research, technology development, curriculum enrichment, internships, and innovation-driven initiatives.
Mr. H. N. Shrinivas, Senior Advisor, Tata Skills Projects, highlighted Tata IIS’s vision of building a future-ready workforce by combining academic excellence with practical, industry-focused learning. He emphasized the importance of developing engineers with strong technical fundamentals and hands-on industrial skills to meet the demands of emerging fields such as manufacturing, robotics, automation, artificial intelligence, digital technologies, and electric mobility.
Following the MoU exchange, the Tata IIS delegation, including Mr. Kunjan Savaratkar, Director, Tata IIS Mumbai, and Mr. Naveen Krishna Pandikkadavil, Lead Manager – Strategic Projects, Tata IIS, visited the V. R. Jamdar Siemens Centre of Excellence (VRJSCOE) at VNIT. The delegation explored advanced laboratories and interacted with faculty members and student teams working in robotics, industrial automation, artificial intelligence, and digital manufacturing. The visit highlighted opportunities for joint training programmes, collaborative research, technology development, and future skill development initiatives under the newly established partnership.
Together, VNIT Nagpur and Tata IIS are paving the way for a stronger innovation ecosystem and nurturing the next generation of industry-ready engineers.