German Aid for IIT-M Scholars

[sajiv]

CHENNAI: Germany gave the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras a gift of the STAR scholarship programme on the occasion of its 50th birthday, and India promptly reciprocated.The Indo-German Scholarship for Technology and Research (STAR) programme will sponsor three pairs of IIT-M scholars to pursue research in a German university, while three German pairs will head to Chennai.German Education and Research Minister Annette Schavan announced the surprise gift, as part of the €4.3-million 'New Passage to India' package, at the golden jubilee celebrations on Monday.

In a sign of how bilateral scientific cooperation has matured in the half century since Germany sponsored and nurtured the IIT-M through its early years, Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal said India would match the German offer by opening up a 'Passage to Germany' and setting up STAR scholarships. "We don't want to keep taking all the time," T. Ramasami, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, explained on the sidelines of the event. He indicated that attracting German researchers to do work in India and driving the direction of bilateral research projects in line with Indian objectives would be high on the agenda.

For example, Dr. Ramasami wants to ensure that solar energy is a prime focus of research at the Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development in Environmental Science and Engineering to be set up at the IIT-M by the end of the year, since Germany possesses cutting-edge technology in this area, which is vital for India's future energy security.On Monday, IIT-M director M.S. Ananth and German Academic Exchange Service vice-president Max Huber signed a Memorandum of Understanding to set up the centre, which will conduct research in sustainability, especially water, environment and renewable energy.

The centre is part of the 'New Passage to India' package, which also includes exchange programmes for postgraduate students, research and industry internships for scholars from both nations, the possibility of developing joint Masters degree programmes, and the promotion of Indology departments in German universities.On Tuesday, Ms. Schavan will inaugurate the Indo-German Science and Technology Centre in New Delhi, which will receive approximately €10 million each from the Indian and German governments over the next five years to support application-oriented bilateral research projects.

The new generation of bilateral collaboration also includes a number of public-private partnership ventures. The event saw the inauguration of the IIT-M's Engineering Design Building, jointly sponsored by Ashok Leyland and Bosch. Mr. Sibal said the Indian government was in preliminary discussions with the Max Planck Society to set up several Max Planck Institutes in India with a focus on information technology, material sciences and molecular biology.
Centre opened

Mr. Sibal also inaugurated the National Centre for Catalysis Research, while IIT chairman R. Chidambaram released a book on animals and birds on the campus as part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations.