Media Release
Mangaluru, Jan 2: National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal and Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) are partnering to carry out advanced joint R&D activities in the area of Space Technology Applications. In this context, ISRO and NITK will sign an MoU on January 3 and set-up a Regional Academic Centre for Space (RAC-S) at NITK Surathkal to pursue advanced research in the areas of relevance to the future technological and programmatic needs of the Indian Space Programme.
The centre will act as a facilitator for the promotion of space technology activities in the southern region comprising the states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala and Lakshadweep and will become an ambassador for the capacity building, awareness creation and R & D activities of ISRO, in the region. The activities of RAC-S will be directed to maximize the use of the research potential, infrastructure, expertise and experience already existent in ISRO and NITK, Surathkal. The RAC-S will also facilitate and engage other institutes of excellence in the region to take part in capacity building, awareness creation and R&D activities related to Space Technology, Space Science and Space Applications.
The RAC-S will consist of faculty members and researchers from NITK Surathkal and visiting scientists and experts from ISRO. The activities of the centre will be guided by a Joint Policy and Management Committee (JPMC) consisting of top executives from the two organizations. The JPMC will plan the promotional activities including the research programmes of common interest and periodically review such research programmes and related activities. JPMC will also facilitate collaborative activities between the partner institutions of southern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala and Lakshadweep. ISRO will provide necessary annual grant, as recommended by the JPMC, to the tune of Rs 2.00 crore per year for the conduct of R&D projects, promotional activities and administrative expenses.
The joint R&D activity will actively engage students of NITK and partner institutions. While BTech and MTech students will be engaged in carrying out short term research projects of one-year duration, PhD students will be engaged in long-term projects of 2-4 years relevant to the advancement of space programme. Eligible students will also receive research fellowships during the project period. The intellectual property generated as part of this research activity will be jointly owned by ISRO and NITK.
The MoU will be signed by Dr P V Venkitakrishnan, director, CBPO, ISRO Bengaluru and Prof K Umamaheswara Rao, director, NITK Surathkal. A one day workshop on `Space Technology Applications’ will also be held at NITK after the MoU signing ceremony. Four senior scientists from ISRO will deliver lectures on the latest R&D work being conducted in ISRO as part of this workshop. They will also interact with faculty members and students of NITK to motivate students to participate actively in the research projects supported under this Regional Academic centre.