IIT Mumbai ties up with IBM for joint research
Mumbai, June. 23 (AP): The Indian Institute of Technology here has signed an agreement with IBM Corp. for collaborative research, officials said on Friday.
The agreement covers research projects in computer sciences and joint development of technology in areas such as grid computing, data mining, network management and security, said Rangan Banerjee, Associate Dean at the institute.
``Students interested in research could spend six months to a year at an IBM research facility. This will help academics get a flavor of life in the industry,'' Banerjee said
Harish Grama, Vice-President of IBM India Software Labs, said the programme looked to the future.
``Students need to continuously develop their skills to work on new and innovative technologies,'' he said.
The Indian Institute of Technology, considered among the world's best engineering and computer science colleges, hopes collaborative projects with industry will make research in high-end technology more attractive to students.
``We are targeting long-term research partnerships and initiatives to make research an attractive career option,'' Banerjee said.
Thousands of young technology and science graduates leave India for the United States, Britain and Canada to pursue research degrees overseas due to the paucity of industry-linked projects in the country.
``From our point of view if we can augment our research capability and establish links with various industries it will make doing research in India attractive,'' Banerjee said. ``The companies also will have access to ongoing research by students and faculty.''
The institute has recently entered into research partnerships with U.S. electronics maker Motorola Inc. and chip maker Intel Corp.