IIT-M signs MoU to set up research centre

Chennai, Feb 15 (UNI) Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Madras today signed an agreement with Department of Telecommunication and Reliance Communications to set up 'IIT-M Telecom Centre of Excellence', a telecom research initiative in Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode.

The agreement will also facilitate indigenous telecom research to step up competency in wireless telecommunications, Reliance Communications Group President A N Sethuraman told reporters at a function here.

The centre will develop and strengthen capability to generate a skilled talent pool, indigenous technology applications and innovative business models for the country. Besides, it will focus on 'telecom infrastructure and energy' domain to ensure excellence on par with world standards.

The centre will develop bandwidth-efficient wireless infrastructure technologies, active infrastructure sharing techniques for optimising infrastructure, security aspects of infrastructure, exploring alternative energy and energy efficient techniques for telecom infrastructure.

''Building world class telecom network infrastructure to offer affordable telephony services to millions was an integral part of the vision behind Reliance Communications. The next giant step will be indigenous manufacturing and technological innovations, which Reliance IITM Telecom Center of Excellence endeavors to facilitate,'' he added.

Speaking on the occasion, IIT-Madras Director M S Ananth said ''IIT-M Research Park was set up to generate innovative ideas by bringing together unlike minds - the industrial researchers, IITM faculty and students.'' UNI SNR AK GC2046