GUWAHATI, March 2 - The Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (IITG) and the University of Science & Technology, Meghalaya (USTM) signed an agreement on Thursday in the IITG campus under which they would work jointly on academic promotion, research and study, infrastructure and administration.
The MoU was signed by Prof Gautam Biswas, Director, IITG and Mahbubul Hoque, Chancellor, USTM in presence of Prof Saurabh Basu, Dean, Outreach Education, IITG; Prof Ravi M Punekar, Dean, Alumni Relations, IITG; Prof MGP Prasad, Dean, Academics, IITG; Dr RK Sharma, Vice Chancellor, USTM; Dr Alaka Sarma, Pro-VC, USTM and other officials and faculty of both the institutions.
After signing the pact, Prof Biswas said the agreement was a very good move and a step forward to integrate a leading institute with Assam as well as its neighbouring states through social and mainly educational outreach programmes.
�The MoU with USTM is one such initiative. It is our pleasure to help in the process of useful intervention in society in the form of academic intervention and policy matters,� Prof Biswas added. He said that USTM is a fast growing university, whose presence is being felt and provided sincere effort is put in, a lot more can be done in the field of research and development.
Mahbubul Hoque said that USTM has a clear mission � to work for basic science. He added that the MoU would create a bond for cooperation between IITG and USTM, as guidance from one of the top technical institutions in the world to a budding university meant a lot and that would go a long way to benefit technical education in the region.
Under the agreement, IITG will provide faculty support to USTM. Identified faculty of IITG will take classes at USTM for identified courses and syllabus. IITG will host students identified by USTM in different disciplines at IITG for 10-15 days for attending special classes or classes regularly with IITG students in classrooms and laboratories as per plan of IITG to impart greater exposures in the respective subjects.
IITG will provide hostel accommodation to USTM students. Moreover, IITG will permit some selected final year students of USTM on mutual consultation, to do their project work at IITG. IITG faculty will involve some of the selected faculty of USTM to be co-investigators in their project proposals for funding and vice versa. Selected seminars, workshops and symposiums will be organised jointly by various departments of IITG and USTM.
Apart from this, IITG will provide guidance to USTM staff in administration in areas like examination, admissions, recruitment of staff and organising convocations. IITG will also guide USTM in upgradation of university infrastructure like laboratories, equipment, libraries, classrooms, recreational facilities, hostels, campus maintenance by providing necessary specifications and operational guidance where required. Besides, IITG and USTM agreed to conduct some inter-varsity friendly matches in selected sports.
