Premier and Indian envoy hail SLTC link with IIT Madras

Friday, 23 December 2022 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena and Indian High Commissioner Gopal Baglay jointly witnessed the establishment of partnership linkage between the Sri Lanka Technological Campus SLTC Research University (SLTC) and the Indian Institute of Technology – Madras (IITM) for an inclusive partnership for academic, research and resource exchange.

During their visit to the SLTC in Padukka on Wednesday, they joined a zoom meeting between the SLTC Campus and IIT, Madras in which Higher Education State Minister Dr. Suren Raghavan and SLTC Chairman Ajith Zoysa as well as lecturers and students took part, while SLTC Founder President/CEO Dr. Ranjith Rubasinghe welcomed them from Australia, where he is currently on an official visit.

The SLTC Research University partnered with the IIT, Madras entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to further their contribution towards education and research along with widening provision for staff and student exchange programs.

The lecturers and students of SLTC demonstrated to the Prime Minister and the High Commissioner how they could use the state of the art technological tools such as cloud application systems for the students to link to four stations simultaneously and interact with lecturers and students and work on their own initiatives.

Two students explained their latest project to convert discarded cooking oil to diesel to run motor vehicles. They explained this innovative method could be used commercially and save at least a small portion of the foreign exchange spent on fuel imports.

The academics of SLTC expressed confidence that the partnership with IIT Madras would provide provision for intellectual opportunities for the participants of both countries, enriching research and academic fields.

MP Yadamini Gunawardena said the areas of collaboration includes finding solutions for traffic management and participation in NASA supported programs.

SLTC Director/International Affairs Dr. Nanda Gunawardane said that the Campus is currently working on a broad program to train youths with high IT skills for potential employment in Japan. It is expected to enter into an agreement with Japanese industrial groups to ensure employment for Sri Lankan youths skilled in IT and Japanese Language. “There are over 10,000 employment opportunities available,” he said.