First Lady Deputy Director for the First IIT of the Nation

It is an immense pleasure and delight to welcome Prof. Rintu Banerjee as the new Deputy Director of IIT Kharagpur. Prof Banerjee has created a historical breakthrough by being the first woman to take over the charge of a Deputy Director of the first IIT of the country and the world.

Prof. Banerjee is the Founder Head and is presently the Chairperson of P K Sinha Centre for Bioenergy and Renewables. She has also served as the Head of the Centre for Rural Development, Innovative and Sustainable Technology and Head of the Department of Agricultural & Food Engineering at IIT Kharagpur for 3 years. In her career span, she has held many important portfolios including Chairperson of Centre of Excellence in Precision Agriculture & Food Nutrition; Nodal Coordinator for Australia and New Zealand for SPARC & Coordinator for RuTAG.

Prof. Banerjee has completed her PhD in Microbial Biotechnology from Chemical Engineering Department at IIT Kharagpur. From the beginning of her career she was engaged in industry-academy collaborative research activities. As an outcome of her research, she has transferred several technologies to different industries and have many national/international patents to her credit. Recently, she has successfully transferred her 1G & 2G Ethanol technology to the industry for commercialization.

She has published two books in the area of environmental biotechnology and OMICS Based Approaches in Plant Biotechnology. Besides that she has handled several government/private/industry sponsored projects that includes TBT, DST, ICAR, UAI, ICMR, IMPRINT, SPARC, SERB and many other multinational industries. She has visited several countries as a Visiting Professor and for various scientific collaborations that includes Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Finland, Egypt, Australia, US, Taiwan, Japan, UK, South Korea, Laos, Thailand, Dubai, Doha, Brazil, Canada, Malaysia to name a few.

Prof. Banerjee was conferred the Panjabrao Deshmukh Award for Outstanding Women Scientist from ICAR; Best Woman Bioscientist form Biotech Research Society of India; Young Scientist Award’ 94 from the Association for Food Scientists and Technologists (India); Dr. Prem Dureja Endowment; Institute Chair Professor from IIT Kharagpur; Louis Pasteur Award; Madan Mohan Malviya Award and Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award. She has also received the Most Inspiring Women Engineer/Scientist for the year 2014, for the exemplary work in the field of Science & Technology by Engineering Watch, New Delhi and has more than 6000+ citations under her name.

IIT Kharagpur wishes her all the best for future endeavours.

Edited By: Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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IIT Kharagpur Partners with Jindal Stainless to Execute R&D Projects in Metallurgical Research & Development

India’s premier educational institution IIT Kharagpur signed an MoU with Jindal Stainless, the country’s largest stainless steel manufacturer, marking a pivotal moment in the advancement of metallurgical research and development.  In a bid to foster industry-academy collaboration, Jindal Stainless and IIT Kharagpur will work together on metallurgical projects, such as process optimization, materials characterization, and primary alloy production. This strategic alliance signifies a significant step forward in metallurgy, promising ground- breaking advancements and fostering a culture of innovation, as both organisations leverage their strengths to drive meaningful progress and contribute to the industry’s growth.

Prof. Virendra K Tewari, Director, IIT, Kharagpur, said, “This MoU with Jindal Stainless adds another milestone to industry-academia collaboration. By combining the academic expertise of IIT Kharagpur with Jindal Stainless, India’s largest stainless manufacturer, we aim to address pressing challenges and unlock new opportunities in the field of metallurgy. IIT KGP is suitably poised to offer technical and operational solutions. Together, we envision pushing the boundaries of innovation, fostering transformative solutions, and nurturing a new era of excellence in stainless steel technology promoting Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) under Vikshit Bharat 2047. This MoU with industry expert will affirm India’s position in global manufacturing industry and contribute to the vision and mission of IIT Kharagpur & the country at large.”

Prof. Virendra K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur; Prof. Rintu Banerjee, Dean, R&D; Prof. Shiv Brat Singh, Dean BTBS & HOD, Dept. of Metallurgy and Prof. Manas Paliwal, Dept. of Metallurgy at IIT Kharagpur were in attendance at the signing ceremony that took place at the IIT Kharagpur campus. Jindal Stainless’ Jajpur Unit Head, Mr. Deepak Agrawal; Business Head (Phase-I) & Chief Metallurgist, Mr. Awanindra K Singh; and Head, R&D, Mr. Daitari Kamila were also present on the occasion. The meeting was virtually attended by CEO, Jindal Stainless, Mr. Tarun Khulbe; COO, Jindal Stainless, Mr. Jagmohan Sood; and CHRO, Jindal Stainless, Mr. Sushil Baveja.

Commenting on the collaboration, Managing Director, Jindal Stainless, Mr. Abhyuday Jindal said, “We are thrilled to embark on this collaborative journey with one of India’s oldest and leading education institutes, IIT Kharagpur. This partnership will enable us to harness cutting-edge research in metallurgy and translate it into tangible solutions that benefit the industry and society at large. The MoU is a testament to our commitment to shaping the trajectory of stainless steel technology and making substantial strides in the industry, contributing to our collective pursuit of an Atmanirbhar India.”

Under the terms of the MoU, IIT Kharagpur will provide technical consultancy and engage in academic and industrial research to enhance productivity and process improvement at Jindal Stainless Limited. They will conduct lab-scale experiments, facilitate material characterization techniques, and support modelling and simulation studies, emphasizing the importance of waste reduction, recycling, and water conservation for sustainable metallurgical practices.

By: Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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