Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Government has signed pact with Universities of Manchester, Oxford and Edinburgh in UK towards cooperation in the field of graphene.
The MoU signed with the UK universities is expected to streamline the research oriented activities and enhance the knowledge economy of the state, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said.
The MoU was signed in the presence of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and State Industry Minister P Rajeeve in UK on Wednesday.
Stating that Kerala had initiated measures to set up graphene based industrial park in the state, he said “Kerala has the first digital University in the country. Our aim is to commence innovative industries making optimum use of the latest technology. We had earlier convened a meet of entrepreneurs and researchers in Kerala to materialize the aim.”
“Our attempt is to build a global graphene based ecosystem. The state government will extend help to such organisations which are into the development of Nanotechnology as well as the enhancement of innovative areas like graphene,” Pinarayi Vijayan said.
Establishment of the centres of excellence will promote practical research activities as well as raise the bar of the higher education sector. Kerala has been providing special grants to post doctoral fellowships to encourage and support the research talents.
The government has also plan to set up a science park annexed to the university system to provide back-up to the proliferation of the knowledge based industry borne out of digital technology.
The digital University has been entrusted with setting up a digital science park towards this end, the Chief Minister further said.
The MoU signing event has the participation of Professor Andre Geim, the nobel laureate of 2010 for the graphene discovery. Geim appreciated Kerala’s efforts adding that the thrust on graphene would help the state to become a major industrial destination in the future.
The event has also the participation of Prof Harish Bhaskaran (Oxford University), Sethu Vijayakumar (Edinburg University), Prof Bhaskar Choubey (Siegen University), Geim’s disciple and Keralite, Prof Rahul Nair, Kerala Chief Secretary Dr V P Joy, state planning board vice chairman Dr V K Ramachandra, Kerala digital University vice chancellor Dr Saji Gopinath among others.
