IIT Kanpur signs $ 2.5 million MoU for setting up medical research school

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur on Saturday announced the signing of an agreement worth USD 2.5 million for setting up of a medical research facility in the campus.

The Institute has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Micky and Vinita Pant Charitable Fund for establishing the School of Medical Research and Technology (SMRT).

According to the IIT Kanpur, it is the first such MoU for $ 2.5 million donation towards the development of the SMRT. Muktesh Pant, Founder, Micky and Vinita Pant Charitable Foundation, is an IIT Kanpur alumnus.

“We pride ourselves on our alumni who have received national and international recognition and success, but feel connected to their alma mater. We are grateful for this donation by our alumnus (Pant) through his charitable foundation towards establishing of the School of Medical Research and Technology,” Institute director Prof Abhay Karandikar said.

SMRT will bring together the expertise of engineering technologies, biomedical research and clinical set-up under a single umbrella to create a one-of-its-kind world-class medical school in India. SMRT will produce outstanding medical professionals trained in state-of-art engineering technologies who can meet the future healthcare needs of our country, he added.

“The Vision of a world-class medical school at IIT Kanpur is exciting. The current team, under the leadership of Prof Karandikar inspires great confidence. IIT Kanpur has always been renowned for leading the way in engineering education and this focus on bringing engineering excellence to medical technology has the potential to create many healthcare miracles in future,” Pant observed.

Pant obtained his B Tech in Chemical Engineering from IIT Kanpur in 1976. In a career spanning over 35 years, he held senior positions in premier multinational companies viz. Hindustan Unilever, PepsiCo, Reebok and Yum Brands. Later, he went on to lead YUM! China as the CEO of the company, when it was spun off as a listed entity.

Meanwhile, SMRT is a one of a kind initiative by IIT Kanpur to catalyse medical education in India by bridging the gap between medical and technology disciplines. The first phase of the project would include setting up of various Centres of Excellence (CoE) oriented towards cutting-edge medical research and innovation along with a 500 bed super-specialty hospital.

According to the IIT Kanpur, the CoE are expected to work in confluence with the core clinical departments of the hospital and biomedical expertise of various engineering departments of IIT Kanpur. In addition, SMRT will not only contribute towards meeting the healthcare needs of the underserved population of the city but will also have pan-India benefits.