Seven universities of West Bengal signed 15 memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with higher educational institutions based outside India and the state for joint research programmes, knowledge transfer and academic exchange, an education department official said.
The MoUs were inked during the Global Interactive Session, a part of the Bengal Global Business Summit organised by the state government, here in presence of Education Minister Bratya Basu.
Four state-run and three private universities made those pacts with five foreign varsities and 10 Indian institutes.
"We are exploring country-level collaborations, partnerships between regional and international universities and preparation of an institutional framework for promoting strategic partnerships," Basu said at the programme.
State-run Jadavpur University (JU) and Calcutta University (CU) signed five and three MoUs with different institutions respectively, while Presidency University and Vidyasagar University inked one each on Wednesday.
Privately-run Adamas University, Seacom Skills University and Sister Nivedita University also signed MoUs with various institutes.
JU signed an MoU with University of Warsaw (Poland) for knowledge transfer, academic collaboration and student mobility in social science, and another with Exeter University (UK) for joint classes and thesis supervision in various subjects. JU inked three more pacts with other Indian institutes.
Calcutta University signed MoUs with UCL London for joint research programmes in development of software tools for low cost diagnostics, and with University of Leeds (England) for quality improvement in teaching-learning process.
It inked the third MoU with University of Warsaw in the domain of political sciences and international studies for student and faculty exchange.
Vidyasagar University signed an MoU with the Russian Academy of Sciences for development and implementation of collaborative research projects.
Presidency University VC Anuradha Lohia signed an MoU with Jamshedpur-based Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research in the field of Earth Science for mentoring of research scholars and studentship programmes.
Among private universities, Sister Nivedita University signed an MoU with Okayama University of Japan for development of healthcare industry and knowledge transfer.
Basu said 15 universities and 319 colleges of Bengal are accredited by National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) which affirms the high academic standard of the state "in the regime of Mamata Banerjee."
"We did have many such collaborations with universities in the country and abroad in the past in different fields of science and arts. We will continue to look for future collaborations partnering with institutions known for their pioneering works in different fields," CU VC Sonali Chakraborty Banerjee told PTI after signing the MoU.,
The MoUs were inked at the Global Interactive Session attended by British Council Director Barbara Wickham, Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner Australian Trade and Investment Commission Dr Monica Kennedy and other foreign dignitaries, at Science City on Wednesday.
