SOLUTIONS TO NATIONAL CHALLENGES THROUGH RESEARCH & ACADEMICS

SRMIST, the flagship of SRM Group of Universities, led by its Founder & Chancellor and sitting Lok Sabha MP Dr. TR Paarivendhar, is emerging as a powerhouse in research. In the past 3 years alone, this deemed university near Chennai has published 4,100 collaborative papers. Also, in the past 5 years, SRMIST research scholars have published 45 papers in the prestigious ‘Nature’ indexed journals. And over the past 10 years, various SRMIST research projects have received Rs. 200 crore in funding, mainly from various government owned scientific & research bodies.

rof. (Dr.) Krishna N Ganesh may not be a household name in India, but he is one of the most renowned scientists in India, whom his peers and industry look upon for vision and insights. His exemplary work in bio-organic chemistry, especially about DNA structures and its potential roles in different domains, landed him the prestigious Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize in Chemical Sciences in 1998, and Padma Shri this year. Prof. Dr. Krishna recently had an interesting take on the alternative sources of energy. He sort of denounced one of the greatest initiatives in alternative energy - solar power - and declared that the future of the world is to be a hydrogen economy.

Dr. TR Paarivendhar Founder & Chancellor

While he is not the first person to say this, when it comes from this eminent scientist and the Director of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, with detailed logic to back his stand, the whole of India took notice. This was also because of the stage from which Prof. (Dr.) Krishna was speaking from - the Inaugural Address at the 4th Dr. Paarivendhar Research Colloquium (DPRC) 2023 at SRM Institute of Science and Technology (SRMIST), at Kattankulathur, near

Chennai. The Guest of Honour at the event was Dr. R.Sankaranarayanan, Outstanding Scientist, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research. Prof. (Dr.) Krishna also had other innovations to educate this elite audience. He called upon their attention to the recent fires at the massive garbage dump yards in New Delhi and Kochi, and informed that solid waste management can be possible by developing new technologies and materials to conduct reactions and processes at room temperatures, thereby reducing the rising costs of energy and faster implementation of such projects. But he cautioned that such projects would require interdisciplinary research that starts in classrooms, and appreciated the work that private & deemed universities in India like SRMIST, which were established by visionaries, were undertaking to the cause of science education and research. Indeed, Dr. TR Paarivendhar, the Founder & Chancellor of SRMIST is a multifaceted leader, visionary & educationalist who is also the sitting Member of Parliament in the 17th Lok Sabha of India from Perambalur constituency in Tamil Nadu. What Prof. (Dr.) Krishna said about SRMIST’s achievements in research are also facts, though little known, as in the past 3 years alone, SRMIST has published 4,100 collaborative papers. Also, in the past

5 years, SRMIST research scholars have published 45 papers in the prestigious ‘Nature’ indexed journals. And over the past 10 years, various SRMIST research projects have received Rs. 200 crore in funding, mainly from various government owned scientific & research bodies. The world is also taking note of such achievements, with a recent example being the La Trobe University in Australia signing a Memorandum of Understanding with SRMIST to establish a Joint Centre of Eminence. High level interactions with topmost scientists of the country and abroad have now become second nature for SRM Group of Universities. The Group’s younger university, SRM University of Andhra Pradesh, recently had such an interaction when its Pro Vice Chancellor Prof. D Narayana Rao and faculty interacted with Prof. CNR Rao, a world-renowned scientist and recipient of the Bharat Ratna, at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) in Bengaluru. The meeting facilitated an extensive discussion on SRM-AP’s ongoing and future research projects. Prof. CNR Rao appreciated SRM-AP’s progress in research over the past five years and provided suggestions to effectively align the university’s research activities with the emerging national missions that contribute to the country’s development. SRM-AP had recently been adjudged as the Best Emerging University with Academic Excellence in India at the 13th Asia Education Summit & Awards 2023 held in New Delhi, with the award handed over to the University by Union Minister of State for Education and External Affairs Dr Raj Kumar Ranjan Singh along with former Union Minister for Education Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, for SRM-AP’s outstanding services and contribution to the higher education sector. SRM students also continue to shine on, in not only academics, but extracurricular activities like sports, with a recent example being both its boys and girls teams winning the top spot in All India Inter University Chess Championships, with perfect 10/10 scores, the only university to achieve this feat.