JNU, DRDO-SAG sign MoU to boost advanced research in strategic technologies

Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and the Defence Research & Development Organisation’s Scientific Analysis Group (DRDO-SAG) formally entered into a research collaboration agreement on Tuesday. The meeting was presided over by Vice-Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit.

The DRDO team was led by N. Rajesh Pillai, Director, SAG, accompanied by Sarvjeet Kaur, Scientist ‘G’, Sunil Sagar, Scientist ‘F’, and Yogesh Kumar, Scientist ‘E’ (Coordinator).

Speaking on the occasion, Pandit emphasized the importance of academia–industry–government partnerships in advancing national priorities. She underlined that the collaboration would provide JNU students and researchers with opportunities to work closely with DRDO scientists on strategic technologies of national importance.

During the meeting, both institutions signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for joint R&D, academic collaboration and training initiatives in emerging fields. The MoU outlines cooperation in domains such as cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, big data analytics, quantum communication, blockchain technology, Internet of Things (IoT) security, software and hardware vulnerabilities analysis, and advanced cryptology.

Pillai highlighted that the partnership would facilitate knowledge exchange, joint supervision of doctoral research, internships, and manpower training, thereby fostering innovation and strengthening India’s research ecosystem in defence and cybersecurity.