Kolkata: To ensure competitive and collaborative research, the premier IIT Kharagpur today announced a series of new research grants at all levels.
As part of `Vision 2020` initiative, IIT Kharagpur director Prof P P Chakrabarti said they will enhance new faculty startup grant by more than five times (upto Rs 28 lakhs each).
More than 20 competitive seed challenge grants of Rs 25 lakhs for assistant and associate professors in their areas of specialisation would be offered while four open competitive seed challenge grants of Rs 1 crore each for interdisciplinary and basic sciences would be now available.
Two grand challenge seed grants would be of Rs 2.5 crores each.
Additionally, the director announced at least five competitive seed grants of Rs 2.5 crores each for departments to propose an area of emerging thrust where it wants to attain pre-eminence.
In his first open-house interaction with all faculty members as the director, Chakrabarti emphasised on a culture of scholarship that is to be founded on an environment of deep and relevant research.
Among other important criteria for selection in projects will be intellectual property creation and dissemination in terms of patents and licensing, obtaining matching grants from external agencies and visible national and international impact.
National and international collaboration with world`s experts will be encouraged in these projects.
PTI
