IITB announced as hub for 6 universities as spokes, including MU

MUMBAI: The University of Mumbai (MU) is selected as one of the ‘spoke’ institutions under a ₹100-crore national research grant, with IIT Bombay serving as the lead ‘hub’. The initiative is part of the Partnerships for Accelerated Innovation and Research (PAIR) program, launched by the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) under the National Education Policy 2020.

The ANRF on Friday announced the names of 31 institutions across the country that would be ‘hubs’, each designed to foster multidisciplinary research, one of which is IITB. These hubs integrate expertise from diverse fields such as physics, computer science, engineering, and material science, using a Hub-Spoke-Spike model. This model enhances collaboration between central hubs, regional research projects (spokes), and individual researchers (spikes) by streamlining resource sharing and expertise across institutions.

This collaboration will foster innovation across higher education institutions by building joint research ecosystems. With IITB at the helm, MU joins six other prestigious institutions as spokes, including the College of Engineering Pune (CoEP), Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Pune, IIIT Nagpur, NIT Goa, M S University Vadodara, and Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology.

Each hub-and-spoke network will receive ₹100 crore over the next five years to strengthen research infrastructure and drive cutting-edge studies in emerging fields like industry 4.0, advanced materials, and green energy.

“This initiative will usher in a new era of research and innovation at the University of Mumbai,” said Prof Ravindra Kulkarni, vice chancellor of MU. “The PAIR initiative will not only enhance our research capacity but also promote inter-institutional collaboration, allowing our faculty and students to learn and work alongside experts at IIT Bombay.”

The MU has already submitted 14 projects in key areas such as cybersecurity, semiconductors, and artificial intelligence - many of which align with national development goals.

Prof Farooq Qazi, director of the MU’s research development cell, will lead the research projects at MU. He will serve as the principal investigator and work closely with Prof V M Gadre from IITB, who will mentor the initiative on behalf of the hub institute. Prof Qazi said, “This research grant gives the university a platform to make its mark in advanced fields like semiconductor technology, cybersecurity, AI, and nanotechnology. Collaborating with IIT Bombay will deepen the knowledge base of our faculty and build a new generation of researchers.”