I am delighted to be here at IIT Gandhinagar, which is known to be different from the other prestigious institutes of India. We, in Japan are working hard to increase the scope of science and technology by collaborating with other universities of the world.

Taka Otsuka, Japanese State Minister of Finance

Japan is extremely important in our plans for internationalisation. Mr Otsuka’s visit will help us strengthen our partnership with JAIST further, and will forge other partnerships with Japanese academia and industry.

Sudhir K Jain, Director, IITGN

The Japanese State Minister of Finance Mr Taku Otsuka, who was in the city to attend the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group’s annual convention, visited the institute on May 24. The minister, along with his official team of 17 delegates, met the faculty and students, and visited the institute’s research facilities. A delegation of four faculty members from Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) were also visiting IITGN at the same time.

For several years now, IITGN and JAIST have been exchanging students and faculty, and have developed an effective educational and scientific partnership. Students from JAIST have been taking part in various programs of IITGN in initiatives like India Ki Khoj – a one-of-its-kind cultural immersion programme. An increasing number of students from IITGN have also been visiting JAIST. While four students of the institute took summer internship at JAIST in 2016, this year the number has gone up to eight. Prof Shungo Kawanishi of JAIST has been visiting IITGN to teach courses on Japanese Culture.

In December 2016, students from both the institutes worked together in a five-day workshop on Design and Cognitive Interventions for Large-scale Social Concerns, intended to address social issues and concerns through technological interventions.