IIT Roorkee, Shah Paper Mills sign agreement to establish research lab, skill development programme

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee Development Foundation ( IITRDF) signed an agreement with Shah Paper Mills Limited to establish research laboratory and skill development training programme to develop advance packaging research laboratory.

This collaboration focuses on providing innovation research and skill development to have impact on communities at large. The IITRDF aims to bridge gap between industry and academia to promote research and development on specific requirements of industries with the help of faculties of IIT Roorkee.

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The agreement was signed under the corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative on December 15, 2022 at IIT Roorkee in the presence of Shah Paper Mills Limited, joint managing director, Pritesh Shah; Gujarat Paper Mill Association, representative, Kanu Mehra; Shah Paper Mills, executive director, Shreyas Bahety; IITRDF, board of directors, KK Pant, Akshay Dvivedi, Bhola Ram Gurjar, Manish Shrihande and DORA office representatives, Santosh Kumar (chief executive officer), Sanjay Palsule (acting dean Saharanpur campus), Dharm Dutt (head paper technology) and Millie Pant.

As mandated by government of India, under the project, Shah Paper Mills along with IIT Roorkee will be helping youths to grab employment by showcasing their skills with the training provided by IIT Roorkee.

Speaking on this occasion, IIT Roorkee, director, KK Pant, said: ‘’IITRDF will enable the Institute’s pursuit of excellence by serving as a liaison between the Institute and donors. Our partnership with Shah Paper Mills Limited is a second such partnership in this direction. The vision shared by Joint Managing Director shows a strong commitment of the Company towards sustainability by implementing best practices of circular economy and sensitivity towards the environment. With IITRDF as an Industry-Academia partnership arm of IITR, we are looking forward to creating and nurturing more such partnerships to meet global aspirations of Corporate Social Responsibility.’’

Highlighting the agreement, Shah Paper Mills Limited, joint managing director, Pritesh Shah, said: "As a part of our strong commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Shah Paper Mills Ltd. is delighted that both IIT Roorkee and students from the region will benefit from this program. With the growing potential of paper and pulp industries to absorb the young workforce, this initiative will prove fruitful for the region. Shah Paper Mills. is looking forward to working closely with IITRDF to pave out new potential collaboration opportunities to strengthen our partnership further. Collaboration with IIT Roorkee will help industries to solve technical problems by engaging students and faculties known for their technical acumen in India.’’