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Three-city tour by Purdue presidential delegation deepens collaboration and includes meetings with cabinet ministers, corporate leaders and alumni, fortifying a historic and growing partnership with India
Purdue leadership, led by President Mung Chiang, recently concluded a multiday trip to India, meeting with academic and research partners, U.S. and Indian government officials, and industry stakeholders to fortify the momentum of a 10-year strategic partnership. (Photo provided)
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — In a significant step to expand Purdue University’s global leadership in innovation and business, President Mung Chiang led a high-level delegation on a three-day visit to India last week, aimed at solidifying the university’s role as a pivotal partner in India’s rapidly growing semiconductor, finance and emerging technology sectors. This visit marks a new chapter in Purdue’s 125-year relationship with India, dating back to its first Indian students.
Purdue’s leadership team held 12 high-level meetings in three cities with Indian government officials, top academic institutions and industry leaders. The discussions centered on collaborating in education, expanding joint R&D initiatives and exploring new opportunities in critical technologies such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, finance and aerospace.
The delegation’s visit included pivotal meetings in Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai. A centerpiece of the trip was Purdue’s role in the inaugural SEMICON India Conference inaugurated by Narendra Modi, India’s prime minister. Purdue’s milestone partnership with the India Semiconductor Mission was highlighted during the conference’s inaugural ceremony. In May 2023, Purdue announced a transformative agreement to become the flagship academic partner on semiconductors with the government of India, fostering joint research and development, education, and talent development in this essential field.
Chiang and the delegation also held strategic discussions with India’s minister for electronics and IT, Ashwini Vaishnaw, who oversees the country’s semiconductor initiatives. The two leaders committed to amplifying Purdue’s involvement in driving workforce development and R&D collaborations that will fortify India’s position as a trusted partner in the global semiconductor supply chain.
In a meeting with Dharmendra Pradhan, India’s minister of education, and top leaders from Indian higher education at the minister’s residence, the Purdue delegation discussed deepening educational partnerships under India’s New Education Policy 2020. Pradhan expressed support for enhancing collaboration in emergent technologies by establishing a global center of excellence; developing joint, dual and twinning degree programs; and creating more long-term internship opportunities for Indian students at Purdue.
The visit focused on business and finance as well. The Purdue delegation met with India’s minister for finance and corporate affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman, to explore joint degree programs, finance and supply chain innovation, and research collaboration under India’s newly formed Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF). Additionally, the delegation met with Ram Mohan Naidu, India’s new cabinet minister for civil aviation and a Purdue alumnus, to discuss collaborations in aerospace and aviation, reinforcing Purdue’s leadership in this critical field. Purdue alumnus and Indian lawmaker Sribharat Mathukumilli also joined this meeting.
Further deepening strategic ties, the Purdue delegation met with India’s foreign secretary, Vikram Misri, to discuss operationalizing the Indo-U.S. initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies, a bilateral framework launched in January 2023 to enhance cooperation across the semiconductor, AI, quantum, space and biotechnology sectors. Purdue, as a leading U.S. institution in these fields, will play a critical role in shaping the future of global challenge initiatives.
Eric Garcetti, U.S. ambassador to India, hosted the Purdue delegation at his residence in Delhi for a meeting. The ambassador and his team appreciated Purdue’s strong partnership with India and expressed strong support for expanding the partnership by establishing the first Indo-U.S. global challenge institute on semiconductors, co-led by Purdue and leading Indian academic institutions. Chiang also extended a special invitation to Garcetti to visit Purdue in the near future.
Purdue officials met with Abhay Karandikar, India’s secretary of science and technology and the interim CEO of ANRF, to discuss ways of further amplifying the strong collaboration between Purdue and India’s Department of Science and Technology. The two sides expressed support for sustaining and expanding on initiatives such as the Overseas Visiting Doctoral Fellowship program. This unique program, in which 25 Indian doctoral candidates annually conduct research at Purdue alongside faculty in a broad range of disciplines, has already yielded numerous groundbreaking joint publications and research partnerships.
The delegation also met with several industry leaders, including Purdue alumnus Venu Srinivasan, chairman emeritus of TVS Motor Co., and the top leadership of Tata Consultancy Services, led by CEO K. Krithivasan.
At a Boilermaker reception in Mumbai, the delegation unveiled the plan to establish an office in India. As Purdue enters its next phase of global expansion, India remains a cornerstone of the university’s global strategy and a formally designated strategic priority country for Purdue. With deep ties across academia, government and industry as well as deep engagement across all three land-grant pillars of research, learning and engagement, the Purdue-India partnership will continue to flourish, driving innovations that will shape the future of technology and education for years to come.
“The 125-year partnership between Purdue University and India, spread across three centuries, reflects shared values of innovation, excellence and leadership,” said Chiang. “Our recent visit has laid the groundwork for even deeper and broader collaboration in the years ahead, and we are excited to partner with universities, companies, government agencies and alumni in India.”
Chiang was accompanied by Dimitrios Peroulis, senior vice president for partnerships and online; Alyssa Wilcox, senior vice president and university campaign planning committee chair; Vijay Raghunathan, vice president for global partnerships and programs and director of semiconductor education; and Jim Bullard, the Dr. Samual R. Allen Dean of the Mitch Daniels School of Business. Leaders from Purdue’s Krach Institute of Tech Diplomacy were also in India, further amplifying the Purdue-India collaboration.
About Purdue University
Purdue University is a public research institution demonstrating excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities and with two colleges in the top four in the United States, Purdue discovers and disseminates knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 105,000 students study at Purdue across modalities and locations, including nearly 50,000 in person on the West Lafayette campus. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 13 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its first comprehensive urban campus in Indianapolis, the Mitch Daniels School of Business, Purdue Computes and the One Health initiative — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.