The Nepal-India Chamber of Commerce & Industry (NICCI) and the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IITR) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on research and development in renewable energy.

The agreement covers many areas: solar energy, energy storage, green hydrogen, microgrids, capacity-building training, and academia-industry partnerships. NICCI Director General KM Singh and IITR Dean Prof Vivek Kumar Malik signed the MoU on behalf of their respective institutions.

As part of the agreement, IIT Roorkee, Asia’s oldest engineering college, will offer courses and workshops for NICCI members under its Centre for Sustainable Energy.

NICCI, in turn, will support hackathons and exhibitions at IITR to spark students’ interest in emerging technologies. Such events will be organised periodically under mutually agreed terms.

“We need stronger and reliable partners for NICCI in the coming days,” said NICCI president Sunil KC after the signing. “NICCI is bridging the gap between industry and academia by collaborating with the best institutions in the country and region.”