IIT Delhi to set up campus in UAE

A virtual summit was organised by India and UAE followed by a joint statement by the leaders of both countries in which it was agreed to establish an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in the United Arab Emirates. IIT Delhi which is already looking for expansion grabbed the opportunity. 

Earlier this week, the Lok Sabha informed that the Centre has taken the venture into consideration and IIT Delhi has already held two rounds of meetings with the Department of Education and Knowledge, Abu Dhabi, and the Indian Ministry of Education.

The IIT campus on UAE soil will be established under a framework developed by a committee chaired by former ISRO chairperson Dr K Radhakrishnan. IIT Delhi is also looking for expansion opportunities in Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Tanzania. Coincidently, this venture comes at right the time when IIT Madras has recently joined hands with the University of Birmingham. 

The Education Ministry, India revealed that meetings have been held with the Department of Education and Knowledge, UAE. In the first meeting, both sides made presentations and conveyed their enthusiasm to move forward with this project. Later, in the second meeting, the Department of Education and Knowledge, UAE invited representatives from the Department of Economic Development and the Advanced Technology Research Council to discuss further plans.

Earlier in 2021, IIT Delhi had already expressed its willingness to set up campuses in Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Now, UAE is all set to have an IIT Delhi campus in the capital Emirate. IIT Delhi is rated as India’s second-best engineering college after IIT Madras according to the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF).