IIT Delhi, Jindal Steel Sign MoU to establish Nodal Centre of Excellence for Structural Steel.
Photo Credit: IIT Delhi
New Delhi, February 23, 2026: The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Jindal Steel to establish a Nodal Centre of Excellence (CoE) aimed at advancing research, design innovation, and skill development in structural steel, with a strong focus on high-strength and performance-oriented steel applications.
The initiative is expected to significantly enhance the use of structural steel in construction, enabling more sustainable buildings, lower life-cycle costs, and faster infrastructure delivery across India.
The Nodal CoE will function as a translational platform, integrating research, design, fabrication, and construction.
Its focus areas will include housing, bridges, tall buildings, and industrial structures, with emphasis on modernizing codes, standards, and design methodologies.
The centre will promote performance-based design, durability, low-damage structural systems, multi-hazard resilience, and reduced carbon footprint—key priorities for India’s evolving infrastructure needs.
Nationwide skilling and capacity building through the MoU between IIT Delhi and Jindal Steel:
In addition to research, the CoE will undertake nationwide capacity building through workshops, specialized training programs, digital platforms, and direct design support for major infrastructure projects.
Chair Professorships will be instituted to attract global experts and strengthen industry-linked, performance-driven research.
As a national nodal body, the Centre will coordinate with multiple Centres of Excellence, IITs, government ministers, industry stakeholders, and professional bodies to ensure aligned research, technology transfer, skilling, and outreach.
As the nodal institute, IIT Delhi will provide technical leadership through a hub-and-spoke model.
Other premier institutes—Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, and Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee—will contribute through research, training, outreach, curriculum development, and preparation of technical handbooks.
Commenting on the collaboration, Rangan Banerjee, Director, IIT Delhi, said, “The partnership would bring academic rigour and continuity to structural steel research, particularly for high-strength applications suited to Indian conditions. He noted that the Centre would support systematic review of design frameworks, generate reference materials, and enable sustained dialogue among researchers, policymakers, and professionals.”
Gautam Malhotra, CEO of Jindal Steel, said, “India is at a critical juncture in infrastructure development. While steel production capacity is robust, he emphasized the need to strengthen the ecosystem for performance-oriented structural steel.
He described the partnership as a strategic step towards modernizing standards, advancing research, and delivering scalable, resilient, and sustainable infrastructure solutions.”
Supporting Viksit Bharat 2047 vision:
The MoU aligns with India’s broader infrastructure modernization agenda by strengthening standards, deepening research integration, and enhancing technical capabilities.
By bringing academia and industry closer, the Nodal Centre of Excellence is expected to play a key role in building a resilient, sustainable, and globally competitive steel construction ecosystem, in line with the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047.
EOM.
