Purdue To Open Two News Centers In India

Photo: Purdue President Mung Chiang shakes hands Friday with (left) Eric Garcetti, U.S. ambassador to India, and U.S. Sen. Todd Young following the announcements of the first-ever Purdue-India Center for Education and Engagement and the U.S.-India Center of Excellence in Semiconductors, both in India.

India-West Staff Reporter

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – Purdue University has expanded its educational collaboration with India by launching two significant initiatives: the Purdue-India Centre for Education and Engagement and a US-India Center of Excellence in Semiconductors. Announced on November 1 during a fireside chat with Indiana Senator Todd Young and US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti, these initiatives aim to foster joint degrees, enhance industry relations, and promote alumni engagement, supported by both governments.

Purdue President Mung Chiang emphasized that the Purdue-India centers will strengthen the university’s presence in India and create new pathways for collaboration in fields like artificial intelligence, data science, and business through partnerships with Indian institutions.

The Purdue-India Centre for Education and Engagement will serve as a central hub in India, facilitating joint degrees in high-demand fields alongside strategic Indian partners. The center also aims to enhance Purdue’s connections with government and industry, establish partnerships with local universities, engage alumni, and boost student recruitment.

“Both our new Center for Education and Engagement in Delhi and the new US-India Center of Excellence in Semiconductors, in collaboration with IIT Hyderabad and supported by our Indian and US governments, are milestone steps toward expanding this strategic partnership,” said Chiang. “These initiatives will create many opportunities for our students and faculty while elevating Purdue’s global impact.”

Purdue’s Indian student community is its largest international population, comprising over 3,000 students, with more than 300 faculty, researchers, and staff of Indian origin. Earlier, Garcetti met with Purdue’s delegation in New Delhi to explore ways to deepen the university’s support for mutual goals in AI, quantum computing, and critical technologies.

Part of the new US-India Centre for Excellence in Semiconductors will involve engaging with industry leaders to advance joint research and develop a skilled workforce, aligning with Purdue’s land-grant mission in research, learning, and engagement. During their visit, Young and Garcetti toured Purdue’s Birck Nanotechnology Centre, which houses the university’s semiconductor research facilities, including the 25,000-square-foot Scifres Nanofabrication Laboratory—one of the largest cleanrooms in an academic setting in the US.