Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between
Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Educational and Research Institute ( Deemed University )
and
TCG – Centres for Research and Education in Science and Technology (TCG-CREST) , Kolkata
for Academic collaboration in the areas of common interest in regard to
Research, Teaching, Training, Publications, Projects and any other similar educational endeavours

MoU signed on : 18 March 2020

TCG-CREST, Kolkata and Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Educational and Research Institute (RKMVERI), declared by Government of India as Deemed-to-be-University under Section 3 of UGC Act, 1956, inspired by the common objectives, vision and mission have collaborated to promote and reinforce, accelerate and quicken— in fine, to create and sustain a powerful synergy for the progress of research, education, teaching and training in the various areas of common interest.

The Chatterjee Group (TCG) has already set up in Kolkata in West Bengal, some Centres (and is planning to set up more Centres) called ‘TCG CENTRES FOR RESEARCH AND EDUCATION IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY’, a not-for-profit private company. CREST aspires to become an institution of global eminence in pursuit of excellence in research and education in new and emerging areas of science and technology through the setting up of such Centres. CREST is promoting and fostering academic collaborations with several reputed academic institutes devoted to high quality research and teaching in India and abroad.

RKMVERI, declared as a Deemed University and notified as such by the then Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India, under Section 3 of University Grants Commission (UGC) Act, 1956, is a humble initiative by Ramakrishna Mission (a more than 120-year old non-profit, charitable and philanthropic organization having roots in the hoary spiritual and cultural traditions of India as interpreted and taught by Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda) in order to actualize the educational vision of Swami Vivekananda, namely, imparting to the youths ‘character-making, life-building’ education blending harmoniously the two sciences, ‘natural and humanistic’ by integrating the best elements of the East and the West— investigation and exploration into the internal Nature of a being, life, mind and Consciousness, together with the external Nature, both the microcosmic and macrocosmic universes through study, education and research in physical, mathematical and biological sciences on the one hand and Indian Heritage in its spiritual, cultural and scientific aspects on the other.

RKMVERI, in its attempt to actualize Swami Vivekananda’s educational vision, has set up a network of Institutions at various Campuses across the country thus becoming a multi-campus University with campuses in the various Centres of Ramakrishna Mission all over India, each Centre being devoted to a specialized niche area or ‘thrust area’ carefully chosen with the following three criteria in mind:

  1. that these areas are ‘gap areas’ in the sense that most of the existing Indian Universities do not address these areas notwithstanding their great relevance and need in national building and rejuvenation;
  2. that the various Centres housing these Specialized Faculty Centres in Ramakrishna Mission Campuses for these niche areas already have fairly well-developed infrastructural facilities built up over the several decades of their existence;
  3. that these areas have a direct impact on enhancing the quality of life of the common man, especially the underprivileged and marginalized sections of the society,

RKMVERI’s objectives, vision and mission, derived as they are from its parent organization (Sponsoring Society), Ramakrishna Mission itself, largely match those of TCG —CREST which has set up and is setting up Centres of Excellence in Kolkata in certain emerging areas particularly in science and technology through academic programmes with high quality assurance integrating research and teaching to create a pool of dedicated and brilliant young researchers guided and supervised by senior professors.

TCG-CREST and RKMVERI, inspired by the common objectives, vision and mission, to promote and reinforce, accelerate and quicken — in fine, to create and sustain a powerful synergy for the progress of research, education, teaching and training in the various areas of common interest have entered into a MoU on 18 March 2020.

Objectives of Collaboration

TCG-CREST and RKMVERI have agreed to promote cooperation in various fields through:

  1. Exchange of scholars, teachers and researchers;
  2. Exchange of literature, information and methodology;
  3. Running and conducting of academic programmes in areas of common interest sharing resources both human and otherwise, like infrastructural facilities;
  4. Bringing out publications of common interest having bearing on the emerging global challenges and needs with mutual cooperation in terms of sharing of expertise, knowhow and resources as may be mutually agreed upon;
  5. Development and implementation of collaborative research projects in the areas of common interest and methodology as mutually agreed upon and subject to Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) clause (as agreed upon). etc.

Such cooperation shall be implemented by the following means:

  1. Establishment of mutual relation between the academic and technical Departments/Divisions of the two organizations,
  2. Ensuring of quality teaching in various postgraduate academic programmes in areas of common interest leading to degrees like M.A./ M.Sc./ M.Tech./ M.S./M.Phil., and other similar degrees, etc., by exchange of academics, scholars and experts and ensuring their proper placement, with the students getting enrolled in RKMVERI which is a Deemed University empowered to grant degrees as per University Grants Commission (UGC) norms and regulations and CREST providing and sharing all facilities created by them,
  3. Making provision for the enrolment and registration, under RKMVERI, of the research scholars and fellows appointed/recruited by CREST,
  4. Establishment of Chairs in RKMVERI and CREST at the senior and junior levels, particularly in the areas relating to ancient Indian wisdom having a bearing on modern scientific knowledge and vice versa, like Sanskrit and Philosophy, Indian Heritage, Consciousness Studies (from the ancient and modern perspectives), philosophy of science, humanistic ethics, social and management sciences with human face, etc., in order to create and sustain a balance between the two sciences, namely, `natural and humanistic’ to promote the formation of an integral character in the students and the faculty with a harmonious combination of ‘heart, head and hand’ so that they will be enabled and empowered through the education imparted in these two institutions to feel deeply, to think loftily, to will nobly “for their own self-liberation from the bondage of ignorance and for the welfare of the whole world” as Swami Vivekananda taught. etc.