Amara Raja to establish Dr R N Galla Chair Professorship at IIT Tirupati

Amara Raja Energy & Mobility (ARE&M), a leading provider of comprehensive battery solutions, has signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with IIT Tirupati to establish Dr RN Galla Visiting Chair Professorship in Advanced Energy Storage Technologies at IIT Tirupati.

This Visiting Chair Professorship is made possible by generous support by Amara Raja Energy and Mobility Limited in honour of their Founding Chairman Dr Ramachandra Naidu Galla.

The Visiting Chair Professorship will span 10 years, starting from 2025 and will recognise outstanding global faculty and scientists working in the energy storage area, acknowledge their professional achievements, and support their scholarly work and research. It will allow the awardee to spend up to eight weeks a year at IIT Tirupati, deliver lectures, conduct workshops and foster research collaborations. The program will also enhance students' academic experiences, and the
Institution's reputation.

This initiative aligns with ARE&M's commitment to advancing sustainable energy solutions and pioneering developments in the energy and mobility sectors. IIT Tirupati has identified Energy storage as one of its thrust areas and is positioning itself to be a key player in various national initiatives. This support will allow the Institute to strengthen its research impact in energy storage.

Recently, ARE&M announced the development of one of India's largest Giga factories for Li-ion cell and battery pack manufacturing, with an investment of Rs 9,500 crores in Telangana. The first phase is expected to be operational this year. Additionally, ARE&M plans to establish 'ePositive Energy Labs,' an innovation and research center to advance R&D in the energy storage space.

Prof. KN Satyanarayana, Director, IIT Tirupati said, "The Chair Professorship is the highest academic honor an institute can bestow upon a faculty member in
recognition of their outstanding work in identified areas. We are deeply honored that Amara Raja has chosen IIT Tirupati to establish this Chair Professorship in honor of their founder Chairman.

"IIT Tirupati is committed to playing a vital role in the development of sustainable technologies to meet the energy requirements of our country. Such initiatives will allow the Institute to build enduring academic partnerships and nurture young talent by hosting outstanding scientists and leading professionals on our campus."

Sajjan Jindal, Chairman and Managing Director, JSW and Chairman, Board of Governors, IIT Tirupati said, "Such Industry Academia partnerships go a long way in motivating the next generation scientists and engineers to excel in their profession and help realize our Government's goal of transforming India
into Viksit Bharat by 2047.

Kris Gopalkrishnan, Co- Founder, Infosys and Chairman Axilor Ventures encouraged the industry to be open and support and embrace R&D from Academia, as this will allow for innovation and excellence to be identified and fastracked.