SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, August 29: Coal India Limited (CIL) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with IIT Indian School of Mines (ISM) to establish a Centre of Excellence for Mining.
The agreement was signed by Dr. B. Veera Reddy, Director (Technical) of CIL, in the presence of Chairman P.M. Prasad, Executive Director (Production) Alok Lalit Kumar, General Manager (Corporate Planning) Chaudhary Shivraj Singh, and Dr. Achyut Ghatak, Director (Technical/RD&T) CMPDI Ranchi.
Representing IIT ISM, Prof. Sukumar Mishra, Director of TEXMiN, signed the MoU along with Prof. Dheeraj Kumar, Project Director TEXMiN, Deputy Director Prof. R.M. Bhattacharjee, CEO Suraj Prakash, and CBDO Muhammad Danish.
Aim to enhance mining productivity, safety and sustainability
The Centre of Excellence aims to enhance mining productivity, safety, and sustainability by integrating advanced digital solutions and driving digital transformation in mining through cyber-physical systems (CPS)-based technologies.
According to the MoU, CIL will support IIT (ISM) and TEXMiN in establishing the “IMiN – Innovation in Mining” Centre of Excellence for Mining 4.0 at TEXMiN, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad. This state-of-the-art facility will serve as a hub for fostering start-up ecosystems, capacity building, and advancing technology and process development.
Also Read- Jharkhand Governor accepts Champai’s resignation, Ramdas Soren to take oath as minister
Focus areas and impact
The IMiN Centre of Excellence will focus on modernizing mining methods to improve productivity, enhance safety standards, and advance the overall sustainability of mining operations.
P.M. Prasad, Chairman of CIL, emphasized the strategic importance of the initiative, noting that IMiN would be crucial for implementing Mining 4.0 in the Indian mineral sector, utilizing CPS-based technologies to create a hub for digitalization best practices in mining.
Future goals
Prof. Sukumar Mishra, Director of IIT (ISM), highlighted the initiative’s broader vision, emphasizing that sustainability, traceability, and safety are critical for mining organizations.
He stressed that achieving these goals requires accelerating digital transformation and integrating the entire value chain from the mine to the plant and port.
“Today, sustainability, traceability and safety are paramount for mining organizations. This can only be achieved by accelerating their digital transformation journey and integrating the entire value chain from the mine to the plant and port”, he said.
Prof. Dheeraj Kumar, Project Director of TEXMiN and Deputy Director of IIT (ISM), added that the integration of cyber-physical systems in the Indian mining context could significantly enhance efficiency and drive the development of new technologies.
