XLRI Delhi-NCR campus to set up India’s first dedicated school of automobile design and management

PINAKI MAJUMDAR

Jamshedpur, March 5: Driven by a strong post-pandemic revival, evolving consumer tastes and the need for sustainable mobility solutions, India’s automotive sector is poised for its next phase of growth.

A critical component will be the capability to not only “Make in India” but also “Design in India” through highly skilled design talent.

Indian School for Design of Automobiles (INDEA)

Recognizing this need, XLRI the oldest B-school in India founded in 1949 announced the setting up of the ‘Indian School for Design of Automobiles’ (INDEA) – a first-of-its-kind dedicated finishing school for automobile design in India in association with XLRI alumnus and automobile industry expert Avik Chattopadhyay.

The three pillars of INDEA will be – the balance of industrial knowledge, rich industry interface and exposure to global thought and application.

INDEA aims to get some of the world’s leading and most respected designers to come to the school as visiting faculty.

Also Read- Jeff Bezos reclaims title of world’s richest person surpassing Elon Musk

Director emphasizes commitment to India’s automobiles design hub vision

Commenting on the occasion, Father K.S. Casimir, Director, XLRI Delhi-NCR Campus said, “XLRI strongly believes in ‘For the Greater Good’ and we work for the greater common good in shaping the management education sector and the community at large. We felt the acute need to support India’s ambitions to be a design hub and resonate with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s emphasis on the need for a paradigm shift and the vision of aiming for the day when people across the world want to buy a car ‘designed’ in India. Our effort with ‘Indian School for Design of Automobiles’ is to bridge the gap for skilled designers who also understand the nuances of management and customer preferences creating well-rounded professionals for the Indian Automotive industry.”

Avik Chattopadhyay spearheads INDEA to advance automotive design

Avik Chattopadhyay said, “The Indian automobile industry is one of the strongest pillars of the Indian economy. It is poised for its next phase of growth post pandemic with factors like clean energy, evolving consumer behaviour and greater focus on circular-sustainability. All this will need a fresh look at design as a fundamental ingredient in business strategy. That throws up the critical need for a new-age design school that can nurture and develop world-class automobile designers and design managers. My experience in the automotive industry and interactions with my peers over the last few years have led me to come up with the thought for INDEA as I owe this to the industry that has nurtured me. I am delighted that my alma mater has the same vision. As a team, XLRI and I look forward to building INDEA to serve the needs of the market and the nation.”

One-year post-graduate programme

INDEA will be offering various programmes, from a Master’s in Automobile Design and Management to refreshers for practising designers and inductions for CXOs.

Seminars, master classes and workshops will also be planned as part of the annual calendar. A programme in Automobile Restoration is also proposed.

The Masters in Automobile Design and Management will be a one-year post-graduate programme with an intake of 20-25 students every year from all graduate schools through a screening process.