Exploring Synergies with Renowned Educational Institutions in Tamil Nadu
The Gate Institute representatives held various meetings during the second week of March 2025, with the intention of strengthening links with leading educational institutions, Think Tanks, and Technoparks in Tamil Nadu, India, and exploring ways to make their services available in Sri Lanka.
The Gate Institute Co-Founders and Board members, Mr. Jeyaraj Kulasekaram and Mr. Sathasivam Mangaleswaran, participated in these meetings. Professor V. Kangasingam, former Vice-Chancellor of the University of the East, who was then in India, also participated in the discussions.
The meeting, chaired by the Managing Director of Tamil Nadu Smart and Advanced Manufacturing (TANSAM) Dr. Arumugam Murukiah, discussed how TANSAM, which is a joint initiative of the Government of Tamil Nadu and Siemens Industry Software India Pvt. Ltd., can provide validation, prototyping and lab access to the activities of the Gate for Innovation Venture and Entrepreneurship (https://www.give.community/ ) platform, recently launched by The Gate Institute to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem through digital technology to foster start-ups in Sri Lanka.
The meeting with the Indian Institute of Technology–Madras (IIT–Madras) was attended by Dr Muthu Singaram, CEO, Healthcare Technology Innovation Centre, Indian Institute of Technology–Madras (IIT–Madras) and Dr Siva Baskaran, Senior Manager, Startup Programmes, Nodal Deep Tech Incubator of IIT -Madras.
The Gate Institute representatives who visited TICL Bio Park Ltd. met with Dr. Priya Elamvazhuthi, Senior Manager of Startup Programmes, Dr. P. Poongumaran, Associate Vice President, and Dr. V. Senthilkumar, Manager, Scientific/Bioprocess. The meeting discussed signing memoranda of understanding (MoUs) regarding potential projects that could be undertaken in Sri Lanka in the future.
A fruitful meeting was held at Loyola College to launch AI short courses in journalism, data science and social sciences in the Northern and Eastern provinces of Sri Lanka. Dr C. Muthu, Head of the Department of Data Science and Dr Arun Kumar, Director of LIFE, participated in the meeting.
The development of the startup sector in Sri Lanka and potential avenues for assistance from Tamil Nadu were discussed in a meeting with Sivarajah Ramanathan, Director and CEO of the Tamil Nadu Government’s StartupTN Mission.
The meeting with Vellore Institute of Technology was also very productive. In this meeting, Professor Dr. R. Sivakumar, School of Mechanical Engineering, Professor Dr. R. Ganesan, School of Computer Science and Engineering, Professor. Dr. S.K. Sudarsanam, VIT Business School and Dr. L. Jayarangan, Manager- Incubation, participated.
Representatives from The Gate Institute also met with B. Krishnamoorthy, Project Director of Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Cooperation, and Professor Dr S. Aravinthan, Director of the Institute of Distance Education, University of Madras, among others, during this visit.
