Consul General of Germany to India, Kathrin Misera-Lang (left), Director DAAD Regional Office New Delhi, Katja Lasch, Secretary General of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), Dr. Kai Sicks and Director, Goethe Zentrum Hyderabad Amita Desai in Hyderabad on Monday
| Photo Credit: NAGARA GOPAL
Germany and India are both expanding partnerships in many fields and closer academic cooperation holds a lot of potential, Consul General, German Consulate Chennai, Kathrin Misera-Lang said here on Monday.
Ms. Misera-Lang was leading a high-profile delegation from German Academic Exchange Service or Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) comprising 27 members, including directors of DAAD New Delhi and rectors of 18 German institutes of higher education, to premier institutes in Hyderabad.
The delegation is on seven-day trip for its DAAD higher education policy visit to India and Hyderabad was their first stop. The tour concludes in Delhi with an education fair later this week.
Ms. Misera-Lang said the biennial visit was to form new networks, learn about the Indian higher education system, and strengthen relationships with already partner institutes such as the Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, the International Institute of Information Technology Hyderabad, and University of Hyderabad. With improved collaborations, she said more German students would study and research in Hyderabad soon.
Speaking to The HinduDAAD General Secretary Kai Sicks said Germany has about 50,000 Indian students as per latest numbers, compared to 6,000 students 10 years ago. And India remains an important geopolitical region and an important ally in Germany, for Germany.
“The academic bridge between India and Germany is strong and future-ready. The presence of top representatives of Germany’s institutions in Hyderabad is a message of clear will and express ambition to intensify academic ties,” he said.
Mr. Sicks added that funding for education and research is “more committed and considered an investment,” even for Indo-German ties. As of 2023, DAAD funded 1.4 lakh German and International students with primary funding from the German Federal Foreign Office, the European Union, and various organisations.
The German Indian Academic Network for Tomorrow (SPARC – GIANT), a scheme for promotion of academic and research collaboration, promoting various disciplines such as sustainability, mobility, manufacturing and industry, is in that direction, he informed.
Despite challenges of ‘complexity’ in Indian higher education ecosystem, for instance the vast number of HEIs and understanding it, and the process of taking in students while adhering to quality and competition, Mr. Sicks said he is ‘optimistic, and the focus is on India’.
The visiting delegation now will look for collaborations in areas of mutual interest, exchange programmes and dual-degree programmes, and others.
At IITH, earlier in the day, Director B.S. Murty said global partnerships drive innovation and academic excellence. The visit of the DAAD delegation and German university leaders marks a significant milestone in strengthening Indo-German ties in higher education and research, he added.
Published – March 18, 2025 08:00 pm is
