After the launch of the Nissan Micra, the Japanese company is doing everything in its capacity to increase brand recognition in the country. The latest initiative comes in the form of an agreement between the aforementioned company and IIT Madras.

Nissan and IIT Madras (IIT-M) have signed two MoUs for a comprehensive research cooperation agreement to support potential engineers who will contribute future technology for mobility and create an environment for nurturing the growth of automobile technology in India. This comes in line with the Expression of Interest signed between Nissan and IIT Madras in January 2010 to begin potential collaborations between Nissan and IIT Madras in January 2010. The two parties will discuss cooperation opportunities in the field of research and development, including but not limited to research collaborations, lectures and scholarships.

“The Nissan Science Foundation (NSF), with a view to groom talented students and contribute towards development of automobile technology in India, signed an MoU today — ”Nissan Foundation Scholar” Programme to support students of IIT-M,” the company said in a statement. The moU is valid till 2015 and aims to provide chosen students with financial assistance, a short training at Nissan headquarters in Japan and an internship at RNTBCI. This is the first time that NSF is providing this kind of student support outside Japan.

“This initiative will aim to support research & development project at IIT-M in the area of engineering, science, management, humanities and social sciences, which will contribute to automobile sector in the future,” it said.

The second MoU agreed upon by Nissan’s R&D Centre in India (RNTBCI) is christened as ‘Nissan Support Program’ and will be valid up to March 2013. This endeavour aims to support Research & Development Project at IIT-M in the area of Engineering, Science, Management, Humanities and Social Sciences, which will contribute to Automobile Sector in the future.

The Nissan Support Program will solicit proposals from the faculty of IIT Madras every year for research work in the identified areas. After a joint review by Nissan officials and IIT Madras, at least 4-5 projects will be chosen for funding every year.

To celebrate the initiative, a ‘Nissan Day’ event at IIT Madras was organized for the students, faculty and management. There was a Technology Exhibition highlighting the various engineering and technological innovations being carried out at Nissan. The Nissan Micra was on display to showcase some of the performance features and design attributes of the car.