The National Institute of Technology–Karnataka (NIT-K), Surathkal, and the Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration in mining safety, research, and development, knowledge exchange, capacity building, and technical education.The MoU was signed on Wednesday by B. Ravi, Director, NIT-K, and Surjeet Katewa, Director of Mines Safety, DGMS. The agreement will provide a framework for collaborative projects between the two organisations over the next three years.The collaboration aims to facilitate joint projects in education, research, development, and outreach, with both organisations agreeing to share complementary resources, including personnel, facilities, expertise, and know-how, a NIT-K release said on Friday.The MoU provides for collaboration across a wide range of research and development areas, including advanced mining technologies, occupational health and safety, geomechanics, automation and artificial intelligence (AI), airborne dust prevention, mine ventilation, mine water treatment, ground control, safety management plans, numerical modelling, mine air quality assessment, and the development of a national database for occupational health and safety in Indian mines.Under the agreement, NIT-K will serve as a knowledge partner to the DGMS in areas such as technical guidance during investigations of accidents and dangerous occurrences, standardisation of scientific studies, development of standards and guidelines for mining equipment and machinery, technical assistance in scientific and R&D instrumentation, preparation of question banks for competency examinations, and other occupational health and safety matters.The partnership will also promote training and short courses for DGMS officers, covering areas such as safety and sustainability, geomechanics, ventilation, fire hazards, environmental subjects, numerical modelling, mine automation and AI, drone applications, data analytics, safety engineering, and offshore and deep-sea mining technologies. Published - August 28, 2026 06:39 pm IST