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IIT Kharagpur among world best for achieving UN goals
London: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur has been ranked 57th globally among higher education institutes for its research in areas related to the
London: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur has been ranked 57th globally among higher education institutes for its research in areas related to the UN’s sustainable development goals (SDGs). The University of Auckland topped the ranking, followed by the University of Sydney.
The list includes 766 universities across 89 countries and regions, the Times Higher Education (THE) said on Wednesday. IIT Kharagpur’s rank is the best for any Indian institutes. As many as 28 Indian universities participated in the rankings exercise, of which 26 were included in the overall table.
The 17 SDGs are a to-do list for tackling by 2030 conflict, hunger, land degradation, gender inequality and climate change.
THE said IIT Kharagpur delivered a “fantastic performance” in the individual SDGs rankings, achieving fourth in the world for SDG6 (clean water and sanitation), 6th for SDG2 (zero hunger), 13th for SDG13 (climate action), joint 21st for SDG1 (no poverty) and 24th for SDG7 (affordable and clean energy).
IIT Madras has been ranked 16th for SDG9 (industry, innovation and infrastructure) and 32nd in the world for SDG6. The Anna University ranked among top 10 in the world for SDG6.
THE’s chief knowledge officer, Phil Baty, said: “It is great to see Indian universities stand as world leaders through their work towards the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, with success in areas as diverse as clean water and sanitation, climate action and good health and well being. To see IIT Kharagpur achieve India’s best ever result in a THE global rankings is a fantastic accolade to the great work universities are taking across the country to put sustainability at the heart of their missions.”
Interestingly, the ranking comes days after IIT Kharagpur and seven other IITs decided not to participate in any THE rankings claiming that the methodology is not transparent.
