NEW DELHI, India -- 20 April 2001 -- Cisco Systems, Inc., the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, and IIT Delhi announced the launch of the "Advanced Networking Research Lab" at IIT Delhi, the first of its kind in India. This is a result of the MoU that was signed between Cisco and IIT Delhi in April 2000. Cisco will be investing US $ 200,000 in the sponsored lab and will provide training, related training materials and on-going support. The 24x7 lab will be a resource center for faculty and students to conduct research, for students to obtain hands-on training and for evaluating and demonstrating Cisco's AVVID (Architecture for Video, Voice and Integrated Data) solution.
Inaugurating the lab, Prem Jain, Vice President & GM, New Business Venture, Cisco Systems, Inc. said, "India is well recognized now for its qualified technology manpower. By creating this lab, we are giving an opportunity to the best talent to develop solutions for future communication technologies on the IP platform. Cisco will leverage its resources to bring to market world class solutions that are developed at this lab."
Cisco's investment will cover the cost of equipment (routers, high end gigabit switches, firewalls and a complete VOIP solution – call manager, gateways and VoIP phones), maintenance and fellowships for the MS/PHD students every year. Cisco's commitment to the fellowship program will be for a period of four years initially, after which it will be reviewed again.
Further, Cisco will also provide internships for qualified students at its Global Development Center in Bangalore. In addition, Cisco along with IIT Delhi will initiate collaborations for joint research and explore the possibility of sending selected researchers for visits to Cisco facilities in India, US or elsewhere.
According to Prof. Rajpal Sirohi, Director of IIT Delhi, "We are grateful to Cisco Systems for their generous support towards developing world-class laboratories in Department of Computer Science and Engineering at IIT Delhi. Such labs ensure that our graduates experience state-of-the-art facilities and training."
Prof. Anshul Kumar, Head of the Department of Computer Science, is equally excited about the lab. According to him, "You can be sure that this facility will be used round-the-clock to undertake research in areas such as IP based voice/video communication, MPLS networks, optical switching, and Web acceleration. We also intend to throw this facility open to every student and researcher from IIT who needs to access its resources."
The research will initially focus on Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) networks and in future will include a nation-wide test network to study quality of service (QoS) and related issues. This is especially relevant considering the immense Voice over IP (VoIP) opportunities.
About IIT Delhi
IIT Delhi is one of the six Indian Institutes of Technology created as centers of excellence for higher training, research and development in science, engineering and technology in India. The IIT system is famous for its innovative and demanding academic programs and for the quality of its graduates many of whom are leaders and innovators in major businesses and academic institutions worldwide. The IIT system is also the lynchpin of the information technology revolution in India and leads research and innovation efforts in all major branches of engineering. More information available at www.iitd.ernet.in.
About Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet. Cisco news and information are available at www.cisco.com.
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