The Indian railways has set up a railway chair at TERI University for the purpose of promoting research on issues of sustainable mobility, use of energy efficient technology and green energy initiatives by the railways.

For this, railways minister Suresh Prabhu has signed an agreement with the university on Monday to set up Indian railways chair for sustainable mobility there.

“The university would aim for imparting knowledge and enriching professionals in all aspects of sustainability with a multi-dimensional perspective relevant to Indian railways. The chair is expected to involve itself into issues of sustainable development, especially relevant to the rail infrastructure, use of energy efficient technology and green energy initiatives of the Railways, and to research into finding innovative solutions to these,” the release said.

The present tenure for the chair is of one year with Rs 20 lakh initial funding. It will provide leadership in conducting research and teaching in the area of railways including energy management. The chair will also provide advice to the railways on specific projects, its policies and strategies.

Other responsibilities include providing strategic guidance and solutions on: climate change with focus on GHG emission, infrastructure improvement with improved energy efficiency and sustainable development through renewable energy resources, waste management, pollution control, environment management and monitoring tools.

It is supposed to guide the research of at least one PhD scholar and two master’s level students and bring out at least one research paper on a subject jointly decided by Indian railways and TERI University. It will also develop case studies for the training of the managers.