DW BUREAU / PATIALA Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala and Punjab Pollution Control Board jointly initiated Industry Institute Interface (I3) Meet. The event was inaugurated by Chief Guest Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer, Cabinet Minister for Science, Technology & Environment. The event was launched in the august presence of Prof Adarsh Pal Vig, Chairman, PPCB, Prof. Prakash Gopalan, Director, TIET and a host of illustrious dignitaries representing the state and city administration as well as PPCB. Speaking on occasion, Hayer appreciated the efforts put forth by the PPCB and TIET for bringing the industry and research community on a common platform to discuss and resolve various environmental and technological bottlenecks faced by the industries across Punjab. The minister also launched the I3 Website envisaged to facilitate user-friendly interaction between the Industry and academia for developing viable solutions for Industry. This Website will be a single-window solution for all industrial problems: A platform for Industry to list its problems directly and for experts to offer their expertise to mitigate the Industry's environmental and technological issues. G. S. Majithia, Member Secretary, PPCB, briefed the audience about the objective of the I3 workshop. He stated that this event was the first-ever initiative by any state to tackle environmental issues with the direct intervention of the scientific community from academic institutions. Addressing the audience, Prof. Vig, Chairman of PPCB, outlined the initiatives the Board took in joining hands with technical institutions to play a pivotal role in controlling the pollution at the source and help in restoring the best environmental conditions in Punjab. Dr Vig emphasised that the I3 workshop envisages reducing the gap between industry expectations (practice) and academic offerings (theory) by direct involvement of Industry to attain an outcome-based symbiotic relationship. Through this endeavour, it is envisaged to involve all the stakeholders, viz., Institutions, Industry, Students and Society, leading to a win-win partnership. Prof. Gopalan, Director, TIET, appreciated the efforts put forth by the academic community in reaching out to Industry to find technological solutions to industrial problems. During the event, the solutions to problem statements submitted by the Industry were presented by research teams of TIET in the form of oral presentations and posters. Industry and Academia participants were provided with an open platform to discuss various collaborative endeavours. (editor@dailyworld.in)