MoES-AcSIR MoU: 10 Earth Science Institutes to Award PhDs

The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) and the Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR) have tied up to open doctoral research in earth system sciences, a partnership announced on 19 October 2026. The Memorandum of Understanding was executed on 21 August 2026 and declared at a ceremony on 13 October 2026 at Prithvi Bhawan, the Ministry's headquarters in New Delhi.

Who signed it

For the Ministry the document was signed by Dr. Praveen Kumar D., Scientist-G and Mission Director of Mission Mausam. For the academy it was signed by Prof. Manoj Kumar Dhar, Director of AcSIR. The declaration and exchange of documents took place before the Secretary, MoES, Dr. Srinivasa Kumar Tummala, with senior officials and institute directors present.

What changes for students

All ten research institutes under the Ministry have been recognised as AcSIR Associated Research Institutes (AcSIR-ARIs) and are already taking part in the academy's current PhD enrolment cycle. A student selected under the AcSIR doctoral programme will do the research at an MoES institute, supervised by MoES scientists who have been recognised as AcSIR faculty. The degree will be awarded by AcSIR, and the certificate will name the host institute. Each institute has a nodal AcSIR coordinator, and a central coordinator sits at the Ministry to run academic operations.

The research on offer

• Weather forecasting, climate services and numerical weather prediction
• Polar and cryosphere research
• Ocean observation and marine robotics
• Deep-sea mining and desalination
• Seismology and earthquake hazard assessment
• Coastal processes and marine living resources
• Artificial intelligence and machine learning applied to earth sciences

Rights over the research

On intellectual property, the arrangement credits the student as inventor, while joint intellectual property is to be shared mutually by the two sides. The wider aim is interdisciplinary work, easier sharing of laboratories and equipment among national institutions, and better academic openings for students and early-career scientists.

Why it matters

The Secretary, MoES, speaking at the ceremony, said the Ministry, its institutions, its scientists and the students working in earth sciences would all gain from the tie-up, and that the Ministry looked forward to a lasting association for the benefit of earth science research. Taken together, the arrangement knits the Ministry's ten institutes and the academy into one setting for advanced research and teaching across oceanography, atmospheric sciences, hydrology and planetary systems, so a student can use national laboratory facilities while holding a formal doctoral registration.