Diversified entity ITC Ltd on Tuesday said it has entered into a partnership with IIT Delhi to support research in identified STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) areas.

A memorandum of understanding has been signed to this effect with the institute with an aim to accelerate India's journey towards achieving its sustainable development goals (SDGs), ITC said in a statement.

Currently, the areas identified for research are energy storage, low carbon cold transportation, and plastic biodegradation to name a few and will further pave the way for more research in the areas of mutual interest, it added.

''It is ITC's objective to leverage the technical expertise of institutions such as IITs and support R&D activities in identified areas, which will accelerate India's journey towards achieving its SDGs,'' ITC Executive Vice President and Head - Social Investments Prabhakar Lingareddy said.

He said ITC has embarked on the next horizon of sustainable excellence with a comprehensive Sustainability 2.0 vision with ambitious targets that call for inclusive strategies that can support even more livelihoods, pursue newer pathways to fight climate change, support circular economy and enable transition to a net-zero ecosystem.

IIT Delhi Dean, Research & Development Sunil Khare said, ''The collaboration will combine the cutting-edge research at IIT Delhi with application know-how of ITC to accelerate innovation and develop solutions for a variety of end-use applications of our customers and society at large.''

The industry is undergoing massive transformation with an ever-increasing need for sustainable and functional products that are driving new innovations, he added.

Stating that the institute has made significant contributions in many areas including academic activities, research, innovation and technology development, IIT Delhi Dean, Corporate Relations Anurag Rathore said,''Collaboration between the industry and academia will help us in our pursuit of excellence and also further strengthen the public research and innovation ecosystem of India.''