Chennai, May 19: KCG College of Technology, a premier unit of the Hindustan Group of Institutions (HGI), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Sumeet Urban Services (Chennai) V Pvt Ltd (Urbaser Sumeet) to strengthen industry-academia collaboration in the areas of sustainability, waste management, environmental awareness, and skill development.
The collaboration aims to create a long-term industry-integrated sustainability model that will actively engage students in solving real-world urban environmental challenges in Chennai.
The MoU signing ceremony was held at the KCG campus in the presence of Mr Albert Gleiser Ignacio, Managing Director; Mr S. Shankar, Zonal Manager; Ms Komal Gotham Chand, Head – IEC; and Mr Vignesh, Manager – IEC, representing Sumeet Urban Services, alongside Dr Annie Jacob, Director, and Dr G. Prabhakaran, Principal In-Charge of KCG College of Technology. The event also saw the participation of faculty members, Heads of Departments, students, and institutional representatives.
The partnership will focus on sustainability initiatives, waste management awareness, green innovation, social responsibility, and practical exposure for students in environmental systems and urban sanitation management.
As part of the initiative, students are expected to participate in clean-up drives, awareness campaigns, sustainability workshops, internships, innovation challenges, and field-level waste management activities over the coming academic cycles.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Anand Jacob Varghese, Chairman, Hindustan Group of Institutions, emphasised the importance of developing civic consciousness and environmental responsibility among students from an early stage.
“Engineering education today must go beyond laboratories and classrooms. When our students walk alongside conservancy workers, manage waste drives, and design recycling solutions for their own city, they are not just learning — they are becoming the kind of engineers and citizens Chennai needs. This partnership with Urbaser Sumeet is a step towards making that the norm, not the exception,” said Dr Anand Jacob Varghese.
He noted that institutions must play an active role in nurturing socially responsible engineers and innovators capable of contributing to sustainable urban development.
Dr Annie Jacob, Director, KCG College of Technology, highlighted the role played by Urbaser Sumeet in Chennai’s conservancy and sanitation ecosystem and expressed confidence that the collaboration would lead to meaningful student-led environmental engagement programmes.
“Urbaser Sumeet manages one of Chennai’s most critical urban services, and having that expertise embedded into our campus programmes is a significant advantage for our students. From internships in waste vehicle operations to the Edubridge initiative for conservancy workers’ children, this collaboration is built around real impact — not just awareness,” said Dr Annie Jacob.
She further noted that the collaboration will help bridge classroom learning with practical environmental problem-solving through direct industry exposure and community participation.
Under the MoU, students of KCG College of Technology will participate in clean-up campaigns, awareness drives, workshops, and internships related to waste management systems and vehicle operations.
The collaboration will also include hackathons, innovation challenges, practical training sessions, and professional certification opportunities focused on environmental sustainability and circular economy practices.
The partnership is also expected to encourage research-oriented projects in areas such as waste segregation, recycling systems, circular economy models, and smart urban sustainability solutions.
One of the major initiatives under the collaboration is “Edubridge,” a programme aimed at supporting the education and empowerment of children of conservancy workers.
The initiative also seeks to create stronger community engagement and social inclusion by recognising and supporting the families of frontline sanitation workers.
Urbaser Sumeet will additionally serve as the hygiene partner for major institutional events at KCG and will demonstrate best practices in source segregation, solid waste management, and urban cleanliness systems.
Mr Albert Gleiser Ignacio, Managing Director, Urbaser Sumeet, reaffirmed the organisation’s commitment to collaborative environmental action.
“We operate on the ground every day across Chennai’s neighbourhoods, and we know that lasting change in how a city handles its waste begins with how the next generation thinks about it. Partnering with KCG gives us the opportunity to bring that ground reality into an academic setting and build a pipeline of professionals who are genuinely invested in sustainable urban systems,” said Mr Albert Gleiser Ignacio.
The collaboration promotes the principles of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle (3R) and aims to foster environmentally conscious practices among students and the larger academic community.
Both organisations also expressed their commitment to building a scalable and replicable model for sustainable campus-community partnerships in the future.