New Delhi: C3iHub, IIT Kanpur has signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar University (DBRAU), Agra and the Vivekanand Incubation Foundation (VIF) to launch an online vocational programme in cybersecurity for students across the university’s affiliated colleges.
The programme aims to reach more than 3 lakh students across 570-plus affiliated colleges, with the course to be delivered entirely online and in Hindi. The initiative is aimed at making cybersecurity education more accessible to students, particularly those in semi-urban and rural areas who may face language barriers in accessing technical education.
Under the partnership, C3iHub will design and deliver the cybersecurity curriculum, drawing on IIT Kanpur’s research and training expertise in the field. VIF will provide the administrative and technical infrastructure needed to deploy the programme at scale.
The university will also establish a dedicated Cybersecurity Counselling Cell to help mitigate cybercrime incidents and provide prevention and support to students.
The course will cover cybercrime and cyber hygiene, social media threats, identity theft, personal data leaks, online safety for women and children, the dark web, cyber terrorism and illegal activities. It will include quizzes, workshops and course feedback, along with customised virtual labs to provide students with practical experience.
Prof Surendra Baswana, Programme Director, C3iHub and Head, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, IIT Kanpur; Prof Sanjay Chaudhary, Director, IQAC and VIF, DBRAU; and Prof Anil Gupta, Director, UCC, DBRAU Agra, formally signed the MoU.
Prof Ashu Rani, Vice Chancellor, DBRAU, said cybersecurity is no longer a specialised subject limited to engineering students and described it as a basic life skill. She said the partnership would allow the university to offer cybersecurity education to its students at scale and in their own language.
The MoU signing ceremony was attended by IIT Kanpur Director Prof Manindra Agrawal and other officials, including Prof Vinay Kumar Pathak, Vice Chancellor, CSJMU and President of the Association of Indian Universities. Prof Ashu Rani joined the ceremony online.
