The Hamdard University (HU) has signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with 30 different industrial organisations, including the Bahria Foundation, Bosch Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Soorty Enterprises, Premium Textiles, Pharm Evo and others for formalising collaboration with them in domains such as research and development, joint conferences and placements. At the grand event held by the university’s Office of Research, Innovation and Commercialisation (ORIC) at a hotel here, a Centre of Excellence was also launched for fruitful linkages between the academia and the industry, said a HU spokesperson on Monday. The contributions and achievements of the university’s several alumni were also acknowledged on the occasion. The names of the alumni who were honoured are Babar Hamid Chaudhry of the Asia Petroleum Ltd, Naeemuddin Ahmed Siddiqui of the Ziauddin Ahmed and Company Ltd, Ejaz Bashir and Tahir Javid of the Hunar Foundation, and Adeel Sharif. Many representatives of banks, including Habib Metro, Bank Islami and Meezan Bank, were also present on the occasion. Speaking at the event, Vice Chancellor of Hamdard University Prof. Dr Syed Shabib-ul-Hasan said: “Our Industrial Meet-Up represents a unique opportunity for our academic community to collaborate with the industry in finding solutions to real-world problems. We are proud of this initiative for collaboration, as it will not only strengthen the university’s relationships with the industry, but will also contribute to the development of the economy.” According to analysts, the event marked a milestone in HU’s journey towards becoming a key player in the national as well as international arenas of academics and business.