Professor Pradipta Banerji, former dean of International Relations at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, travelled to Edmonton to work out the details of a major partnership with the University of Alberta (U of A). The two schools would be collaborating on research in health and energy issues. A three-year agreement is planned involving joint conferences and workshops, joint research projects and a considerable amount of graduate student mobility.

Both institutions see the potential for their partnership to produce globally-relevant, world-class research. U of A and IIT Bombay both rank within the top 50 universities in technology-related domains according to the 2008 Times Higher Education QS World University Rankings. In Life sciences and biomedicine, the U of A is ranked 45th. IIT Bombay is has been ranked too and gaining ground in these areas, moving up 53 spots in the last year alone. In an article released by the University of Alberta, President Indira Samarasekera reiterated that, "this really is an occasion for two ranking institutions to compliment our recognized accomplishments and also, perhaps more importantly, use our collective strengths to work together to help prepare our world for the coming centuries."

IIT Bombay has signed several memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with other universities around the world, including Canada, but this is the first of its partnership that it would be investing in financially. Both institutions are demonstrating that they are serious about ensuring that the partnership is productive and they are hoping that it would grow to become a beacon for others.