CSIR-CECRI marks 78th foundation day with new facilities and collaborations

karaikudi: the csir-central electrochemical research institute (csir-cecri), karaikudi, celebrated its 78th foundation day on friday with the inauguration of new research infrastructure and renewed commitments to national development and energy innovation.dr. n. kalaiselvi, director general of csir and secretary, department of scientific and industrial research (dsir), presided over the celebrations as chief guest and delivered the foundation day address. dr. alok sharma, director (r&d), indian oil corporation limited (iocl), faridabad, was the guest of honour.dr. kalaiselvi inaugurated two major facilities on the occasion — the sir c.v. raman research scholars hostel and the co₂ adsorbent pilot plant facility. commending the institute's contributions, she urged researchers to align their work with national missions such as viksit 2047 and 100. she also encouraged scientists to foster innovation that fuels entrepreneurship, startups, and msmes, which contribute significantly to india's exports.dr. alok sharma reaffirmed iocl's commitment to energy research and praised its collaboration with csir-cecri, especially on the upcoming centre of excellence for next generation electrolysers for green hydrogen. he underscored the role of such partnerships in achieving india's net 2070 goals.csir-cecri director dr. k. ramesha welcomed the gathering and highlighted the institute's r&d progress and its legacy since its inception in 1948, initiated by philanthropist dr. r.m. alagappa chettiar.the event also featured felicitations by directors of csir-clri and csir-serc, and dr. g.a. pathanjali, md, high energy batteries, who reflected on decades of association with csir-cecri.earlier in the day, dr. kalaiselvi and dr. sharma visited key facilities including the green hydrogen building, metal recycling lab, and redox flow battery facility.