IIT Kharagpur sets up AI-led mining research centre with Rs 15 crore backing from Vikram Sodhi
Positioned as an interdisciplinary research initiative, the centre aims to build artificial intelligence solutions tailored to India’s geological conditions while addressing long-standing inefficiencies in the mining ecosystem.
- Apr 24, 2026,
- Updated Apr 24, 2026 4:17 PM IST
The Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur has set up a new centre of excellence focused on applying artificial intelligence to geological and mining systems, as the institute looks to drive data-led transformation in the sector.
The Vikram Sodhi Centre of Excellence for AI-enabled Geological and Mining Systems has been established with a funding commitment of Rs 15 crore over five years from Vikram Sodhi, Vice Chairman of Mineros SA and Managing Partner at Sun Valley Investments.
Positioned as an interdisciplinary research initiative, the centre aims to build artificial intelligence solutions tailored to India’s geological conditions while addressing long-standing inefficiencies in the mining ecosystem.
The institute said that while digital technologies have been adopted across parts of the mining value chain, their fragmented deployment has limited large-scale impact. The new centre will focus on developing integrated, mining-specific AI systems that can support exploration, mine planning, operations, safety and environmental management within a unified framework.
Research at the facility will span the entire mining lifecycle, bringing together domains such as exploration, mineral processing, predictive maintenance and ESG analytics into a single intelligence layer.
A key component of the initiative is an industry-linked “grand challenges” programme, which will leverage real-world datasets shared by industry partners to build and test solutions in live environments.
“The establishment of the Vikram Sodhi Centre of Excellence marks a significant strengthening of IIT-Kharagpur's interdisciplinary research ecosystem,” Director Prof Suman Chakraborty said, according to PTI.
“By integrating geological sciences, mining engineering, and artificial intelligence, the centre is well-positioned to address complex national challenges through innovation and cross-disciplinary engagement,” he added, as per PTI.
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The Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur has set up a new centre of excellence focused on applying artificial intelligence to geological and mining systems, as the institute looks to drive data-led transformation in the sector.
The Vikram Sodhi Centre of Excellence for AI-enabled Geological and Mining Systems has been established with a funding commitment of Rs 15 crore over five years from Vikram Sodhi, Vice Chairman of Mineros SA and Managing Partner at Sun Valley Investments.
Positioned as an interdisciplinary research initiative, the centre aims to build artificial intelligence solutions tailored to India’s geological conditions while addressing long-standing inefficiencies in the mining ecosystem.
The institute said that while digital technologies have been adopted across parts of the mining value chain, their fragmented deployment has limited large-scale impact. The new centre will focus on developing integrated, mining-specific AI systems that can support exploration, mine planning, operations, safety and environmental management within a unified framework.
Research at the facility will span the entire mining lifecycle, bringing together domains such as exploration, mineral processing, predictive maintenance and ESG analytics into a single intelligence layer.
A key component of the initiative is an industry-linked “grand challenges” programme, which will leverage real-world datasets shared by industry partners to build and test solutions in live environments.
“The establishment of the Vikram Sodhi Centre of Excellence marks a significant strengthening of IIT-Kharagpur's interdisciplinary research ecosystem,” Director Prof Suman Chakraborty said, according to PTI.
“By integrating geological sciences, mining engineering, and artificial intelligence, the centre is well-positioned to address complex national challenges through innovation and cross-disciplinary engagement,” he added, as per PTI.
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