There is immense potential for India and Sri Lanka to work together in higher education, research, skill development, and technology-driven innovation, which would benefit our youth, said Ganesanathan Geathiswaran, Deputy High Commissioner, Sri Lanka Deputy High Commission, on Thursday in Chennai at the third edition of the Tamil Nadu Higher Education Summit 2026.

The day-long summit themed ‘Empowering the Future Workforce: AI, AVGC & Industry 4.0 in Academia’ discussed the global impact of artificial intelligence, necessity of industry-academia collaborations, emerging technological disruptions, and the evolving start-up ecosystem. It was organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) Tamil Nadu State Council.

Speaking at the summit, Ashok G. Verghese, co-chairman, FICCI TN State Council and pro-chancellor, Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science, said: “The future of higher education cannot be shaped by old models in a rapidly evolving world. Now, we must move faster and work together, the future of the workforce demands more than degrees. It requires digital skills, creativity, problem solving, and communications.”

The FICCI Industry Collaboration Award-Excellence in Global Aviation Training Standards was presented to Hindustan Institute of Technology and Science and Orient Flights Private Limited. The FICCI Industry Collaboration Award-Emerging Technologies and Innovation was given to the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras, and the FICCI Industry Collaboration Award-Excellence in Quantum Computing and Advance Technologies was presented to IIT-M and IBM.

G.S.K. Velu, chairman, FICCI Tamil Nadu State council, and CMD, Trivitron Healthcare and Neuberg Diagnostics Group, said: “Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu have many things in common, but we need more collaboration in the field of education.”