The Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) joined hands with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur on Thursday, April 18, to undertake research and develop new technologies to address health problems faced by soldiers in difficult terrains, as per a report by PTI.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two sides was signed by Director General, AFMS, Lieutenant General Daljit Singh, and Officiating Director, IIT Kanpur, Prof S Ganesh, the Defence Ministry said in a statement.

Under this MoU, they will team up to "undertake research and develop new technologies to address health problems faced by soldiers in difficult terrains", it said.

IIT Kanpur will also provide technical expertise for developing Artificial Intelligence (AI) diagnostic models at Armed Forces Centre for Computational Medicine established in Armed Forces Medical College, which is first of its kind amongst medical colleges in India, the statement said.

Under the ambit of this MoU, faculty exchange programme, joint academic activities and the development of training modules will also be planned.

On this occasion, Lieutenant General Singh informed that AFMS is dedicated to provide the highest level of medical care to soldiers and collaboration with institutes of national importance like IITs is a significant step towards this commitment.

Prof Ganesh emphasised the need for inter-professional collaboration and utilisation of advanced technologies like computational medicine and AI in healthcare.