Hyderabad, 15th February 2008: IL&FS Engineering and Construction Company Limited, a Hyderabad based construction and infrastructure development company today announced that they have entered into a strategic partnership with BITS-Pilani, a Global Leader in Technology Education to offer Off-Campus Work-Integrated Learning Programmes to employees of Maytas. The initiative is named as M BITS. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to this effect was signed today between P.K. Madhav, CEO, Maytas Infra and Professor L K Maheshwari, Vice Chancellor, BITS Pilani, with the vision of fostering collaboration between the two institutions to promote academic and research excellence.

The primary objective of this collaboration is to build world-class infrastructure technology professionals who would eventually become industry leaders. Under the tie up, Diploma Engineers from Maytas Infra will enroll for a B.S in Infrastructure Technology which will be awarded by BITS-Pilani. It will be a 3 year program with 6 semesters, and the first batch will be starting by June 2008. In the first year, Maytas is looking at 200 plus Diploma Engineers enrolling for the program, and has plans to scale up the number in the coming years.

Unique feature of M BITS is that the program can be delivered in a geographically distributed environment, and Maytas would bring BITS certified trainers on board and would use advanced learning management system in disseminating the curriculum. Maytas would financially support the program which will cost around Rs. 2 lakh per employee.

Commenting on the association with BITS-Pilani, P.K. Madhav, CEO, Maytas Infra said, "The objective in creating M BITS is to provide an opportunity to young men and women from small towns and villages who missed getting an Engineering Degree to acquire one from a world- class institution even as they work in a rapidly growing infrastructure Company. This one-of- its- kind programme is fully aligned to meet the technology and leadership gap in the infrastructure industry."

Maytas Infra, a Company dedicated to excellence in infrastructure and BITS-Pilani, an institution driven by a vision to create outstanding professionals have come together to synergise their efforts and build India.

According to Professor L K Maheshwari, Vice Chancellor, BITS Pilani, "We are very happy to partner with Maytas Infra which is taking up a leadership stand of supporting their employees to realize their ambition of adding value to their academic qualification. M BITS will help employees of Maytas gain cutting edge knowledge, aptitude and attitude to become thought leaders."

Going forward, the association will be extended to advanced education, joint research programmes, creating a warehouse of best of best practices, and continuous cross-pollination of advancements in the infrastructure space. Maytas and BITS would in due course create a Center for Excellence (CoE) in Infrastructure. Maytas will take final year students from BITS-Pilani for the full semester Practice School program which is analogous to Internship done by medical students in hospitals. The curriculum offered under the program is highly inclusive, encompassing the finer elements of Construction and Infrastructure Technology. A joint committee will be formed by BITS-Pilani & Maytas Centre for Learning & Leadership Development (MCLLD) which has a single mandate of continuously updating the design and delivery of the program.

About Maytas Infra

IL&FS Engineering and Construction Company Limited, Hyderabad-based infrastructure development company is one of the leading Infrastructure Development, Construction and Project Management Companies in India with more than two decades of rich and varied experience in executing projects under various domains such as Buildings & Structures, Transportation, Water, Energy and BOT. Maytas Infra currently employs 2130 professionals. Maytas Infra is an ISO 9001 - 2000 certified company, committed to the highest standards of quality. IL&FS Engineering and Construction Company Limited bagged the 'Fastest Growing Construction Companies in India' award in 2007 by Construction World and National Institute of Construction Management & Research (NICMAR).

About BITS Pilani

The Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS), Pilani is an all-India Institute for higher education. The primary motive of BITS is to "train young men and women able and eager to create and put into action such ideas, methods, techniques and information".

The Institute is a dream come true of its founder late Mr G.D.Birla - an eminent industrialist, a participant in Indian freedom struggle and a close associate of the Father of Indian Nation late Mr. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (Mahatma Gandhi). What started in early 1900s as a small school, blossomed into a set of colleges for higher education, ranging from the Humanities to Engineering until 1964 when all these colleges amalgamated to culminate into a unique Indian University of International standing. This university was christened as the Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, known to many as BITS, Pilani.

The Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS), Pilani (Rajasthan) which has pioneered many educational innovations for the past over three decades has been committed to cooperative education philosophy of work integrated learning for addressing the Human Resource Development issues of the Industry as well as Society at large.

BITS, Pilani which has set a bench mark in industry university collaboration is one among the top ranking universities in India today with global recognition offering degrees in various disciplines presently at Pilani, Dubai, Goa campuses and in the near future at Hyderabad campus apart from an array of work integrated learning programmes for HRD of a vast spectrum of Indian corporates.