Agartala: Dr Pranoy Debnath, a postdoctoral fellow at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, has been invited to begin grant preparation under the European Union's Horizon Europe programme after his proposal cleared evaluation for the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025.
According to an official communication issued under the HORIZON-MSCA-2025-PF call, Debnath's project titled "ROCKWIND" has passed the evaluation stage and moved into the grant preparation phase.
The proposed project has been allocated a maximum grant amount of 325,434.90 euros for a duration of 30 months.
The letter stated that the grant preparation process will involve the submission of project data and annexes within two weeks, followed by a declaration of honour within three weeks and a final signature planned within six weeks.
It clarified that the funding decision remains subject to the completion of procedural checks, including legal and financial validation, and ethics and security reviews.
Debnath is currently serving as a National Postdoctoral Fellow at IIT Bombay's Department of Civil Engineering. His research focuses on the seismic behaviour of masonry structures, structural dynamics, soil-structure interaction, and wind engineering, among other areas.
He completed his PhD in Civil Engineering from IIT (ISM) Dhanbad between 2020 and 2024, after obtaining an MTech in Structural Engineering from the National Institute of Technology, Agartala, and a BTech in Civil Engineering from the same institute.
His academic record includes multiple publications in peer-reviewed journals such as Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering, Journal of Building Engineering, and Ocean Engineering. His work primarily addresses structural safety, earthquake vulnerability, and strengthening techniques for masonry and reinforced concrete structures.
Debnath has also contributed to conference proceedings, book chapters, and a patent related to post-disaster building assessment. His professional affiliations include memberships in international and national engineering bodies such as the American Society of Civil Engineers and the Indian Geotechnical Society.
The MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships are among the European Union's flagship research mobility programmes, aimed at supporting advanced training and international collaboration for researchers.
Speaking to EastMojo on his achievement, Dr Debnath said that he was extremely delighted to have secured such a coveted fellowship for research.
When asked what message he would like to give to students interested in higher studies, he said, "Research is a game of patience. There are no shortcuts. I know a lot of people from Tripura who are now working as professors in foreign countries. What I understand is that students need proper counselling. We are very eager to assist if students need our help."
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