Kochi | CUSAT has secured Rs 1.19 crore for a major international research project under the Ministry of Education's Scheme for Promotion of Academic and Research Collaboration (SPARC), officials said on Thursday.

Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) said that the Indo–Korean collaborative project, with a budget of Rs 1.19 crore, aims to develop an advanced technology platform that integrates marine-derived antimicrobial peptides with state-of-the-art photocatalytic nanomaterials to enhance water purification and strengthen disease management in aquaculture.

According to CUSAT release, Swapna P Antony, Assistant Professor in the Department of Marine Biology, Microbiology and Biochemistry, serves as the principal investigator and coordinator of the Indian research team.

Prof T P Sajeevan from the same department is the Indian co-investigator.

The foreign research team is led by Prof Hyunwoong Park, Professor in the School of Energy Engineering and Director of the Industrial Technology Research Centre at Kyungpook National University (KNU), Daegu, South Korea.

"The project is expected to pave the way for significant advancements in improving water quality, reducing disease burden in aquaculture, and minimising the dependence on conventional antibiotics.

By bringing together expertise in advanced materials science and marine biotechnology, this Indo–Korean SPARC partnership marks a major step toward innovative solutions for sustainable aquatic health management and environmental protection," CUSAT said.

This initiative also reflects the broader vision of the Ministry of Education's SPARC scheme, which seeks to strengthen India's research ecosystem through high-quality academic collaborations with leading global institutions, it said.

By promoting joint research and knowledge exchange in key scientific domains, SPARC enhances innovation, research output, and India's international academic visibility, authorities added.