Kolkata: In a bid to enhance academic and cultural collaboration, the University of Calcutta on Saturday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the University of Glasgow, Scotland.

"This is the age of collaborations and MoUs. We already have relations with Glasgow but this agreement provides a formal colour to that relation and the mutual cooperation will benefit both the universities," University of Calcutta vice chancellor Suranjan Das said.

"We have signed many MoUs earlier, but this one is special. The financial support the university is providing is an immense help for our students who generally cannot afford the costs in the West," Das said.

Glasgow vice chancellor Anton Muscatelli said:"The first Indian graduate from our university was from Bengal. The city has a very rich cultural and educational heritage. Both the universities are very old and renowned so a formal partnership was a natural progression."

Along with student and faculty exchanges, the agreement also provides for collaborative research projects, lectures and symposia on various subjects. IANS