alma mater – The KGP Chronicle

IIT Kharagpur honours Shri Sundar Pichai with DSc Honoris Causa & Mrs. Anjali Pichai with Distinguished Alumnus Award

Excellence embodies the relentless pursuit of the highest standards, driven by an unwavering commitment to continuous improvement and innovation. It transcends conventional measures of success, focusing instead on achieving exceptional quality and performance through dedication, expertise, and a passionate commitment to one’s craft. Those who embody excellence are not satisfied with merely meeting expectations; they aim to exceed them, setting new benchmarks and inspiring others to reach their fullest potential. This pursuit involves a cycle of persistent learning, thoughtful reflection, and tireless effort, reflecting a deep dedication to personal and professional growth. In essence, excellence is a journey rather than a destination, characterized by the drive to push boundaries and redefine what is possible, both for oneself and for those around them. This attribute has been embodied by our most illustrious Alum Shri Sundarajan Pichai and his wife Mrs. Anjali Pichai.

In a momentous occasion of pride, IIT Kharagpur honoured Shri Sundar Pichai with the Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) Award and Mrs. Anjali Pichai with Distinguished Alumnus Award in San Francisco. Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur in the presence of Sundar Pichai’s parents and their daughter Ms. Kavya Pichai bestowed the award to the Google Scion.

(L-R) Prof. Rintu Banerjee, Deputy Director, IIT Kharagpur; Shri Sundar Pichai, CEO, Google; Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur & Prof. Debashish Chakravarty, Dean, Alumni Affairs, IIT Kharagpur

The award ceremony was attended by renowned alumni of IIT Kharagpur including Vinod Gupta & Ranbir Gupta along with Prof. Rintu Banerjee, Deputy Director and Prof. Debashish Chakravarty, Dean Alumni Affairs of the institute.

“Last week I was grateful to receive an honorary doctorate from my alma mater IIT Kharagpur. My parents always hoped I would get my doctorate, I think an honorary one still counts (smiley). The access to education and technology at IIT put me on a path to Google and helping more people access technology. IIT’s role in technology will only grow in importance with the AI revolution, and I will always be thankful for my time there,” cited Mr. Sundar Pichai, Illustrious Alumnus of IIT Kharagpur & CEO of Google [https://www.instagram.com/p/C938BlwxKGB/?img_index=1]

A B.Tech (Hons) in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from IIT Kharagpur, Shri Sundararajan Pichai is recognized by the third highest civilian award, the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India. He stands as a quintessence of inspiration to the millions of Indians who aspire to dream big. Shri Pichai is the CEO of Alphabet Inc. and Google who led a technological revolution as the Senior Vice President and Product Chief at Google launching popular products like iGoogle, Google Toolbar, Desktop Search and Gadgets, Google Pack, and Gears. With more than 15 years of experience developing high-tech consumer and enterprise products, he is the pride of every Indian. Building technologies that improves the lives of people around the world, he has shaped the global economy by strengthening partnerships between governments, businesses and communities over two transformative decades.

(L-R) Kavya Pichai, Daughter of Mr. Pichai; Mr. Regunatha Pichai, Father of Mr. Pichai; Mrs. Lakshmi Pichai, Mother of Mr. Pichai; Prof. Rintu Banerjee, Deputy Director, IIT Kharagpur; Mrs. Anjali Pichai (Haryani), Alumnus & Wife of Mr. Pichai; Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur; Shri Sundar Pichai, Alumnus & CEO of Google; Shri Vinod Gupta, Alumnus & CEO and Chairman of infoGROUP; Shri Ranbir Gupta, Alumnus & President of Gupta Associates Inc., and Chairman of SIGMA7 and Prof. Debashish Chakravarty, Dean, Alumni Affairs, IIT Kharagpur.

In recognition of his remarkable contribution towards digital transformation, affordable technology and path breaking innovations, the Hon’ble President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu, Visitor of the Institute, bestowed the degree of Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) in absentia at the 69th Convocation of IIT Kharagpur held on December 18, 2023.

Shri Sundar Pichai receiving the DSc Honoris Causa from Prof. V K Tewari

On receiving the Doctor of Science Award from his Alma Mater, Shri Sundar Pichai remarked, “This is indeed a great honour that IIT Kharagpur has bestowed on me. I am truly blessed and humbled to receive this award from Prof. Tewari in presence of my family and friends. Standing with this award in my hands reminds me of the young boy that I was who dreamed to be in the world that I am trying to create with my inventions. IIT Kharagpur holds a special place in my heart as this was the place where I first met my beloved wife, Anjali and had beautiful memories of my second home that I grew up in. The ambience, the people, the environment, the culture imparts a diaspora of knowledge learnings that one can implement in shaping up their practical wisdom. I am grateful to my institute for rewarding me with this award and there is nothing in the world that can compare to this emotional euphoria that I feel right now. I look forward to connect with IIT KGP manifesting greater technological solutions in partnership with Google. KGP ka tempo high hai! ,” added Shri Sundar Pichai.

Mrs Anjali Pichai (Haryani) receives the Distinguished Alumnus Award from Prof. Rintu Banerjee

Ms Anjali Pichai is a highly accomplished professional with a background in Chemical Engineering, earning her B.Tech honours degree from Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur in 1993. Commencing her career in the early 1990s, Anjali initially served as a Business Analyst at Accenture, contributing her expertise for a span of three years. Venturing into the United States, Anjali transitioned her career as a Business Analyst at Sun Microsystems. She held the position of Business Operation Manager at Intuit, a prominent software company. Anjali’s career trajectory reflects her dedication and proficiency in the technology and business sectors.

The Awardees with their family and friends

Prof. V K Tewari, Director of IIT Kharagpur, expressed his delight in honoring both Sundar and Anjali Pichai, stating, “Their achievements exemplify the spirit of innovation and excellence that IIT Kharagpur seeks to instill in its students. We are privileged to recognize their outstanding contributions to the global technology industry and wish more laurels and attributes are added to their stature.”

Shri Sundar Pichai meeting the Alumni of IIT Kharagpur including Rabir Gupta & Vinod Gupta

The awards ceremony underscores IIT Kharagpur’s commitment to celebrating the achievements of its alumni who have made significant contributions to society and industry worldwide.

By : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

Follow us on: Facebook – IIT Kharagpur; Twitter – @IITKgp; Instagram – @iit.kgp; LinkedIn – Indian Institute of Technology
For news visit: https://kgpchronicle.iitkgp.ac.in/

“Visiting IIT KGP is the greatest joy and a timeless experience,” said Prof. Sudipta Seal on receiving the Distinguished Alumnus Award 2018

Prof. Sudipta Seal is an eminent scientist, entrepreneur and a distinguished professor who was honored with the Distinguished Alumnus Award 2018 by IIT Kharagpur in the 64th Convocation of the Institute. Recently, he revisited his Alma Mater after a gap of many years to take a walk down the memory lane, reminiscing his college days and reuniting with his mentors and professors. While visiting his department and his hall, he sank into the depths of memorabilia and the evergreen nostalgic pages of his life. He was bestowed with Distinguished Alumnus Award which he was unable to collect previously, by Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur in the august presence of Prof. Amit Patra, Deputy Director; Prof. Krishna Kumar, Dean FoS; Prof. P K Dutta, Dean FoID & BTBS; Prof. Saibal Gupta, Associate Dean, Faculty of Sciences (FoS); Prof. Sujit Kumar Dash, Associate Dean, FoE&A; Prof. Debashish Chakravarty, Associate Dean International Ranking & Alumni Affairs and Captain Amit Jain (Retd.), Registrar, IIT Kharagpur.

He is currently the chair of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, as well as a Pegasus Professor and University Distinguished Professor at the University of Central Florida (UFC). Prof. Seal joined the Advanced Materials Processing and Analysis Center at UCF in 1997. He has been consistently productive in research, instruction and service to UCF since 1998. He has served as the Nano Initiative Coordinator for the Vice President of Research and Commercialization. He served as the Director of Advanced Materials Processing Analysis Centre (AMPAC), NanoScience Technology Center (NSTC), UCF College of Medicine, University of Central Florida, USA.

Prof. Seal completed his B.Tech in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering in 1990 and won the Institute Blue for outstanding performance in sports and games at IIT Kharagpur. He did his M.Met from the University of Sheffield, UK and PhD in Material Science and Engineering from the University of Wisconsin, Milwauke, USA in 1996.

Prof. Seals’ outstanding research has developed surface engineered nanoscale transition metal and rare-earth oxide ceramics for catalysis, energetics and nano-biomedicine. He has developed the patented scalable methods for template nano-oxide particles. He engineered nanoceria (3-5 nm) with switchable valence states with regeneration capability. Using a similar concept, his team developed spherical nano-ZrO2 ceramics without doping with metastable tetragonal crystal structure and explained for the first time the reduced activation energy for grain growth in nano binary oxides.

He discovered the antioxidant properties of nanoceria by controlling defect chemistry and has created a unique field in inorganice nano-antioxidants for medicine. He believes that the unique structure of nano-particles with respect to valence and oxygen defects, promotes cell longevity scavenging super-oxide radicals produced in excess in cellular matrix and regenerate stem cell. This research is immensely significant for both cancer therapy and glaucoma.

“Material Science and Engineering has become an important interdisciplinary field and I feel this because I am associated with it like in computation materials and lunar surfaces. We at UFC hire mainly in strategic directions, now there are 6 of them, one is cybersonic, another is energy, then space mining for space centre etc. We are surrounded by large companies including Lockheed Martin, Mitsubishi Power Corporations and Siemens. Currently, we are looking at start-ups and space sciences. Being in IIT KGP has been one of the greatest joys and a timeless experience. I still remember my time, when I was in the RK hall. While visiting the hall again, I felt a plethora of emotions that this place shares with me. KGP ka tempo high rahe”

Prof. Seal has also developed multi-functional nanomaterial additives for aerospace nanoenergetics and his research in power plant fly ash waste has created unique chemistry of ash particles with nano structures that can be used to clean up oil spills.

The academic units that Dr. Seal overseas are continuously creating new inventions and technology at UFC. Dr. Seal has published more than 400 journal papers, book chapters, and three books on nanotechnology. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Materials, American Association of Advancement of Science, American Vacumm Society, Institute of Nanotechnology-UK, National Academy of Inventors, Electrochemical Society and the American Institute of Medical & Biological Engineering.

Prof. Seal has won the prestigious Schwartz Tech Award and was recently elected to the World Academy of Ceramics. He hold 48 US patents and his technology is licensed to multiple companies, many of them start-ups such as nSolGellnc, nTiOX, NanoCelLC and Helicon.

Inputs by: Anamika Das, Executive, Office of the Alumni Affairs
Email: deanfoea@iitkgp.ac.in; vcjee1@adm.iitkgp.ac.in; Ph. No: +91-3222-281860

Edited By: Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

Follow us: Facebook – IIT Kharagpur; Twitter – @IITKgp; Instagram – @iit.kgp; LinkedIn – Indian Institute of Technology
For news visit: https://kgpchronicle.iitkgp.ac.in/

“Guru Dakshina” – the Divine Manifestation of Giving Back to the Alma Mater

“Guru Dakshina hoye Guru ka Pratham Samman
Bhav Bhakti hoye Guru ka Pratham Upahaar
Shri Vasudev Krishna hoye Arjun ke Tattvagyaan
Ekalavya hoye Dronacharya ke Aitihasik Guru Samman”

Guru Dakshina is the first respect that a student gives to his teacher
The emotional devotion of the students is his first present
Shri Krishna was the philosophical teacher for Arjun and
Ekalavya was Dronacharya’s respectful master from history

Guru Dakshina is the pure and selfless connection between a teacher and their disciple. By adhering to the qualities and learning of their Guru, the students bring the greatest smile of achievement, love, and gratitude on their teacher’s face as they share with them their Guru Dakshina. The belief of enriching the bond between the teacher and a student is what laid the foundation for Guru Dakshina. From setting the establishment of learning to fostering love for it, teachers diligently do a crucial job of making things simple for their students. Now it’s time for the students to pay back to the institution by tending to the most significant challenge before their teachers by paying them Gurudakshina.

A Guru does not ‘condition’ the minds of his disciples by the walls of his own ideas, but points out to them new and untried realms of contemplation.Our journey in life is incomplete without a Guru. A “Guru” leads us from the visible to the invisible, from the material to the divine, from the knowledge to the enlightenment and from the ephemeral to the eternal. The teachings and blessings of a Guru are the most prized possessions for his/her Shishya who acknowledges the Guru principle in their life. Based upon this principle, IIT Kharagpur launched an aesthetic giveaway in the form of Guru Dakshina, the Divine Manifestation of Giving back to the Alma Mater on 30th January at 5.30 in Netaji auditorium of the institute. The programme was launched by Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur in the august presence of Batch 1979, Prof. Amit Patra, Deputy Director; Prof. Debashish Chakravarty, Associate Dean, Alumni Affairs & International Relations; Captain Amit Jain (Retd.), Registrar and Cdr V K Jaitley, Distinguished Alumnus of IIT Kharagpur.

“It is such a great opportunity to launch Guru Dakshina in the presence of Batch 1979 who are revisiting the institute after a long gap. The idea of Guru Dakshina is to bring the Alumnus more closer to this institute and engage them to participate in the institutional development activities in an inclusive way,” said Prof. Debashish Chakravarty, Associate Dean, Alumni Affairs & International Relations while addressing the batch of 1979.

Cdr V K Jailtly (Retd.) gave a detailed presentation about the programme and how it will be implemented hence forth. He remarked, “A person who loves his teachers, his alma mater, this initiative is for them to do something for their alma mater which has helped them to be where they are today. This small gesture is a commitment towards making the institute stand on its feet and become self-reliant. Mr. Samarth Singh, Vice President, Technology Students Gymkhana was the first student who signed up the pledge for Guru Dakshina and stated that, “I think this is a very good initiative that will help the student community of this institute who fall short on fund utilization while organizing events and student welfare activities. Our senior have always stood for us in terms of providing financial aids for hostel amenities and other co-curricular activities.

Cdr V K Jaitly (Retd.) launches his book “100 Great IITians”

Guru Dakshina for My Alma Mater will be received from the Alumni of the institute which will help in making IIT Kharagpur Atmanirbhar over a period of time. The funds received through Guru Dakshina shall alleviate the challenge of collecting funds by the students for Spring Festival, Kshitij, Sports, Fest and even for increasing and improving Hall Amenities.

While those students in service, have been urged to contribute a months salary, entrepreneurs with profits in excess of Rs. 1 crore have been asked to donate 1% of the annual profits to the institute. Half the corpus created out of the donations will be set aside to make IIT Kharagpur self reliant. Of the rest, 20% will go into the welfare fund that can be used by the students and hall staffs and 15% each will be given to upgrade laboratories and facilities in the hostels.

Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur who is also an alumnus of the institute stated, “This initiative will strengthen the corpus of the institute and help the institute to become Atmanirbhar. This commitment from the Alumni will be a great help to the institute and the students. As you are aware that the institute has grown ten folds since how it started with only 224 students and 42 teachers in 1951 and now we have 16,000+ students and 700+ faculty. To maintain this ratio, the institute faces many challenges including fund utilization for redevelopment and maintenance of the common facilities. I will always be grateful to the Alumni who have risen up to the occasion and contributed during the Covid period and helped us and the community around the campus enormously. Their generous giveaway and token of appreciations have always been the driving force of this institute, therefore with their support and guidance we launch Guru Dakshina, which is a pledge that you take for your Alma Mater… your pride.”

Guru Dakshina will have two parts:

• By the Students

• By the Alumni

By The Students:

• The Ownership lies with Chairman, CDC for getting the pledge

• It shall be transferred to Dean Alumni Affairs, once the students pass out

• The students will pledge One Month’s Salary that they can pay at their convenience during 1st/2nd/3rd/4th/…. nth year of their profession.

• Some students may like to take this pledge even during their 3rd year or even earlier.

• Students who sign this pledge will be given a certificate of accreditation which they can show in their testimonials while appearing for their first job interview and can display later in their office.

By the Alumni:

• Ownership for this will be with Dean Alumni Affairs

• Alumni foundations in US and India with their chapters across the world will play an active role in giving publicity to this scheme and encouraging alumni to come forward and be part of this noble campaign.

• All the alumni from first batch of 1955 till today can donate their current one month’s salary/pension/income from their
industry/investments as their Guru Dakshina.

• Donation can be through e-transfer or any other means but not by cash and shall be presented a certificate of Accredation that he/she can display in their home/office

One of the batch-mates of Batch 1979 remarked,”Lets see that tangible improvement and process that will define progress is happening and I think that is very important. We need an audited report card that states how it was utilized, what is the satisfaction level, an independent audit not done by somebody. People will eventually give, knowing it is for a good cause, but if it is not like that you will be hesitant saying money down the drain. But thanks to this initiative, it is a good start, a beautiful start and a lot of thought has gone into this great job.”

Utilization of Guru Dakshina by Students

Only 50% of this money will be used by the institute to build up the corpus to make IIT Kharagpur Atmanirbhar, the rest will be utilized for the respective halls of the students, for the Gymkhana for SF, Kshitij etc., for their concerned departments and for the benevolent activities and emergency welfare of the students, alumni, staff, including non-teaching staff and even mess workers etc.

Utilization of Guru Dakshina by Alumni

50% of this money will be used by the institute to build up the corpus to make IIT Kharagpur Atmanirbhar and the rest for the respective halls of the students, for the Gymkhana for SF, Kshitij etc, for their concerned departments, for the benevolent activities and emergency welfare of the students, alumni, staff, including non-teaching staff and even mess workers etc., to the US/India Foundation, to the Chapter he/she belongs to (or to the concerned Foundation if no active chapter is there)

All other Endowments will continue

• All other donations of any amounts, however small they may be from the students and alumni shall continue as parts of Hall
Endowment/Deptt Endowment or Batch Endowments etc.

• For this Guru Dakshina scheme, a minimum of Rs 1 lakh pledge/donation will be required to be eligible to receive the Guru
Dakshina Certificate, preferably from the hands of Director of IIT Kharagpur.

Benefits:

• Funds for Hall renovations and new facilities will be available in abundance.

• Departments will get money to upgrade their labs or sponsor some global events in their departments.

• Funds for sudden medical emergencies etc. for some alumni/students/staff will be available.

• The corpus of the institute will start building up to great levels for IIT Kharagpur to become Atmanirbhar.

• Our mainly 1st and 2nd year students running around all over India to collect funds from our alumni for Spring Festival, Khshitij, Sports Meets etc. will not be required. Instead of that they may contact alumni to be part of Guru Dakshina Project.

Cdr V K Jaitly (Retd.) handing over his cheque of Rs. 1,24,360 and also the cheque of Rs. 2 lakhs by Virendra Kumar Goswami, Distinguished Alumnus of the institute to Guru Dakshina

How to Pay and Where to Pay?

• No Cash

• E-Transfer or By Cheque or Demand Draft

* For Salaried Alumni – Give One Month of My Salary to IIT Kharagpur

* For Entrepreneurs – Donate 1% of the annual profits to IIT Kharagpur as soon as profits cross 1 Crore per year

How Guru Dakshina to My Alma Mater will be used?

15% for the upgradation of labs etc in the respective department
15% for upgradation of facilities in the respective hall
20% for the Welfare Fund that can be used for students and hall staff
50% for corpus of the Institute to make IIT Kharagpur Self-reliant

For more details, please write to alumni@hijli.iitkgp.ac.in

Media Coverage:

Times of India Dainik Jagran

Inputs by: Cdr V K Jaitly (Retd.), Distinguished Alumnus of IIT Kharagpur
Email: cdr.vk.jaitly@gmail.com

By: Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

Follow us: Facebook – IIT Kharagpur; Twitter – @IITKgp; Instagram – @iit.kgp; LinkedIn – Indian Institute of Technology
For news visit: https://kgpchronicle.iitkgp.ac.in/

The Yogic Avabodha – Atal

The word ‘Avabodha’ in Sanskrit is referred to someone who possess an awakened consciousness of soul. As the motto of the institute says Yogah Karmasu Kaushalam which means Excellence in Action is Yoga, we have an Alumnus who imbibed the thought as the basics of his existence. The spirit of a warrior, the body of iron and a heart of gold, yes we are talking about an explorer of life, Mr. Atal Agarwal, an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur, who graduated in 2017 and became one among the few IITians who represented Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) as an Alum in the prestigious title of Ironman athlete competition.

He finished the legendary race – one of the most challenging endurance athletics activities on earth that included swimming in open water – for 2.4 miles, biking for 112 miles, and running for 26.2 miles in a continuous series, all within a day without any halt. The Vice President of his batch, he taught himself how to swim last year after a near-to-death experience in Lake Tahoe. A philanthropist by nature, he went through a phase of depression and overcame it by taking on challenges in athletics.

An inspiration to all the Kgpians, his journey has been impeccable when it comes to the actual understanding of what you have to offer life rather than what life offers you. Atal’s mission is to take humanity to the 22nd century with the concerns and awareness as healthy beings and considers the health of humans to be his utmost priority.

He actively engages in activities about the physical, mental, spiritual, and financial aspects of the health of all humans and believes that the quality of human life can only be uplifted when all aspects of healthcare are integrated together, something he learned as an Indian, during his 25 years in India. Atal finished the race within 14 hrs and 43 mins during the Ironman Arizona. He is the only Ironman athlete who represented Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in such a prestigious title.

He has been influential towards his Alma Mater with generous contributions and as keen practitioner of philanthropy. He recalls that his experiences mainly from his communities like IIT KGP and his surroundings in the BurningMan taught him how to live in adversities and be an artist. His interest in athletics have taught him how to endure pain without suffering. He has also biked more than 3200 miles in America this year covering a distance equivalent to California to New York. A free spirited explorer on Mother Earth who is living his life like a dream, is an inspiration to all of us.

Social Media Links:

Instagram: https://instagram.com/atalovesyou
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/atalovesyou
Blogs and Videos: https://atal.substack.com/
Website: https://linktr.ee/atalovesyou

By : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

Follow us on: Facebook – IIT Kharagpur; Twitter – @IITKgp; Instagram – @iit.kgp; LinkedIn – Indian Institute of Technology
For news visit: https://kgpchronicle.iitkgp.ac.in/

Face to Face with Alumni

“We require transformation and transition to meet future goals in terms of Alma Connect”, said Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur who indulged in a face to face virtual meet with the Distinguished Alumnus of IIT Kharagpur from India & overseas on 27 December 2022. He focused on some key areas where alumni support is needed to provide exposure to students and to initiate infrastructure development for IIT Kharagpur. The meet started with the recitation of Sararswati Vandhana which revitalized the spirits in a cold December morning.

The opening remarks were presented by Prof. Amit Patra, Deputy Director, IIT Kharagpur, who gave us a broader perspective on self sustenance of the institute and pointed out the three C’s that includes Connect, Communicate and Contribute to communicate well with our Alumni. He added that apart from providing statistical data to them, we may encourage our Alumni to engage in meaningful dialogue. Once an active communication channel is established the process of contribution will happen naturally as our Alumni have always been very generous to their Alma Mater. Not only through monetary contribution, their knowledge, mentorship, guidance and participation will be helpful in various institute activities.

Shri Peter Chan, Distinguished Alumni and Chief Guest of the 68^th Convocation of IIT Kharagpur addressed the Alumni and shared his experience of visiting his alma mater after 58 long years. He commented that, “So much energy is concentrated on the technical side of the institution but the wellness of the whole campus still lags behind for the staff and support staff including the cooks and malis. You all are one big family, unless you have the family feeling around the campus you cannot move forward in any organization. Being a part of the team is very important.” He concluded that he would give some ideas of implementation and suggestions for improvement. The Alumni can come forward and contribute their valuable feedback because at times you need outside perspective for a better scope of performance.

Shri Arjun Malhotra, Distinguished Alumnus read out the welcome address of Shri Ashoke Deysarkar, President US Foundation. He stated that, “We are at cross roads, past is when government paid for everything and future is where IIT Kharagpur has to pay a part of it. I think that this is a positive step towards building a capitalistic society. We have the talent, energy, vision and together we can build a better, bigger and more prosperous IIT Kharagpur. As an individual, Prof. Tewari cannot do it alone, we all need to walk with him like Gandhi in his Salt March. Together we will overcome the challenges and achieve all the goals that we laid down today.

Prof V K Tewari, while addressing Face to Face with Alumni said that, “IIT Kharagpur always uphold the nation’s pride, creates standards of globalization with domestic innovations, finest quality of research and affordable technologies, which is ultimately going to create and contribute towards the Self-Reliance of this country, India. In 2019, IIT Kharagpur was declared Institute of Eminence and from that time the Institute has aligned its activities towards the nation building, high class education with best in class students over the years, we have hone their skills in various domains along with a sense of entrepreneurship, innovation and sense of nationalism. The National Education Policy (NEP 2020) has been very popular among the globe and from the time of its inception we have been able to modify our course curriculum at the under graduate level and at the post graduate level which we have completed this year. We have also changed our MSc. Courses which were of 5 years in Physics, Chemistry, Maths, Geology, Geophysics and have been changed into 4 years BS Degree and MS Degree. We have given lot of flexibility to students in terms of the entry/exit policy along with variation in multidisciplinary education. We have initiated the high end technologies to be provided and implemented in various disciplines. Artificial Intelligence (AI) out today has a lot to contribute, in 2020 it was decided that any student who joins the institute at UG, PG or at Research level have to undergo a course on AI & ML (Machine Learning), so that in his/her domain knowledge they would be able to apply them and leverage the befit of these technologies in IoT, Blockchain technologies etc. Our students are being prepared for the industry and in the new curriculum, we have given 6-8 months of industry experience to our students which is going to start from 2023 summer. The Alumni can help us to connect to these areas of exposure for the students to explore. Now the students can go to the other universities and have a one semester course there. We also have provisions for people coming from other institutes at this place and have the same course here.

The Career Development Centre of IIT Kharagpur is leading with 1600 plus placements among all other IITs and have about 45 international offers with 12 offers ranging from 1 – 2.6 cr which is also the highest among all other IITs. In every department and centre we are trying to inculcate entrepreneurship through product development. Out of the compendium of 75 innovations, top 25 innovations have been chosen for funding so that they can be developed into products among which some of them have already been industrialized and commercialized into products. The Alumni can help us and guide us so that these products are available commercially in 2-3 years of time. We are marching towards the Platinum Jubilee where we need the valuable guidance and initiatives of Alumni in mentoring and supporting us on the celebration of this grand accomplishment and to show the world what IIT Kharagpur was meant for in 1951 when it was established on the lines of MIT with the faculty to student ratio being 5:1, having 224 students and 42 teachers. Now we have more than 15000 students and 800 staffs. We are at par with other universities when it comes to faculty to faculty research basis and have the resources and infrastructure among the best of the world. To encourage our staff and faculty, this year we have given 35 awards to our faculties at the Associate and Assistant level in the form of Chair Professorships and Faculty Excellence Awards which would motivate them to work hard along with 32 Staff Excellence Awards (non-teaching).

IIT KGP is also heading many national schemes like GIAN which is Global Initiative for Academic Networking along with SPARC which is Scheme for Promotion of Academic Research Collaboration across the globe. More than 1600 faculties have come here from foreign and more than 1700 subjects have been taught by the eminent faculties across the globe. More than 1 lakh students have been benefited across the NITs, IITs and other centrally funded universities and colleges. IIT Kharagpur has also successfully conducted JEE Advanced in 2021 and GATE 2022.

I would request the Alumni to connect us better with the other Alumni who are doing well elsewhere around the globe and recognize them. Along with them, we can create an expected corpus of 4000 crore. We have started a hospital under the name of Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee where 260 beds were donated by the Alumni which has started its OPD from last year and is soon going to start the IPD. I request all my faculty friends and Alumni friends to run this hospital as venture capitalist of Section 8 companies. It will be a clinical hospital for our medical college students under the name of Dr. B. C Roy which will be established to impart MBBS education. I hope with your help, support, blessing and guidance, we will be in a position to have a Medical College with 100 students to start with. The government of West Bengal has supported us in various ways including the security of the campus and seen to it that this hospital comes up to serve the biggest district of Bengal, i.e Midnapur. I am confident that this hospital will be accessed by many as it will be a contribution to affordable healthcare in a place like Kharagpur.

Our illustrious Alumni Shri Vinod Gupta has recently inaugurated the A. C. Pandya Students Activity Centre in name of his Prof. A. C Pandya. Very soon we will be establishing the DRDO Industry-Academia Centre of Excellence with an investment of 200-300 crores and initiated the process of recruiting the Director for the same. We are working in close proximity with the government of India, our esteemed Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Hon’ble Shiksha Mantri, Government of India who has blessed, supported and motivated us to go ahead and given the responsibility to start the first campus this country abroad, IIT Malaysia scheduled to be operational from August 2023. We have received a very enthusiastic cooperation from the government of Malaysia to have IIT Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. With the 400-500 acres of campus, it will be huge boast to their economic development and establish the IIT brand in Malaysia while keeping the standards of IIT, JEE Advanced and others. The students will also spend a year at IIT Kharagpur for their respective curriculum. I am very much thankful to my Alumni Mr. Ron Gupta, Mr. Ashoke Dey Sarkar, Mr. Vinod Gupta and also met Mr. Sundar Pichai for their associations.

We have initiated and renewed our collaborations with different Universities in United States and United Kingdom including University of Warwick (WMG) and Manchester University in dual degree and PhD. We have recently signed an MoU with African-Asian Rural Development Organization (AARDO) which has 36 African countries from where we have 8 students in the Agricultural and Food Engineering department for MS degree. Till date we have 63 international students on campus and we need your help to have at least one foreign faculty/professor for each department, centre and schools and have also initiated to employ Professors of Practice in this regard. This year we have accommodated more than 2000 students and I am very thankful to their parents for their cooperation. Currently, we are struggling a bit with the construction of hostels and infrastructure development for which I need our Alumni to come forward and take the lead to make these available. We need to augment the facilities at Gymkhana and we are looking for the scope to revamp the facilities of lawn tennis, swimming pool, hockey ground and food court.

The Government of India has also asked us to initiate a Department of Education which was laid on the thought that if we want top quality students in IITs, they need to be taught by the top quality teachers in Maths, Chemistry, Physics, Economics and Computers in schools. The government have thought that by 2030, they should have at least 30,000 top quality teachers for which the IITs have been chosen with proper induction of exams at par with JEE accordingly. I would request my faculty friends and Deans to indulge in more autonomy when it comes to decision making. We need innovations in subjects and changes is required in domain knowledge transfer of disciplines along with initiating newer courses. The theory should be revamped and substituted with practical industry ideas and expertise with industry experts as well. We have things coming up with IBM on the same lines. Though I am not happy with my performance, but I hope to get more support from my faculty friends and Alumni to make this Institution among the top 10 in the world.

The virtual meet was convened by Cdr V K Jaitly, Distinguished Alumnus and was followed by question answer round from the Alumni. The closing remarks were given by Shri Varadarajan Seshamani, President of IIT KGP Foundation India.

Times of India (Kolkata)

By : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

Follow us: Facebook – IIT Kharagpur; Twitter – @IITKgp; Instagram – @iit.kgp; LinkedIn – Indian Institute of Technology
For news visit: https://kgpchronicle.iitkgp.ac.in/

The Home called Alma Mater – The Class of KGPian Millennials

Homecoming 2022 of the 10th, 15th & 20th Graduates of IIT KGP

Every happiness of yesterday is a memory for tomorrow. Sometimes you never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory. This feeling was revived by our class of KGPian Millennials who revisited the home that nourished and shaped them…to make them what they are today. From 17th to 20th August 2022, along the lines of IIT Kharagpur’s 72nd Foundation Day, the institute welcomed the classes of 2000, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2010 & 2012 batches who held nothing but gratitude and affection for their Alma Mater. Their eyes sparkled with joy, that they shared with the Campus, the Professors, the Staffs and the entire IIT KGP community that welcomed them with the plethora of belongingness they had bid farewell to. With lots of transitions that encountered them at their first glace to the institute, the essence of the institute with the starry night and the dancing trees stood ecstatic.

IIT Kharagpur’s Homecoming is an annual quest of memorabilia that happens every year. Since 2018, batches who have completed 20, 15 and 10 years of association with the Institute from the date of joining the institute, assemble to rejoice the coming together of Alums celebrating the institute’s birthday on 18 August with their overwhelming presence in the campus. The air inside the campus breathes differently when its Homecoming, a Celebration of the Wishful Bonds, together with students, faculty members and campus residents. This year, the campus honoured the Young Alumni Achievers for the year 2022 for their technological developments, innovative researches, service towards the community, service towards the nation, leadership and entrepreneurial skills, governance and administration, social impact and social welfare, contributions towards nation building and other professional accomplishments. IIT Kharagpur is proud to recognize its outstanding, notable and accomplished young alumni, who have made distinguished and outstanding contributions in their respective domains and areas.

Prof. Debashish Chakravarty, Associate Dean, Alumni Affairs & Branding announced the names of the awardees who were conferred the Alumni Endowed Student Scholarship. He stated that, “These awards are instituted by none other than the Alumni themselves. Under the eligibility of certain criterion and depending on the number of applicants, the winners have been recognized. I congratulate all the awardees and thank all the Alums who connected with us in this Homecoming 2022.”

So much has changed since the last time I came herein 2010, I literally was unable to locate Cheddi while entering IIT KGP says Mr. Swapnil Tembe [2009/B.Tech/ME/RP]. The Deputy Commissioner of West Garo Hills District in Meghalaya left Deloitte in 2011 to become an IAS officer reminisces his long journey. Upon asking how he would like to get connected with his Alma Mater he said, “On the grounds of social entrepreneurship, policy reforms, with the new disciplines coming in the amalgamation of technology and public policy, how technology can assist public services, how we can collaborate with technology to brush up public services etc. He further suggested in identifying the problems, with a proforma of questions on the respective fields where things can be executed and the solutions or comprehending researches can give the solutions accordingly. He added , ” The IIT KGP is a huge community out there, even in my state there are officers from IIT Kharagpur, therefore the local meet-ups is necessary that will keep the continuity and strengthen associations with the Alma Mater. Many of the batch mates are spread across different regions, so if we could have regional conclaves for North-East zone and other zones as well, to get more participation and collaborations eventually. He stressed on Career Counselling saying that you should do things that you love otherwise it is just a job. It feels really great to be recognized by your own Alma Mater.”

Walked past those memory lanes Mr. Abhishek Kumar Yadav [2006/B.Tech/CH/AZ] Founder Chairman & Academic Director at Griffins International School remarked, “Even after getting so many awards from all over the world, there is nothing like getting recognized by your Alma Mater. I think all the IITians love the atmosphere here. After working for a period of time, I thought of starting something of my own but Entrepreneurship was something that excited me, so I came back to India and set a factory in Kharagpur. Interestingly IIT Kharagpur did not use the Green Technology up until then so I met the professors and convinced them that we should go for Green Technology because now the competition is not among states or countries, it is at a global level.

A wave of emotions filled up as he made his way to visit his classrooms, Mr. Saroj Kumar Thakur [2006/DD/EC/AZ], District Superintendent of Police, Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu (IPS) said, “It is a totally different feeling to receive the Young Alumni Achieve’s Award. I have been here 5 years from 2001 to 2006, so all those things are coming back to me. The campus is much more greener and beautiful than it was before and the Azad Hall where I was, has also changed quite a lot which is a very pleasant surprise for me. I believe in the fact that if an IITian of Kharagpur cannot do something, nobody in the world can do it, not even god (laughs). He advised everyone to take up civil services says,”Everybody should prepare for UPSC because while studying for UPSC, I came to know the entire history, geography and the whole constitution of India. These studies help you to understand your country better, from inside out. Frankly speaking, I have not given back anything to my Alma Mater till now but I am ready to oblige to any of the requests that my Institution asks from me. He smirks and adds that now its upon my Alma Mater, anything that I can contribute personally, any help that is needed from my department as well I will happily comply. With immense pride I say this sitting here that whatever I am today is because of my Alma Mater.”

Walking along the green stretches of the campus, Mr. Abhinav Kumar [2008/B.Tech/CH/LLR], Divisional Forest Officer, Hapoli Forest Division, Govt. of Arunachal Pradesh (IFS) remarked, ” It is good to be back after 8 years. Interestingly, while I was here, I did not get any medals but I must really add that getting into IIT Kharagpur is an achievement itself and something to be proud of yourself as well as for your family. It feels ecstatic when your Alma mater calls you up to honour you with an award, it is an happiness that cannot be defined in words. In the outside world, IIT Kharagpur is a brand and I feel this huge gratitude, it is really a great honour. Today we need good people in the government services as you have to be the change you want to see in the world around you. I think with the young generation coming in the civil services, we can indulge in a greater vision for the country. I would love to indulge people in providing meaningful direction and my Alma Mater is the best place to start with it.”

Ankit Jain [2013/B.Tech/MT/PH], Co-Founder, GDi Partners says, ” The institute has produced many Alumni to do wonderful things in life making us confident to seek ambition and do great things which was very evident when I started working after college. I would like to apologize to the institute for not being connected to the Institute from the last few years. After sharing our thoughts with Directors and other professors I would like to be associated more with the Institute with the immediate support that is required.”

Prof. Jayanta Mukhopadhyay, Dean Outreach & Alumni Affairs said, “From the corporate world to sports to entrepreneurs to civil servants, we find KGPians in every sphere of our society. All of our Alums are striving for excellence in their respective fields bearing proud signature of IIT Kharagpur every year. With my short association with the Alumni Affairs as Dean, I had innumerable happy interactions with our Alums who are so very passionate towards their Alma Mater. Literally, IIT KGP Fraternity is the epitome of age old mantra of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. During the last two and a half years of the pandemic, we received tremendous help and support in various forms, from our Alumni not only for our faculty, staff and students but also, to reaching out to our greater community whom we consider inseparable in our ecosystem. We would be celebrating Platinum Jubilee function of IIT Kharagpur which would mark 75 years of the Institute’s foundation, from 18 August 2025 to 17 August 2026, and have various programmes to be celebrated year long, not only here but in different cities and places where our Alums have a strong presence. We look forward to your active and passionate participation in the celebration.”

86 years old Mr. Saripalle Satyamurthy, an Alumnus from the second batch of IIT Kharagpur after its formation in 1951 inspired everybody with his presence & was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award 2020, unable to collect due to the pandemic. He said, ” Its after 66 years that I actually came to my campus. Embarking on a poignant memory again, he added, “All of my contemporaries are gone now, I wanted to visit the campus with them. It was thrilling and exciting when Prime Minister announce my name for the Distinguished Alumnus Award 2020, all my family and friends were really excited. With my Alma Mater, I wanted to be connected with the new things that they are developing especially for the rural community in regard to Rural Development Organization, any machinery or technology that will be beneficial to them and that should be made efficient using modern technology. Consideration should be made for the people for whom the technology is being made. With the reasonable income that I have, I wanted to contribute something to the hostels for renovations and I want to participate in the redevelopment of rooms.”

Campus tour, engagement programmes, department visit and strategic meetings, the Office of Alumni Affairs welcomed the Homecomers of 2022 in a pursuit of endearing fondness and helped them to revisit their Alma Mater in a more profound way. Discussions, meetings, brainstorming, cultural inhibitions, concrete ideations and entertaining all the fads of the Alumni, their endeavors has helped the institution to raise many endowments for institutional development. Ms. Swagata Nimaiyar(2002/BTech/AG/SN/IG) has pledged for an endowment of three lakh rupees during Homecoming 2022. IIT Kharagpur is grateful to the Alumni fraternity for their continuous support and guidance.

Inputs from : Office of the Alumni, IIT Kharagpur
Email : anamika.das@adm.iitkgp.ac.in

Interviewed by : Rituparna Chakraborty, Office of the Alumni, IIT Kharagpur
Email : rituani07@gmail.com

Edited by : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

Follow us: Facebook – IIT Kharagpur; Twitter – @IITKgp; Instagram – @iit.kgp; LinkedIn – Indian Institute of Technology
For news visit: https://kgpchronicle.iitkgp.ac.in/

Distinguished Service Awards 2021

IIT Kharagpur has announced the recipients of the Distinguished Service Awards for 2021.

The Distinguished Service Awards (DSA) are conferred to recognize its alumni for providing outstanding service to the institute.

This year’s awards will be conferred to Mr. Amitabh Agarwal (1967/B.Tech/EE/NH), Mr. Srikanth C (2009/BLIPR/IP/JCB) and Mr. Sunil Kapoor (1986/BTech/MF/PH) in the 18th Annual Alumni Meet to be held from March 10th-13th, 2022.

Mr. Amitabh Agarwal

Mr. Amitabh Agarwal has provided impactful services to the Alumni chapters, the IITKGP foundations and has effectively contributed to numerous initiatives spanning over 20 years.

Some of his contributions include,

Donating to the Delhi Chapter for their programs
Establishing the Amitabh Agarwal Chair-Professorship at the Electrical Engineering Department
Donating to neighborhood schools in of IIT KGP
Supporting institute incubated startups
Support to Super 30 program of Prof. Anand Kumar

Mr. Agarwal has an M.Sc from the University of Manitoba, Canada, and an MBA from the University of Delhi. He is currently the Director of the Mohan Energy Corporation Pvt. Ltd.

Mr. Srikanth C

Mr. Srikant C joined the IIT Kharagpur Alumni Association Chennai Chapter in 2010 and was part of its organizing team of the IIT Kharagpur Alumni Association Chennai Chapter during the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of IIT Kharagpur and the PAN IIT Outreach 2012 program in Chennai.

He was also part of the organizing team of the ‘Mindskool competition’ for a school competition conducted by the IIT Kharagpur Alumni Association Chennai Chapter.

He volunteered for the IIT Kharagpur Alumni Foundation in their initiatives like reviewing group insurance schemes, assessing individual donations of assets to Kharagpur, and many more.

Currently, he is an advocate and an IPR consultant.

Mr. Sunil Kapoor

Mr. Sunil Kapoor played a key leadership role in the renovation and refurbishing of the Patel Hall Mess, Dining Hall, TV Room, and Common Room along with the nearly completed Central air-conditioning of facilities in the Hall. He achieved this by using alumni funds crowdsourced from hundreds of Patelians from all over the world.

He executed the Mess and Dining Room Renovation in a targeted period of 6 months and opened the renovated facilities by the start of the new session in July 2016. He generously helped the mess workers of the Hall during the COVID lockdown

Mr. Kapoor is presently the Director, IFA Steels Pvt. Ltd. Founder & Proprietor, Kapoor Wire Industries, and Partner, S. R. Kapoor & Sons.

The Distinguished Alumnus Awards seek to engage and inspire KGP’s 70,000 strong alumni in contributing to the infrastructural development of the institute and encourage them to come aboard in IITKGP’s journey to become onboard them onto IITs journey into becoming a popular destination for international students, teachers, and researchers.

Content Writer:- Arkaprabha Pal, Office of Alumni Affairs & Branding

Email: pal18arkaprabha@gmail.com

Alumni Gift on Alumni Meet

Times of India

Giving back at the Annual Alumni Meet is a ritual at IIT Kharagpur. In keeping true to the tradition, close to 400 alumni from the 1969, 1979, 1994 and 1997 batches have donated Rs. 3.6 crore to their Alma Mater on the occasion of the 16th Annual Alumni Meet scheduled from January 11-13, 2019. The annual giving is among the several alumni fundraising campaigns conducted by the grand old IIT during the year.

The donation has been made towards their respective batches in endowment mode, partial interest out of which will be utilized every year to support a research program for undergraduate students. To encourage such endowment gifts, classrooms are named after batches which collectively donate Rs. 50 Lakh and more.

“These classrooms remind the students each day that graduation is only the beginning of the life-long bonding with IIT KGP. With each passing year, the memories of the years at IIT KGP become more meaningful bringing back the nostalgia and the warmth of an extended family which they gained at IIT KGP. The idea of giving back in the name of the batch is rekindling this bond with the Kgpian family,” said Prof. Subrata Chattopadhyay, Dean of Alumni Affairs.

The journey was certainly different, to gather enough people from the batches for the cause of the Alma Mater and raise fund for the Alma Mater. In fact, several alumni got connected with the Institute years after their graduation.

For a batch like 1969 the task was by no means easy, made more so by the fact that in the days when they graduated there were no emails, almost no phones (certainly no cell-phones), and no social networking sites. So staying in touch was more of an exception than the rule. Alumni like Pronob Guha, Arvind Jain, Ramnath Mani and later Udit Bhanu Dasgupta from the 1969 batch, hence focused their energies on the activity of friend-raising from their batches. “Each alumnus has their own story and own set of friends in the batch and their own set of emotions to donate to their alma mater,” echoed the batch leaders with a hearty laugh. From the initial 36 contacts, the group soon expanded to 90 and raised Rs. 82 Lakh.

For the alumni from the batch of 1994, the challenge was of a different sort with the alumni being at the peak of their professional lives. Abhirup Mukherjee, Vijay Krishna, Subhas Lingareddy, Chandrakant Ekkirala and Manish Pandey from the batch took up the challenge and motivated the batch for a grand celebration of their Silver Jubilee reunion at the 16th Annual Alumni Meet. Soon, the batch gathered momentum with 180 strong batch-mates and not only reached the target of Rs. 50 Lakh to claim their classroom but raised Rs. 1.22 crore for development work at their respective halls of residence.

“Halls are the heart of IIT KGP where the bonding, which Kgpians are so proud of, begins. Each hall has its own culture and spirit. While residents of some halls are known to win medals in sports, some others are experts in socio-cultural activities and residents from another group of halls go on to win several technological championships. Alumni understand this diverse talent and the varied requirements at the halls such as well-equipped model common rooms, air-conditioned libraries, modern messes etc. and take up the cause for upgrading the facilities at their halls,” remarked Prof. S K Pal, Associate Dean, Alumni Affairs who earlier headed the Hall Management Centre at the Institute.

The 1979 batch which is completing its 40th year of graduation and hence its Ruby Jubilee is very close to becoming the Founding Endowment Batch with Rs. 46 Lakh raised from 36 alumni. Cmdr. V. K. Jaitley, Rakesh Agarwal, Chetan Date, Ranganathan Gurumoorthy and Vipin Asija are raising the tempo of their batch-mates during the event to achieve their goal before the closing ceremony on January 13.

“We Can! We Can!”, that’s not only the name of a book that I have written, rather it encapsulates the tempo of us, Kgpians across all ages, and we can definitely make our best effort in enriching the experience of the younger generations at IIT KGP. We Must! We Must! They are also our descendants through our alma mater, They Are The Future,” said an overwhelmed Cmdr. V. K. Jaitley from the 1979 batch.

While these batches are celebrating at the Meet, another batch also reached their goal way before their Jubilee celebrations. The 1997 batch visited the Institute in December 2017 to celebrate their 20th year and pledged to etch their legacy in the Nalanda Academic Complex by December 2018. 85 donors from the batch led by Anandaroop Bhattacharya, Associate Professor at the Dept. of Mechanical Engineering and Associate Dean of International Relations raised Rs. 60 Lakh just before the Meet, thus becoming the youngest Founding Endowment Batch so far.

“As a batch leader, I am overwhelmed by the response from my friends not only in terms of monetary contributions but also their heartwarming messages that they have expressed expressing their gratitude for the Institute. As we look back after, we realize even more the value of the education we received here and the role the Institute has played in shaping our careers.” expressed an enthusiastic Bhattacharya.