IIT Roorkee celebrates 175 years of excellence with alumni outreach activity in the city of joy Kolkata

Roorkee : Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IITRoorkee), erstwhile Thomason College of Engineering and University of Roorkee is celebrating 175 years (1847-2022) of imparting technical education and contributingto the development of society. The celebrations started onNovember 25, 2021 and will continue till November 24, 2022. Different academic, cultural, sports and outreach activities are being planned by students, faculty, staff, and alumni during the year of celebrations.

Marking the celebration, analumni outreach event was concluded at Kolkata on July 17, 2022. More than 200 alumni participated in the event along with families. Retired faculty members of IIT Roorkee who are settled in Kolkatajoined this event. Thiswas for the third time in a rowthat IIT Roorkee conducted zonal outreach activities after Ahmedabad (West)and Kathmandu (Nepal) to facilitate alumnimeetingsto reach out to all alumni and celebrate their achievements and bolster nostalgia and cohesive bonding.Further, IIT Roorkee is striving to celebrate 175 years of excellence in more cities comprising Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, etc.

The event was graced by the esteemed presence of Padmashri Shri Harshavardhan Neotia, Chairman of Ambuja Neotia Group. Other dignitaries included Shri Manoj Pant, Principal Secretary and Finance Secretary West Bengal at Government of West Bengal. The event also witnessed a briefing by Prof. Manoranjan Parida, Deputy Director IIT Roorkee, Prof. Partha Roy, Dean of Resources & Alumni Affairs IIT Roorkee,Prof. Arun Kumar, IIT Roorkee and Mr. Santosh Kumar, CEO IIT Roorkee Development Foundation.

Prof. Ajit Kumar Chaturvedi, Director of IIT Roorkee handed a keepsake to senior alumni in Kolkata who had completed 50 years of graduation. The list includedRaj Kumar Kapur, BE, Civil Engineering, 1960; Ashoke Kr Mukherjee, BE, ECE, 1965; Raj Kakrania, BE, ECE, 1969; Har Ravinder Singh, BE, ECE, 1970; Jabbar Ali, BE, MIED, 1973; and Siddhartha Chakravorty, ME, ECE, 1973, among others.

While addressing the event, Prof. Ajit Kumar Chaturvedi, Director IIT Roorkee, said,in our 175th year, this is the third outreach engagement aimed at instilling the importance of a close-knit affiliation within students, alumni, and faculty. Throughout history, teachers and seniors who came before us paved a way for the present minds to climb to the top. The event is aimed at creating an environment for all the alumni in the network to connect with their alma mater and fellow alumni, both senior and junior to them.”

Shri Harshavardhan Neotia, Chairman of Ambuja Neotia Group, remarked,“With its innovations and research, IIT Roorkee has cultivated a good relationship between academia and industry for the benefit of society and the nation. And I would like to congratulate the institute for its notable contributions and taking upon the initiative for alumni engagement and using it as a platform to motivate alumni which in turn will prove rewarding for everyone.”

Speaking during the event, Shri Manoj Pant, IAS, highlighted,“Getting ahead in a difficult profession requires avid faith in yourself. And one needs the guidance of their teachers and seniors to build that inner drive. And this alumni meet of IIT Roorkee will not only foster a sense of community building but also teach how to think and give back to the institute and the society.”

History of the Institute

IIT Roorkee, formerly known as The Roorkee College was established in 1847 AD as the First Engineering College in the British Empire. Recognizing its performance and potential in the view of independent India’s needs, in November 1949 it was elevated from the erstwhile college to the First Engineering University of independent India. On the 21st of September 2001, the University was declared an institute of national importance, bypassing a bill in the parliament, changing its status from University of Roorkee to Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee.