175 years of IIT Roorkee: Institute hosts alumni outreach event in Kolkata

IIT Roorkee – established as the first college of Engineering in the British Empire and previously known as Thomason College of Engineering and University of Roorkee – is in its 175th anniversary (1847-2022), celebrations for which started on November 25, 2021 and will continue till November 24, 2022, an official statement said.

The institute has planned different academic, cultural, sports and outreach activities for students, faculty, staff, and alumni during the year of celebrations.

On Sunday, more than 200 alumni of the institute participated in the outreach event along with their families, IIT Roorkee said.

“Retired faculty members of IIT Roorkee who are settled in Kolkata joined this event. This was for the third time in a row that IIT Roorkee conducted zonal outreach activities after Ahmedabad (West) and Kathmandu (Nepal) to facilitate alumni meetings to 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,” an officaial starement said.

“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,” it added.

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.”