GUWAHATI : Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati celebrated its 22^nd Convocation today, 22^nd September 2020, with a graduating class of 1,803 students (1532 male & 271 female). Hon’ble Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi graced the occasion as the Chief Guest in the esteemed presence of Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’, Hon’ble Education Minister, Government of India, and Shri Sanjay Dhotre, Hon’ble Minister of State for Education, Government of India, as the Guests of Honor and Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, Hon’ble Chief Minister, State of Assam as the Special Guest.

Virtually addressing the students at the 22nd Convocation of IIT Guwahati, Hon’ble Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi said, “Convocation is a special day for every student. But this year, it is a different experience for them in the time of pandemic. The pandemic has changed the way convocation is conducted. But still it is as special as it was before. I congratulate students for their bright future. The future of the nation is in what youth think today. Your dreams will shape the reality of India in the future. This is time for you to be Future-Fit and Future-Ready”.  

He further added, “During the pandemic, the Institute has developed several COVID-19 related kits as a first educational institute, which includes the Viral Transport Media (VTM), viral RNA extraction kit and RT-PCR kits to fight COVID-19 and has proved its mettle. Conducting the academic sessions, to continue your research work during the pandemic must have been a difficult task but you have succeeded and your efforts are steps in direction of making an Atmanirbhar Bharat”.

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi appreciated IIT Guwahati for being the first IIT to have introduced a 2-year research program on e-Mobility and for leading the integration of Science and Engineering in all B.Tech level courses. He added, “I request IIT Guwahati to start a Centre for Disaster Management and Risk Reduction. The Centre should provide expertise to deal with disasters in the region. “I also request IIT Guwahati to start a Center for promotion of Indian Culture at IIT Guwahati “

While addressing the event, Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’, Hon’ble Education Minister, Government of India, said, “IIT Guwahati is one of the best institutes in different sectors like research, innovation and rankings. IIT Guwahati has also worked towards the idea of Atmanirbhar Bharat during COVID-19 pandemic. Convocation is not end of education but a new beginning. You came to the Institute as a student but now you will enlighten the world. You are the ambassador of the country. The key to success is positive attitude and positive aptitude.

Stating the motto of IIT Guwahati (Knowledge Is Power), he said, “Knowledgeable human is even more powerful”.

As the Institute celebrates its 27^th Foundation anniversary, it has grown from strength to strength. The Institute has been ranked #7 among all the Engineering institutes as per the India Rankings 2020 conducted by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), Ministry of Education, Government of India.

Presenting the Director’s Report, Prof. T.G. Sitharam, Director, IIT Guwahati, said, “It is noteworthy to mention that the research dimension of IIT Guwahati is broadening significantly and the same is now reflected in terms of multiple industrially funded collaborative research with close cooperation with Industry partners. There are 291 research projects in progress with a total sanctioned value of about Rs. 437.00 crore. In the year under report, we received 131 new projects with a sanctioned value of Rs. 183.00 crore. A total of 153 new consultancy projects were carried out during the year. The total value of consultancy projects undertaken during this year is Rs. 10.76 crores and Rs. 11.27 crores was received for all consultancies”.

He further added, “The faculty members of the Institute have been actively publishing research papers in international and national journals. The number of publications during the past one year is          2112 (Scopus 2019). In the previous year, 1853 (Scopus 2018) research papers were published by the faculty of the Institute. The increase in research papers in journals is encouraging. The Institute has applied for 31 patents in 2019–2020”.

Delivering his address, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Assam, “IIT Guwahati has become known for its environment of academic excellence in the entire country with its quality of technical education over the years. The Institute has produced globally competitive human resources and carried out research that has significantly benefited the society. This shows the commitment of the faculty and students of the Institute. Today the society is going through a very difficult time. Assam has also been affected due to COVID-19 pandemic. Right from the initial stage, we have been striving hard to prevent and contain the spread of this pandemic. IIT-Guwahati has played an important role in assisting the state government in fighting this disease. I acknowledge and thank IIT-Guwahati team for their contribution in developing the COVID-19 kits and other infrastructure help.”

Gold Medal Winners (Class of 2020)

For the Convocation, to celebrate the graduate’s accomplishments online through virtual mode, the Institute had created a virtual reality-based award distribution where one could experience an avatar of the recipient of the award collecting a medal from Director’s own avatar surrogating him, from the comfort of their home. The Institute had also created a photo-booth, with an option of different backgrounds, for students to take pictures at some selected locations on the campus. IIT Guwahati’s faculty and students had developed a telepresence module for a virtual visit to the Institute.