Gandhinagar: In a gesture to express a sense of gratitude and respect, the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN) celebrated the Republic Day 2021 by felicitating many of its essential services staff who have shown exemplary dedication to the Institute community throughout the COVID-19 induced lockdown period and beyond. The Institute presented Campus Development Awards and Excellence Awards to various non-teaching staff, including medical consultant, security personnel, and housekeeping, guest house, hostel and mess workers for providing their relentless services throughout the past year. The Institute also conferred Faculty Excellence Awards to four faculty members for excellence in teaching, research, institution building, and outreach.
Earlier, at the flag hoisting ceremony with limited community gathering, Prof Sudhir Jain, Director, IITGN addressed the audience and said, “Good learning environment, people with a high degree of morals, purpose, right intentions, and an inherent drive for knowledge are essential for establishing a good educational institution. Today is the day to reflect on the strengths and weaknesses of our educational system to bring them at par with the best institutions of the world. It is the duty or Dharma of educational institutions to not only teach subjects to the students but also to make them thinkers and leaders of tomorrow.”
Most of the IITGN community members joined remotely in the live webcast of the programme on the Institute’s YouTube channel.
In the evening, the Cultural Council of IITGN organised a patriotic cultural programme at the newly built open-air theatre (Rangmanch) on the campus. The participating students presented an enthusiastic show with patriotic songs, solo and group dance performances, stand-up comedy, and poetry recitation.