Gandhinagar: The Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN) celebrated Independence Day 2023 today with great patriotic fervour. The Institute community, including students, faculty and staff members, and their families, enthusiastically participated in a number of interesting events to commemorate the 77th Independence Day.
Following the flag hoisting ceremony, Prof Rajat Moona, Director, IITGN, addressed the Institute community on the occasion. Remembering the sacrifice of numerous known and unknown freedom fighters for India’s independence, Prof Rajat Moona said, “We are able to breath-in an independent environment, represent India from many leadership positions in the world, and write our success stories, thanks to countless known and unknown freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives selflessly to secure our present. The only way to try to repay this invaluable debt is to be always ready for our country’s progress and shoulder all our responsibilities with utmost sincerity.”
He also recalled significant roles played by some of the unsung heroes of India’s freedom struggle as identified by the Government of India from various parts of the country, including Maniram Dutta Baruah from Assam, Pandit Nekiram Sharma from Haryana, Rani Chennamma from Karnataka, Dr Saifuddin Kitchlew from Punjab, Veer Narayan Singh from Chhattisgarh, and Hansa Jivraj Mehta from Gujarat, among others. Prof Moona proudly mentioned some of the most significant achievements by the Institute and its students, faculty, and staff members and concluded his speech by quoting – ‘कोशिश करने वालों की हार नहीं होती…’ – an inspirational poem of Shri Sohanlal Dwivedi, an Indian poet, Gandhian, and freedom fighter. Members of the IIIT Vadodara were also present during the ceremony.
On this occasion, the Institute also felicitated 14 employees (including 10 faculty and 4 staff members) with Long Service Awards to honour their dedicated service to the Institute for ten years. This event was followed by presentation of Best Poster Awards to participants of the Research Showcase event, Dean’s List Awards to students for achieving a certain level of academic excellence in the last academic term, and Bhalodia-Khetan Summer Research Excellence Awards to three interns for outstanding performance during IITGN’s flagship Summer Research Internship Programme (SRIP) 2023.
The Physical Education section and the Sports Council of IITGN organised a running event for the IITGN community in the morning. Top performers were awarded prizes. A special cricket match between IITGN and the Airforce team is also scheduled to be played in the evening to commemorate our nation’s independence.
Moreover, the Cultural Council of IITGN will also be hosting a Cultural Event in the evening, wherein students, the IITGN community, and their family members will showcase their talent in the form of patriotic songs, drama, solo and group dance, and so on.
Joining the independence day celebrations, the Centre for Creative Learning (CCL), along with the IITGN community, created a cylindrical Anamorphic Rangoli Portrait (6 x 5 feet) and a special cylindrical Anamorphic Pixel Art Portrait (8 x 4 feet) of Mahatma Gandhiji using nearly 10,000 push pins. More than 20 people, including students and CCL team members, worked for more than seven hours to create the exhibits. This exquisite piece of art is one of the largest exhibits of its kind in the country.
What is Anamorphic Design?
Anamorphic art involves the creation of images that appear distorted or incomplete when viewed from certain angles. However, the image reveals itself in all its glory when viewed from a specific vantage point. It’s a fantastic team activity and a mesmerising way to engage with art.
