IIT Madras Alumnus donates Rs. 5 Crore to renovate Hostels & augment existing maintenance activities
Chennai: Indian Institute of Technology Madras Alumnus Dr. Krishna Chivukula, Owner and Chairman, Board of Directors, INDO US MIM TEC Private Ltd, is donating a sum of Rs. 5 crore to renovate the Campus hostels and augment existing maintenance facilities.
An initial sum of Rs. 2.5 crore has already been handed over to the Institute to renovate the Cauvery Hostel, which was the first-ever hostel to be constructed on the campus. Hostels at IIT Madras are named after rivers. Its construction began in the year 1961. While the continued support of the Government is important to enable providing well-maintained hostel accommodations to students, this one-time contribution will help elevate the hostels to world-class standards for the benefit of several generations of future students.
Two more hostels will be identified by the Institute for renovation. Dr. Krishna Chivukula presented the cheque to Prof. Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Director, IIT Madras, in the presence of Prof. Mahesh Panchagnula, Dean (International and Alumni Relations), IIT Madras, on 8th January 2020.
Thanking the donor for his generous contribution to the welfare of students, Prof. Mahesh Panchagnula, Dean (International and Alumni Relations), IIT Madras, said, “Alumni-Giving at IIT Madras has made a huge difference to several key initiatives. We are very grateful to Dr. Chivukula who has come forward to support this very important requirement on our campus.”
This contribution, which was part of the Institute’s #KeepItFlowing campaign to support the hostels, will help the Institute to execute face-lift works in restrooms including water proofing, façade improvements in corridor and staircase, painting, shoe rack fixing, gardening, development of play fields, cycle parking and façade improvement at the main entrance, among others.
Expressing happiness at being able to contribute to the development of his Alma Mater, Dr. Krishna Chivukula, M.Tech [Aero], 1970 Owner and Chairman, Board of Directors, INDO US MIM TEC Private Limited, said, “IIT Madras gave me world-class education at literally ‘zero cost.’ This led to my being admitted to the Harvard Business School, which in turn led to my being successful in life. I am delighted to be able to give back to the Institution that was the root cause of my success. I sincerely urge my fellow IITians to experience the same joy that I experience!”
Cauvery Hostel was constructed in 1961 with a capacity to accommodate 216 students in single occupancy. The hostel was expanded in 2002 to accommodate another 171 students. Since 2018, the rooms have been converted as double occupancy rooms to accommodate around 750 students.
Speaking the impact of this donation and benefit for students, Mr. R. Aswanth, Student General Secretary, Cauvery Hostel, IIT Madras, said, “This funding will not only augment the facilities at Cauvery hostel but also to satisfy parents of hostellers. These funds will be used in improving all facilities along with the aesthetics of the hostel for creating a student friendly healthy environment.”
The hostel has the following facilities:
Ø Grid connected Solar PV panels and Solar water heaters
Ø Recycled water is used for flushing and gardening
Ø Play field area for Cricket, Football, Basketball and other sports
Ø Garden space in the quadrangle area
Ø Open cycle parking
Ø TV room, Library and Table tennis room
Ø Washing machines in restroom
Ø Separate study hall
Ø Drinking water points
The hostel building is around six decades old but still structurally sound to cater to the present needs of students. However, due to ageing it becomes necessary to augment the existing facilities in the hostel premises.