IIT Roorkee celebrates its 175th Foundation Day

ROORKEE : Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee celebrated its 175^th Foundation Day on 25^th November 2022 in the auspicious presence of Shri Om Birla, Hon’ble Speaker of Lok Sabha, as the Chief Guest. The event was also graced by the esteemed presence of Shri Vineet Pandey, Secretary, Department of Post, GoI, as the Guest of Honor.

Congratulating IIT Roorkee for its glorious 175 years, Shri Om Birla, Hon’ble Speaker, Lok Sabha, said, “I congratulate IIT Roorkee as it continues to be in the forefront of the pursuit of research and has contributed to the nation and the region. This institute has unwaveringly aimed at attaining global levels of excellence in education and creating a sustainable and equitable society through innovative research. I am sure IIT Roorkee will continue to serve the nation and build competency and recognition for India as a Vishwa Guru.”

The 175^th Foundation Day Celebration started with Flag hoisting and address by Prof. B.V.R. Mohan Reddy, Chairman Board of Governors, IIT Roorkee, and Prof. K.K. Pant, Director, IIT Roorkee, on the Historical Aspects of the foundation day.

Addressing the audience on the release of the commemorative stamp, Shri Vineet Pandey, Secretary, Department of Posts, GOI, said, “I congratulate IIT Roorkee on its 175th year as an institution imparting technical education and contribution to the development of the society. It is my honour to release the commemorative stamp in recognition of this significant milestone. I extend my wishes to IIT Roorkee for its continued strive to become a centre of excellence in research and development.”

IIT Roorkee has a strong entrepreneurial culture. The Institute has many alumni who are founders of successful technological and social ventures in India and abroad. These alumni are playing an important role in maintaining IIT Roorkee’s legacy of excellence and contributing the nation building specially in infrastructure.

The Institute began its journey in 1847 as the First Engineering College in the British Empire. It has since progressed rapidly with many pioneering initiatives in engineering education, Research and Development (R&D), societal impact, and international collaborations.

IIT Roorkee is constantly working towards imparting technical education and contributing to the development of society. One major highlight of the 175^th Foundation Day celebration at IIT Roorkee was the Startup Expo 2022, which featured around 130 start-ups supported by the Institute’s Start-up Ecosystem. Around 50 start-ups of these showcased their product/ technology in the domains including Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Healthcare, and Electric Vehicles, among others, to 100+ industries from the Uttarakhand region.

Congratulating IIT Roorkee on completing 175 years of excellence, Prof. B.V.R. Mohan Reddy, Chairman, Board of Governors, IIT Roorkee, said, “I am happy to see the constant efforts being made by IIT Roorkee to improve its perception among our peers on the global stage. I congratulate the Institute and all stakeholders for their tireless hard work to achieve this milestone. I am glad to see the strong entrepreneurial culture at IIT Roorkee, and I am confident that continued innovative efforts will be made by the Institute to maintain its legacy of excellence.”

Speaking during the event, Prof. K.K. Pant, Director, IIT Roorkee, said, “IIT Roorkee has a glorious past of serving the nation for 175 years. IIT Roorkee aims to lead the transition in the new era of higher education and increase contributions to basic and applied research leading to the development of products, infrastructure, processes, and materials for different sections of society. Our Institute has not only been the pioneer in the field of research and innovation but also fostered the academia-industry relationship for the larger interest of society and the nation.”

Further, Prof. Pant said, “On the International outreach front, IIT Roorkee has made a mark on the global map. As showcased in the Start-up Expo being organized as a part of our 175th Foundation Day celebration, the startup ecosystem at the institute is very diverse, and IIT Roorkee is constantly supporting innovative ideas and technologies by providing mentoring and financial support to young entrepreneurs. I wish continued growth and success to all the students, faculty alumni, and staff of this premier institution.”

The 175^th Foundation Day event also witnessed the release of a commemorative Stamp, Coin, and a Coffee Table Book. Along with this, with an objective to highlight the antiquity of IIT Roorkee’s illustrious history.

As a part of the year-long celebration to mark 175 years (1847-2022) of establishment, IIT Roorkee organized various activities on Academic, International Relations, Sports, Research, Alumni, and Student outreach fronts. Under the IITR@175 initiative, IIT Roorkee reached out to institutions within 200kms of Roorkee for collaboration, help start research in the areas of importance, augment creating labs and attract funding from various Govt and non-Govt organizations. TechSarthi Scheme to provide assistance to the industrial units around Roorkee launched in April 2022. On the sports front, the Institute Sports council of IIT Roorkee organized Half Marathon 2022 on April 3, 2022, with 450 athletes from the Institute, BEG, NIH, CBRI, and select educational Institutes around Roorkee.

Along with this, the NSS unit of IIT Roorkee conducted various events supporting development, women empowerment, sustainability, and environmental causes during the 175^th-year celebration of the Institute, such as Sustainability Conclave, Blood donation Camp, Run for Sustainability, Tree Plantation Drive, Cloth and Book Donation Drive, Model Gaon, JEE Test series and merit-based test for classes.  App-based Roorkee Seva portal to provide linkage between service provide and use, one day trip to students of nearby schools have been unique activities undertaken.

On the Alumni outreach front, IIT Roorkee organized various alumni outreach events nationally and globally. The first celebration event was held at the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar on 27^th March 2022. Continuing the celebration activities, four more events were conducted after that: Alumni meet in Kathmandu, Nepal, on 9th June; 2022; Alumni Meet in Kolkata on 17th July 2022; Alumni meet in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 9th August 2022, and Alumni meet in London on 17^th September 2022.

Talking about the year-long celebration, Prof. Arun Kumar, Chairperson, 175 Years Celebration Committee, IIT Roorkee, said, “showcasing the journey of IIT Roorkee based on the ideas from institute community, outreaching to global fraternity and connecting to high ranking scientists, recognizing the magnificence journey of the instate of Govt of India through commemorative coin and stamp have been successfully achieved through yearlong celebrations with eth support from one and all.

The Institute showcased a picture gallery of large-size oil paintings of the Five luminaries who graduated during the pre-1900 era, namely Lala Deen Dayal (1866 batch), Sir Ganga Ram (1873 batch), Pandit Shiv Narayan Agnihotri (1868 batch), Mirza Mohd Hadi Ali `Ruswa` (1876 batch) and Raja Jwala Prasad (1900 batch).

Related information on luminaries is provided in the attached annexure. *

The event also included a spectacular Drone bulb journey of IIT Roorkee from the sky, which was visible from every corner of Roorkee city.