The Indian Institute of Technology (Madras) is promoting a research and development tech park at Taramani that will match international standards. We have already acquired six and a half acres of land for the 4 lakh square feet first phase and work has already started. Professor Ashok Jhunjhunwala, professor of electrical engineering, IITM, has been put in charge of the entire project and when completed, it will be on the lines of the Stanford research park in the U.S. Professor M.S. Ananth, Director, IITM, said during the presentation of the Distinguished Alumnus Awards to six outstanding former students here on Friday. Though 12,000 students deserved an IIT-quality education every year, only 4,000 out of the 2 lakh applicants could actually be admitted due to a shortage of faculty. The IITM had introduced 100 new courses, besides effecting curricular changes. Efforts were also on to introduce interdisciplinary research in 14 areas and to build bridges with universities abroad to foster industry-research partnership.

Rs. 40 crores earned

The IITM earned Rs. 40 crores annually through sponsored research and consultancy alone and several infrastructural improvements were being undertaken. Apart from academic excellence, IITM also concentrated on enhancing the human resources potential of its students. Apart from the hugely successful cultural fest, Sarang, it regularly hosted Shastra, the only student festival in the entire country to be given an ISO 2001 certification, Dr. Ananth added.

Award winners

The distinguished alumnus award winners this year include Meena Mutyala, vice-president, Nuclear Fuel Engineering Division, Westinghouse Electric Company, U.S.; Parimal R. Desai, vice president, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Development, Wyeth Research, New York; A. Parasu Parasaraman, professor and James W. McLamore chair in marketing, University of Miami, U.S.; A. Jayakrishnan, head of the Polymer Division, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum; Krishna Swaroop Kolluri, executive vice-president and general manager, Security Products
Group, Juniper Networks, U.S. and Kris Venkat, chairman and chief executive officer, Phyton Inc., U.S. In their acceptance speeches, both Ms. Mutyala and Dr. Desai thanked the IITM for giving them a truly unparalleled experience [as students] that could not be had anywhere else in the world.

News of Indian Institute of Technology (Madras)