IITGN ANNUAL REPORT 2017 - 2018 INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY GANDHINAGAR ANNUAL REPORT 2017 - 2018 CONTENTs 6 From the Director's Desk 8 Academics 30 Infrastructure and Facilities 43 Outreach Activities 48 Faculty Activities 85 Student Affairs 101 Staff Activities 102 External Relations 105 Support for the Institute 115 Organisation VISION MISSION AND VALUES CORE» A safeFEATURES and peaceful environment » Relevant and responsive to the changing needs of IITMISSION Gandhinagar, as an institution for higher learning our students and the society in science, technology and related fields, aspires to » Academic autonomy and flexibility develop top-notch scientists, engineers, leaders and » Research Ambiance entrepreneurs to meet the needs of the society-now and » Nature of faculty and students: in the future. Furthermore, in this land of Gandhiji, with — Faculty recruiting norms are much higher his spirit of high work ethic and service to the society, than most of the academic institutes in India IIT Gandhinagar seeks to undertake ground breaking — Students are inducted strictly on a merit research, and develop breakthrough products that will basis improve everyday lives of our communities. » Sustainable and all-inclusive growth, including community outreach programmes » Infrastructure: Liberal funding to the laboratory »GOALS To build and develop a world-class institution facilities and amenities to make them for creating and imparting knowledge at the comparable to those best in the world undergraduate, post graduate and doctoral levels, » Administration: Exclusive concern of IIT contributing to the development of the nation and Gandhinagar, and handled internally the humanity at large. — Director given adequate powers to manage » To develop leaders with vision, creative thinking, most academic, administrative and financial social awareness and respect for our values. issues (within the framework) » To foster excellence in teaching and research to » Residential Campus: make a global impact. — Leads to closer academic and social » To engage in path-breaking research that would interaction between students and faculty influence national policies. — Develops stronger community spirit and » To pursue sustainable technological solutions to provides opportunity to learn from each societal problems. other » To focus on lean engineering solutions for — Sustained academic ambiance resulting in sustainable development. higher creativity from everyone. » To be the leader for academic and industrial collaborations in various disciplines, nationally and PRINCIPLES internationally. » Lifelong commitment to learning » To create awareness of the true significance of » Encouragement of merit learning and teaching. » Passion and motivation for work » To enrich local schools and communities through » Professionalism value-added interactions. » Respect for law » To encourage excellent language skills as part of the » Concern for the improvement of the society institutional culture. » Transparency in functioning of the Institute » To prepare students not just for their first job, but » Dedication to the Institute their last job as well. VALUES » Meritocracy »VISION To shape IIT Gandhinagar into an exciting place for » Unparalleled quality and excellence learning, teaching and research. » Honesty, Integrity, Sincerity and Devotion » To establish a process of learning that is free, » Trust and freedom with accountability fulfilling and enjoyable experience. » Appreciation and celebration of creativity » To provide an enabling environment to nurture » Willingness to try new ideas and make mistakes critical and creative minds, and to propel them to » Social and Moral responsibility greater heights of excellence in their pursuits. » Respect for every individual, and diversity » To create a vibrant atmosphere that breeds » Co-operation, Collaboration and Team Work front runner innovators, scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs, academicians and thinkers of tomorrow. » To provide opportunity for students to learn from wherever, however and whatever they choose to study. » To make IIT Gandhinagar the preferred destination for future generations of students, staff and faculty. FROM THE DIRECTOR’S DESK Prof Sudhir K Jain Director IIT Gandhinagar stands on the cusp of completing its first core requirements in the life sciences, design and innovation. decade since its founding in July 2008. What a momentous Our transformative 5-week immersion Foundation Program decade it has been! for incoming freshmen, focused on creativity, leadership & communication, ethics, social awareness, and physical Since inception, we set our ambition to become a world fitness, has been widely lauded and increasingly emulated. class Institution and emulated the best global practices in numerous aspects of Institutional development. As we We strive to empower our students to pursue their passions prepare to enter our second decade, I am proud to report by providing flexibility in the curriculum and exciting co- on the remarkable accomplishments of our young Institute curricular opportunities. Our academic programs offer to date. students unmatched choices, options of dual majors, minors, honors, course flexibility, as well as co-curricular IITGN is today among India’s most globalized campuses. opportunities, such as Tinkerer Lab, Makers Space, More than 40% of our undergraduate students receive study Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre, etc. We have abroad opportunities, which is perhaps the highest in India implemented student participation in governance structures and three times the average of U.S. universities. 80% of in all aspects of Institute affairs, including academic and IITGN faculty have overseas degrees or post doc experience. student life and discipline. 15% of the faculty are visiting faculty from India and abroad. We have exchanges with institutions across all continents, This year 96 students participated in our novel six-week such as California Institute of Technology, Duke University, summer Explorer Fellowship, under which they discover The New School, Texas A&M and SUNY Buffalo in USA; India’s incredible cultural diversity by travelling to a University of Saskatchewan, Canada; Japan Advanced minimum of six states (at least one each on North, South Institute of Science & Technology; ISCTE University and Northeast) on a shoestring budget of just Rs 900/day for Institute of Lisbon, Portugal, etc. travel, accommodation, food and other living expenses. We have introduced a cutting-edge curriculum, informed We have succeeded in assembling an exceptionally diverse by the latest pedagogical practices, emphasizing project- and talented community. Our students represent 28 states/ oriented learning, the humanities and social sciences, and union territories and 5 countries. 34% of graduate students IIT GANDHINAGAR 6 ANNUAL REPORT 2017-18 and 20% of faculty are female. 15% of faculty are visiting Even though our alumni are still in their early stages of their faculty from India and abroad; 6% of regular and contractual professional careers, we are especially proud that 20% of faculty are international. Our faculty includes 6 Ramanujan them already contribute regularly and 50% have contributed Fellows, 2 Ramalingaswami Fellows, and 9 Inspire Fellows. at least once to IITGN, which exceeds the participation rates of some of the world’s most prestigious institutions. It is a IITGN is also mindful of its social obligations, which tribute to the affection with which they hold the institution have always been at the core of its mission. We have and the value they place on their experience here. implemented both formal and informal outreach initiatives. Our construction contracts mandate humane housing, The IITGN campus, India’s first 5 star GRIHA-LD rated in safety commitments and health insurance for workers. the country, was dedicated to the nation by Prime Minister We offer financial assistance for medical emergencies Narendra Modi in October 2017. and educational support for children of contract workers. IITGN students run an educational program Nyasa for IITGN has developed a lean administrative structure to construction worker’s children. IITGN’s NEEV program keep us nimble enough to leverage exciting opportunities offers entrepreneurship, and business and vocational skills and promote innovations. We built and moved to our new training courses at the grassroots. campus within three years of the allocation of land. We have an active research park with several premiere corporate The Center for Creative Learning at IIT Gandhinagar has clients, including the BBC, GUVNL, WIN Foundation, collectively reached out to over 30,000 students across 3,500 E-Infochips, etc. An additional 200,000 sq ft of new space for schools, developed hundreds of STEM-oriented activities the park is presently under construction. and demonstrations and conducted over 50 workshops. As we consolidate our experiences from our eventful decade, IITGN has been singularly successful in fundraising, we are now crafting a detailed vision for the next ten years. notwithstanding the fact that it lacks an alumni base, which Our narrative has been that of innovation and disruption, is the foundation on which most development activity and we expect that the lessons we picked up along the way at educational institutions rests. We have leveraged our will fuel and inform the next phase of our growth. IITGN exciting and novel programs with innovators and well- is building the next generation of movers and thinkers.