CBS
ran the piece "Imported from India"
thrice in 2003 on 60 Minutes. Business
Week, Forbes magazine and even Dilbert
showcased them. Bur are the Indian Institutes
of Technology all that they are hyped
to be? Authors Suvarna Rajguru and Ranjan
Pant have attempted an introductory overview
of the IITs in this picturesque and concisely
written coffee table book.
The authors say they felt there was "a
strong need for a comprehensive publication"
that would showcase the "historical,
cultural background and development"
of these institutions for the Indian Diaspora
and the IIT alumnus in particular to cherish.
The notion that industrial development
was possible only by training high level
technocrats, in new, freshly created technical
institutions for post independent India,
propelled Jawaharlal Nehru to build the
IITs.
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in Kharagpur in 1951, the site chosen
to honor the spirit of the lost political
prisoners fighting for India's freedom
in the near by Hijli jail.
According to the authors, IIT Kharagpur
therefore symbolizes not just technical
brilliance but the pride and honor of
India in the face of Britain's legacy
of death and destruction. The next four
IITs, Bombay, Chennai, Kanpur and Delhi
were built by financial and other assistance
from UNESCO, USSR, West Germany, USA and
Britain and the influences can be seen
partly in their unique curriculum and
partly in construction. The last two created
in 1994 and 2001 at Guwahati and Roorkee,
are the creation of the now self reliant
central government.
Life was not very rosy when the first
graduates started emerging from the hallowed
portals. Three reviews in 1986, 1995 and
2000 brought home the realization that
while the 27,000 engineers who exited
these state of the art institutes became
trailblazers worldwide, they had failed
to meet the needs of the nation's industry.
Several alumni had departed to foreign
shores for higher studies and not returned,
so India was left struggling with a lagging
rural economy.
What also stood out was the fact that
while the revered, highly experienced
older faculty was retiring, there were
not many worthy heirs and insufficient
support to fund research programs, raise
pay scales or even get consultants or
professors from outside, and it affected
the institutions adversely. While many
consider the IITs to be at par with MIT
as far as the undergrad programs go, they
are considered nowhere near Ivy League
standard for postgraduate work. On being
reminded that the motto at IIT Kharagpur
read "Dedicated to the service of
the Nation," an alumni quipped, "Which
Nation?" an biting reference to the
exodus of the Indian technocrats to the
U.S.
Talking about their alma mater seems
to have struck a deep chord within the
35,000 strong IIT alumni community in
the United States. The book captures the
outpouring of nostalgia and memories and
the authors have made a conscious effort
to portray the flip side of being an IITian.
From studying day and night to the sounds
of loud music, the tough competition not
just to get in but to survive, lousy food,
walking on the dark side with games of
Russian roulettes and high stakes, the
alumni recall sex, drugs, rock and roll
at the Mood Indigo Festivals, attempted
suicides and breakdowns.
The IIT fraternity also formed "close
bonds of friendship that resulted from
mutual struggles, competition and commiseration."
An IITian knew the only religion and citizenship
that mattered was being an IITian. The
$30 billion joint assets and the glorious
success that many IITians have savored
in the United States is only because of
the "fundamentals learnt in IIT,"
according to the alumni interviewed.
The book also captures the journey of
some of the alumni, including those who
have returned to India to help their alma
maters with financial and hands on help.
The authors profile 25 top alumni who
have made the highest "global impact
in terms of innovation, wealth creation,
leadership and philanthropic activities."
The book is strewn with beautiful pictures,
interesting statistics and quotes about
the seven institutes and their alumni.
It took the authors two years of extensive
research, collaborations with two historians(one
of whom did his PhD dissertation on the
IITs,) pouring through 50 years of India's
annual reports on education, visits to
all the seven campuses, extensive interviews
with academia and faculty at IIT and several
students and alumni to create this book.
This book pinpoints the vital statistics,
captures the essence of these institutes
to whet the nostalgic appetite of any
IITian. It is an intriguing read even
for someone not from these techno jewels
in India's crown, a succulent appetizer,
and sets the tone for more in-depth books
as the main course to follow.
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