Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur

Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur
Motto	तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय (tamaso mā jyotirgamaya) (Sanskrit)
Motto in English	Lead me from darkness to light
Established	1959
Type	Education and research institution
Chairman	M Anandakrishnan
Director	Sanjay Govind Dhande
Admin. staff	1200
Undergraduates	2,800
Postgraduates	2,500
Location	Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India
Campus	1,055 acres (4.27 km2)
Website	www.iitk.ac.in

The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (Hindi: भारतीय प्रौद्योगिकी संस्थान कानपुर) (commonly known as IIT Kanpur or IITK) is a Central deemed University located in Uttar Pradesh, about 15 km north-west of the city of Kanpur in the Kalyanpur suburb.

Established in 1959 as one of the first Indian Institute of Technology, the institute was created with the assistance of a consortium of nine leading US research universities as part of the Kanpur Indo-American Programme (KIAP). It quickly rose among the ranks of engineering universities and is currently one of the most prestigious and highest-ranked engineering universities in India.^[1]

History

Faculty Building, IIT Kanpur

IIT Kanpur was established by an Act of Parliament in 1959. The institute was started in December 1959 in a room in the canteen building of the Harcourt Butler Technological Institute at Agricultural Gardens in Kanpur. In 1963, the institute moved to its present location, on the Grand Trunk Road near the village of Kalyanpur in Kanpur district.

During the first ten years of its existence, IIT Kanpur benefited from the Kanpur Indo-American Programme (KIAP), where a consortium of nine US universities (namely M.I.T, University of California, Berkeley, California Institute of Technology, Princeton University, Carnegie Institute of Technology, University of Michigan, Ohio State University, Case Institute of Technology and Purdue University) helped set up the research laboratories and academic programmes.^[2] The first Director of the Institute was Dr. P. K. Kelkar (after whom the Central Library was renamed in 2002).

Under the guidance of economist John Kenneth Galbraith, IIT Kanpur was the first institute in India to offer Computer Science education. The earliest computer courses were started at IIT Kanpur in August 1963 on an IBM 1620 system. The initiative for computer education came from the Electrical Engineering department, then under the chairmanship of Prof. H.K. Kesavan, who was concurrently the chairman of Electrical Engineering and head of the Computer Centre. Prof. Harry Huskey of the University of California, Berkeley, who preceded Dr. Kesavan, was instrumental in providing the impetus for the computer activity at IIT-Kanpur. In 1971, the institute initiated an independent academic program in Computer Science and Engineering, leading to M.Tech. and Ph.D. degrees.

In 1972 the KIAP program ended, in part because of tensions due to the U.S. support of Pakistan. Government funding was also reduced as a reaction to the sentiment that the IIT's were contributing to the brain drain. Since then IIT Kanpur has increased collaboration with industry and has achieved a reasonable level of stability.

Envisioned to bolster enhanced research in power, a Real Time Digital Simulation Facility at the Electrical Engineering department of the Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur has started functioning on 22nd July, 2011.^[3]

Academics

IIT Kanpur Faculty Building

Undergraduate

IIT Kanpur offers four year B.Tech programs in Aerospace Engineering, Biological Sciences and Bio-engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Science and Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. The admission to these programs is procured through Joint Entrance Examination. A five year dual degree B.Tech/M.Tech is offered in some of the areas as well. IIT Kanpur also offers five year integrated M.Sc. Programs in Pure and Applied Sciences (Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry in particular) and in Economics.^[4]

From 2011, IIT Kanpur has started offering a 4 year BS program in sciences. Students can also choose a 5 year double major program. ^[5]

Postgraduate

Postgraduate courses in Engineering offer Master of Technology (M.Tech) and Ph.D. degrees. The institute also offers M.B.A. (2 years), M.Sc. (2 years) and M.Des degrees. Admissions to M. Tech is made once a year through Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering. Until 2011, admissions to the M.B.A. program are accomplished through the Joint Management Entrance Test (JMET), held yearly, and followed by a Group Discussion/Personal Interview process. In 2011 JMET was replaced by Common Admission Test (CAT).^[6]

Departments

The academic departments at IIT Kanpur are

Department of Computer Science and Engineering at IIT Kanpur

• Engineering
  • Aerospace Engineering
  • Biological Sciences and Bioengineering
  • Chemical Engineering
  • Civil Engineering
  • Computer Science and Engineering
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Materials Science and Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering

• Humanities and social sciences.
  • Economics
  • English
  • Fine Arts
  • Philosophy
  • Psychology
  • Sociology

• Management
  • Industrial and Management Engineering

• Sciences
  • Chemistry
  • Mathematics and Statistics
  • Physics

• Inter Disciplinary
  • Environmental Engineering and Management
  • Laser Technology
  • Master of Design
  • Materials Science Program
  • Nuclear Engineering and Technology

Laboratories and other facilities

Samtel Research and Development Building

The campus is spread over an area of 4.3 square kilometres (1,100 acres). Institute facilities include the National Wind Tunnel Facility. Other large research centres include the Advanced Centre for Material Science, a Bio-technology centre, the Advanced Centre for Electronic Systems, and the Samtel Centre for Display Technology, Centre for Mechatronics, Centre for Laser Technology, Prabhu Goel Research Centre for Computer and Internet Security, Facility for Ecological and Analytical Testing. The departments have their own libraries.

The institute has its own airfield, for flight testing and gliding.

P K Kelkar Library (formerly Central Library) is an academic library of the institute with a collection of more than 300,000 volumes, and subscriptions to more than 1000 periodicals. The library was renamed to its present name in 2003 after Dr. P K Kelkar, the first director of the institute. It is housed in a three-story building, with a total floor area of 6973 square metres floor area. The Abstracting and Indexing periodicals, Microform and CD-ROM databases. technical reports, Standards and thesis are part of the collection. Each year, about 4500 books and journal volumes are added to the collection.

The Western Labs

The Computer Centre has about 200-300 Linux terminals and more than 100 Windows-NT terminals supported by the PARAM 10000 supercomputer, and is continuously available to the students for academic work and recreation. It hosts about 50 SUN workstations. The IITs (and especially IIT Kanpur) and BITS Pilani are among the first large academic institutions in India to be networked^{[citation needed]}, with an institute-wide LAN and Ethernet access to every student room in the residence halls.

A team of students, working under the guidance of faculty members of the institute and scientists of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) are set to launch India's first nano satellite 'Jugnu'.^[7]

Students

PK Kelkar Library

The institute has around 4,000 students with equal numbers of graduate and undergraduate students.

Student festivals

Advaita performing at IIT Kanpur in Antaragni

National events

Antaragni 2004

• Antaragni: Annual cultural festival held over 4 days in October.
• Techkriti: Annual technology and business festival held over 4 days in February.
• Udghosh: Annual inter-college sports meet held in September.

Intra-IITK events

• Josh: Annual intra-institute sports festival.
• Galaxy: Annual inter-hall cultural competition.
• Takneek: Annual inter-hall technology competition.
• Varchasva: Annual inter-hall sports competition.
• Spectrum: Annual inter-hall films and media competition.

Halls of Residence

IIT Kanpur has well built modern infrastructure for promoting student's personal growth. The institute has 9 boys' hostels and 2 girls' hostels fondly called as 'Halls of Residence'. Each hall is equipped with excellent sports and computing facilities besides institute's common facilities. IIT Kanpur enjoys vibrant student culture where students from different backgrounds bring different tastes of life with them.

Student publications

The students bring out a monthly newspaper, Vox Populi, the college magazine Meander and NERD, a science and technology magazine.

Student voluntary services

The students participate voluntarily in social services and organisations, "Prayas" being one of them, where they involve local underprivileged children in educational activities during their free time, conduct awareness programs and provide for campus visits.

Republic Day celebrations (2010)

Student Gymkhana

The Students' Gymkhana is the students' government organization of IIT Kanpur. Established in 1962, the Gymkhana seeks to cultivate qualities of leadership amongst students to foster a corporate life and to advance the general cause of the student body of the student body of the Institute.

The Students' Gymkhana functions mainly through the Students' Senate, an elected representative body and the elected executives: the President, General Secretary Cultural Council, General Secretary Science and Technology Council, General Secretary Games and Sports Council and the General Secretary Films and Media Council. The Senate lays down the general guideline for the functions of the executives and their associated councils. The Senators elect their own Senate Convener.

The Gymkhana has a say in the policy and decision making bodies of the institute. The President and the Convener of the Students' Senate are special Invitees to the Institute Academic Senate. The President is usually invited to the meetings of the Board of Governors when matters affecting students are being discussed. Nominees of the Students' Gymkhana are also members of the various standing Committes of the Institute Senate. All academic departments have Departmental Undergraduate and Post Graduate Committees consisting of members of the faculty and nominees of the Students' Gymkhana.

Presidential Council

The aim of the Presidential Council shall be to help the President in discharging his/her duties and any other duty assigned by the Senate. The council consists of the following sub groups:

• Gymkhana Lectures and Discussion Club
• Prayas
• Students’ Placement Office
• Book Club
• The Entrepreneurship Cell

Cultural Council

The aim of the Cultural Council is to organize and promote all cultural extra-curricular activities and any other duty assigned by the Senate. The council consists of following sub groups:

• Music Club
• Dance Club
• Dramatics Club
• Fine Arts
• ELS
• Crescent Sun
• Vivekananda Samiti
• Quiz Club
• SPIC MACAY
• HSS

Games Council

The aim of the Games Council is to organize and promote all extracurricular activities in the field of games and any other duties assigned by the Senate. The Council primarily looks over the following events and clubs:

• Inter-IIT Sports Meet
• Taekwondo Club
• Adventure Sports Club
• Chess Club

Films and Media Council

The aim of the Films & Media Council is to organize and promote all Cinematic activities on behalf of the Students’ Gymkhana and any other duty assigned by the Senate. The FMC is responsible to look over the following:

• Meander - The Students’ Magazine
• Animation Club
• CD Club
• La Montage Club
• Photography Club
• Regional Movies Club
• STV Club

Science and Technology Council

The aim of the SnT council is to organize and promote all scientific and technological activities. Science and Technology Council is a part of Student's Gymkhana and provides opportunity and a platform for students to pursue their hobbies in field of science and technology.The Council currently comprises of 8 clubs and a Rubik's cube hobby group.

• Astronomy Club
• Business Club
• Electronics Club
• Programming Club
• Gliding Club
• HAM Club
• Aeromodeling Club
• Robotics Club

Students' research related activity

Research is controlled by the Office of the Dean of Research and Development. Under the aegis of the Office the students publish the quarterly NERD Magazine (Notes on Engineering Research and Development) which publishes scientific and technical content created by students. Articles may be original work done by students in the form of hobby projects, term projects, internships, or theses. Articles of general interest which are informative but do not reflect original work are also accepted.

Along with the magazine a student research platform PoWER Promotion of work Experience and Research has been started. Under it several independent student groups are working on projects like the Lunar Rover for ISRO, alternate energy solutions under the Group for Environment and Energy Engineering, ICT solutions through a group Young Engineers, solution for diabetes, green community solutions through ideas like zero water and zero waste quality air approach. A budget of Rs 1.5 to 2 crore has been envisaged to support student projects that demonstrate technology.

• Jugnu (satellite)

The students of IIT Kanpur made a nano satellite called Jugnu, This small satellite was given by president Pratibha Patil to ISRO for launch. . Jugnu is an Indian technology demonstration and remote sensing satellite which will be operated by the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur. It is a nanosatellite which will be used to provide data for agriculture and disaster monitoring. It is a 3-kilogram (6.6 lb) spacecraft, which measures 34 centimetres (13 in) in length by 10 centimetres (3.9 in) in height and width. Its development programme cost around 25 million rupee. It has a design life of one year. Jugnu's primary instrument is the Micro Imaging System, a near infrared camera which will be used to observe vegetation. It also carries a GPS receiver to aid tracking, and is intended to demonstrate a microelectromechanical inertial measurement unit. Jugnu will be launched into low Earth orbit by a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle flying from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre. The launch is currently scheduled to occur during 2011

The institute is part of the European Research and Education Collaboration with Asia (EURECA) programme since 2008.^[8]

SIDBI Innovation and Incubation Centre

IIT Kanpur has set up the SIDBI Innovation and Incubation Centre in collaboration with the Small Industries development Bank of India (SIDBI) to foster innovation, research, and entrepreneurial activities in technology-based areas. SIIC provides a platform to business Start-ups to develop their ideas into commercially viable products.

SIDBI Innovation and Incubation Centre (SIIC) conducted the Nettech Summer Program 2007 for engineering students from all over India at IIT Kanpur Campus.[3]^[9]

Grey-headed Myna on IITK campus

Academic rankings

In the 2011 QS Asian University Rankings IIT Kanpur ranked 36th and first in India.^[10] However, in the Asian University Rankings for IT & Engineering it was ranked 17th, behind several other Indian IITs.^[11] In the 2010 QS Work Ranking, IIT Kanpur ranked 249.^[12]

IITK also ranked first in the India Today Best Engineering Colleges in India, 2010 and 2011.^[13]

Notable alumni

• Chandra Kintala, Professor and Director of Software Engineering at New Jersey Institute of Technology; Director(Retd.), Bell Labs, USA
• Ashoke Sen, FRS and Padma Shri, string theorist
• Dr Shishpal S. Rawat, chairman of Intel Accellera Intel (Intel Accellera)
• N.R. Narayana Murthy, founded the software corporation Infosys
• Manindra Agrawal, Nitin Saxena, and Neeraj Kayal (proved with their AKS primality test that primality testing has a polynomial time algorithm, a major result in theoretical computer science). Clay Research Award, 2002, Godel Prize, 2006^[14][15][16]
• Pradeep Sindhu, founder - Juniper Networks
• Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Padma Shri and Professor, Dept of Electrical Engineering, IIT Madras)
• Umang Gupta, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Keynote Systems, Inc.^[17]
• Amitabh Thakur, an officer of the Indian Police Service, social activist, writer
• Anil K. Rajvanshi, Director, Nimbkar Agricultural Research Institute and winner of Jamnalal Bajaj Award 2001,^[18] FICCI award 2002,^[19] Globe Award 2009.^[20]
• Debabrata Goswami, scientist, famous for his "Adiabatic Quantum Computing" Work with Lasers; Wellcome Trust International Senior Research Fellow^[21][22]
• Jainendra K. Jain, condensed matter theorist
• Satyendra Dubey, whistle-blower whose murder shocked the nation
• Ayyalusamy Ramamoorthy, scientist in the area of NMR and biological membranes

• Duvvuri Subbarao, 22nd Governor of Reserve Bank of India^[23]
• Mriganka Sur, neuroscientist), Sherman Fairchild Professor of Neuroscience, Head, Dept of Brain and Cognitive Science MIT, Fellow of Royal Society
• Rajeev Motwani, computer scientist), Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University. Helped back companies such as PayPal and Google
• Rajesh Gopakumar, physicist and string theorist at HCRI, Allahabad
• Utpal Bhattacharya, expert on financial ethics
• Abhay Bhushan, author of File Transfer Protocol
• Shiraz Minwalla, a string theorist at TIFR who was awarded ICTP Prize for his contribution to theoretical physics
• Rajiv Dixit, Indian orator.
• Rakesh Agarwal, was awarded the National Medal of Technology and Innovation for "an extraordinary record of innovations in improving the energy efficiency and reducing the cost of gas liquefaction and separation.

See also

• List of Indian engineering college rankings

References

1. ^ Subbarao a, E.C. (2008). "Eye for Excellence". Harper Collins. 
2. ^ Kelkar, P.K. (2006-03-17). "IIT Kanpur — History". IIT Kanpur. http://www.iitk.ac.in/infocell/iitk/newhtml/history.htm. Retrieved 2006-05-27. 
3. ^ IIT Kanpur starts facility for enhanced power research
4. ^ [1]
5. ^ FAQ on the new academic curriculum
6. ^ "Shot in the arm for CAT, as B-schools seek credibility". business-standard.com. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/shot-inarm-for-cat-as-b-schools-seek-credibility/447694/. Retrieved 11 September 2011. 
7. ^ Malhotra, Abhinav (16 February 2009). "Setting new highs with nano satellite". The Times Of India. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Kanpur/Setting_new_highs_with_nano_satellite/articleshow/4138879.cms. . Dated:16 February 2009
8. ^ EURECA Participating institutes
9. ^ Nettech. "Nettech Summer Program at IIT Kanpur Campus". www.nettech.in. http://nettech.in/success. Retrieved 2007-07-15. 
10. ^ "Asian University Rankings results". topuniversities.com. http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/asian-university-rankings/2011. Retrieved 12 June 2011. 
11. ^ "Asian University Rankings - IT & Engineering". topuniversities.com. http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/asian-university-rankings/2011/subject-rankings/technology. Retrieved 12 June 2011. 
12. ^ "World University Rankings 2010". topuniversities.com. http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2010. Retrieved 12 June 2011. 
13. ^ "Best Engineering Colleges in India, 2010". http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/gallery/best-engineering-colleges-in-india-2010/25/3308.html. "Best Engineering Colleges in India, 2011". http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/specials/bestcolleges/2011/ranks.jsp?ST=Engineering&Y=2011. 
14. ^ http://www.cse.iitk.ac.in/~manindra/publications.html
15. ^ http://www.expressindia.com/news/fullstory.php?newsid=26408
16. ^ "Bangalore: IIT-Kanpur professor bags first Infosys Mathematics Prize", September 16. 2008
17. ^ "Umang Gupta Profile - Forbes.com". people.forbes.com. http://people.forbes.com/profile/umang-gupta/47239. Retrieved 7 June 2011. 
18. ^ "Fazalbhoy, Rajvanshi named for Bajaj Foundation awards". The Times Of India. 20 September 2001. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/Fazalbhoy-Rajvanshi-named-for-Bajaj-Foundation-awards/articleshow/99552718.cms. 
19. ^ [2]
20. ^ Globe Award to Nimbkar Agricultural Research Institute
21. ^ http://scitation.aip.org/journals/doc/APCPCS-home/confproceed/864.jsp
22. ^ Swarnajayanti Fellowships
23. ^ "Reserve Bank of India". rbi.org.in. http://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/BS_PressReleaseDisplay.aspx?prid=19052. Retrieved 22 June 2011. 

Coordinates: 26°30′41″N 80°14′06″E / 26.511383°N 80.23493°E / 26.511383; 80.23493

External links

• Official website
• Department of Computer Science and Engineering
• Department of Physics