Our Alma Mater - the Indian Institute of Technology Madras
The Indian Institute of Technology Madras is one amongst the foremost institutes of national importance in higher technological education, basic and applied research. In 1956, the German Government offered technical assistance for establishing an institute for higher education in engineering in India. The first Indo-German agreement in Bonn, West Germany for the establishment of the Indian Institute of Technology at Madras was signed in 1959.
The institute was formally inaugurated in 1959 by Prof Humayun Kabir, Union Minister for Scientific Research and Cultural Affairs. The IIT system has seven institutes of technology located at Kharagpur (est. 1951), Mumbai (est. 1958), Chennai (est. 1959), Kanpur (est. 1959), Delhi (est. 1961), Guwahati (est. 1994) and Roorkee (est. 1847, joined IITs in 2001).
IIT Madras is a residential institute with nearly 460 faculty, 4500 students and 1250 administrative & supporting staff.It has a self-contained campus located in a beautiful wooded land of about 250 hectares. It has established itself as a premier centre for teaching, research and industrial consultancy in the country.
The institute has fifteen academic departments and a few advanced research centers in various disciplines of engineering and pure sciences, with nearly 100 laboratories organized in a unique pattern of functioning. A faculty of international repute, a brilliant student community, excellent technical & supporting staff and an effective administration have all contributed to the pre-eminent status of IIT Madras. The campus is located in the city of Chennai, previously known as Madras. Chennai is the state capital of Tamilnadu, a southern state in India.
IIT Madras Strategic Vision 2010
The Indian Institute of Technology Madras has passed through various stages of development and growth in the forty-odd years of its existence. During the first decade, the institute concentrated on faculty / staff recruitment, developing curricula, examination systems, placement of students and setting up infrastructural facilities. A strong emphasis was given to academic excellence and for laying a good foundation for research. During the next two decades, postgraduate and doctoral programmes as well as research, technology development and consultancy projects were actively promoted. The Ministry of HRD constituted two Review Committees in 1971 and 1986 that made several recommendations for improvement and new initiatives, many of which have been implemented. During the fourth decade, the institute experienced substantial growth on all fronts.
Several major changes have taken place, both globally and nationally, in the recent past. These changes include those due to external agencies such as the government, industry and higher technical educational institutions in India and abroad; changes in markets and technology; globalization and liberalization; and consequent socio-economic and cultural changes. These changes present challenges as well as opportunities for IITM. The Board of IITM launched the Strategic Management Project in 1996 to help IITM respond to these changes in its complex social and economic environment. The institute initiated a number of activities to build up internal capabilities for change. The change processes were to be developmental, participative and learning in nature. The project included extensive studies by five internal task forces and two external consultants as well as many workshops that benefited from the participation of a wide cross-section of faculty, staff and students of IITM. This comprehensive report is a concise documentation of IITM’s Vision 2010.
I am confident that the implementation of the recommendations of this document will enhance IITM’s world-class status and make this an institution that is intellectually exciting, financially and administratively autonomous, with sustainable competitive advantages in all its activities in the decades to come. I wish to congratulate the successive Directors, Prof. R. Natarajan (1995-2001) and Prof. M.S. Ananth (2001- ), the former Deputy Director, Prof. C.R. Muthukrishnan and Prof. R.S. Ganapathy of ACME for their leadership and commitment that brought this project to such a successful completion. I am sure that Vision 2010 will serve as a benchmark document for many higher technological institutions in the coming decade. I wish IITM a glorious future in the service of our nation.
8-6-2003 K. KASTURIRANGAN
Chairman, Board of Governors
For more information, see: IIT Madras Strategic Vision 2010
