IIT Delhi Director Bids Goodbye After 6 Years Says 'Startup Founders Will be Our New Freedom Fighters'

Prof V Ramgopal Rao, who has been the director of IIT Delhi for almost six years has bid adieu to the institute. He will be succeeded by Prof Rangan Banerjee from the Department of Energy Sciences & Engineering, IIT Bombay. Bidding farewell to Prof Ramgopal, IIT Delhi’s startup BotLab Dynamics put up a surprise show for him on campus.

Taking to social media platforms, Prof Ramgopal wrote,” After being the Director, IIT Delhi for close to six years, I am handing over charge tomorrow (Feb 15, 2022) to Prof Rangan Banerjee. Today, BotLab Dynamics (#startup at IIT Delhi which performed at the Beating Retreat ceremony during the #Republic Day) put up a surprise show on IIT Delhi playground. I knew that they are performing, but didn’t realize that they were doing it on the occasion of my handing over charge tomorrow. It was very touching indeed to see myself in the sky.”

“I have always supported startups and understood their pain points. Maybe, it’s because I have gone through some of these struggles myself and can identify with their problems. I believe in the saying that startup founders are our new freedom fighters. If India needs to free itself from poverty, inefficiency and inequality, it’s startups which will have to show the way. Wealth creation happens through technology startups and academic institutions need to play a major role in creating an ecosystem for deep-tech innovation. Leadership and institutional support are very essential for this,” he added.

Meanwhile, Professor Banerjee who will be taking over charge as the director of IIT Delhi is an alumnus of IIT Bombay. He has a BTech degree in mechanical engineering from the institute and a PhD in the same stream from the college. He joined IIT Bombay as a visiting assistant professor in October 1993.

He had earlier worked as a research associate at the Centre for Applied Systems Analysis in Development, Pune and Tata Energy Research Institute, Delhi. He is currently the Forbes Marshall Chair Professor in the Department of Energy Science and Engineering at IIT Bombay – a Department that he helped start in 2007. Prof Banerjee has co-authored a book on Planning for Demand Side Management in the Power sector, a book on Energy Cost in the Chemical Industry, and a book on engineering education in India.

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