“Startup founders will be our new freedom fighters,” IIT Delhi director says after leaving after six years

It has been almost six years since Prof. V Ramgopal Rao has been in charge of IIT Delhi. A professor from IIT Bombay named Rangan Banerjee will take his place when his term ends. The startup company from the institute put on a surprise show for him on campus.

Key Highlight:

• Prof. V. Ramgopal Rao, who has been the director of IIT Delhi for almost six years, has said goodbye to the school and is leaving.
• He will be replaced by Prof. Rangan Banerjee from the Department of Energy Sciences and Engineering at IIT Bombay, where he has worked for a long time.
• Prof. Ramgopal is leaving IIT Delhi, and the startup BotLab Dynamics put on a surprise show for him on campus to say goodbye.
• There are a lot of things that startups can do for India if it wants out of poverty, inefficiency, and inequality:
• It’s also a good thing that Professor Banerjee, who is taking over as director of IT Delhi, used to go to school at IIT Bombay.

Prof. V. Ramgopal Rao, who has been the director of IIT Delhi for almost six years, has said goodbye to the school and is leaving. He will be replaced by Prof. Rangan Banerjee from the Department of Energy Sciences and Engineering at IIT Bombay, where he has worked for a long time. Prof. Ramgopal is leaving IIT Delhi, and the startup BotLab Dynamics put on a surprise show for him on campus to say goodbye. “After being the Director of IIT Delhi for almost six years, I’m handing over the reins to Prof. Rangan Banerjee on Feb. 15, 2022.” Today, IIT Delhi startup BotLab Dynamics put on a surprise show on the IIT Delhi playground. They performed at the Beating Retreat ceremony on Indian Independence Day when people said goodbye to each other. I knew they were performing, but I didn’t know that they were doing it on the day I was handing over the reins of power to someone else tomorrow. Seeing myself in the sky was very moving.

T has always helped startups and knew what they were going through. I CAN UNDERSTAND THEIR PROBLEMS because I’ve been through some of these things myself. A saying I believe in is that people who start a business are our new freedom fighters. There are many things that startups can do for India if it wants out of poverty, inefficiency, and inequality: Wealth is made through technology startups, and academic institutions need to play a big role in creating an environment for deep-tech innovation. People need to have leadership and support from their institutions.

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It’s also a good thing that Professor Banerjee, who is taking over as director of IT Delhi, used to go to school at IIT Bombay. He has a BTech in mechanical engineering from the institute and a Ph.D. in the same field from the college where he went to school. For a short time, he worked as an assistant professor at IIT Bombay in 1993. A research associate at the Center for Applied Systems Analysis in Development and the Tata Energy Research Institute, Delhi, where he worked before, helped him. As of right now, he is the Forbes Marshall Chair Professor in the Department of Energy Science and Engineering at IIT Bombay. He helped start the Department of Energy Science and Engineering in 2007. Co-authoring books: Prof. Banerjee has written a book on planning for demand-side management in the power sector, the cost of energy in the chemical industry, and a book on engineering education in India.

After 6 years as Director, IIT Delhi, I am handing over charge tomorrow to Prof. Rangan Banerjee. Today, @BotLabDynamics (#startup @iitdelhi which performed at the #Republic Day Beating Retreat ceremony) putup a surprise show on IIT Delhi playground. Touched by their gesture. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/QVdYSGJdT0

— Prof. V. Ramgopal Rao (@ramgopal_rao) February 14, 2022