The Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN), hosted the fourth edition of its annual alumni meet, ‘Homecoming’, on December 22-23. The two-day event was a memorable affair in more ways than one and witnessed a sense of pride, belonging, and nostalgia as more than 300 IITGN alumni from different undergraduate and postgraduate batches gathered at the Institute from all over the world to cheer for each other and renew the bonds.
On the first day, the Institute organised the first “Young Alumni Excellence Awards” ceremony and felicitated four of its alumni for achieving excellence and success in various fields early in their careers. The awards were conferred to:
- Mr Sarthak Jain (BTech in Electrical Engineering, IITGN Class of 2012), CEO, Nanonets, for Outstanding Entrepreneurship
- Mr Prathamesh Juvatkar (BTech in Electrical Engineering, IITGN Class of 2012), CTO, Nanonets, for Outstanding Entrepreneurship
- Mr Kislay Pankaj (BTech in Electrical Engineering, IITGN Class of 2013), Co-founder, and CEO, Lectrix Technologies Pvt Ltd, for Outstanding Professional Achievement
- Mr Yogesh Goyal (BTech in Chemical Engineering, IITGN Class of 2012), Assistant Professor, Northwestern University, (in absentia) for Outstanding Academic Achievement
The second day of ‘Homecoming 2022’ was also very special as the Institute took the initiative to hold a Grad Walk ceremony for the class of 2020 and 2021, who had to miss the experience of attending physical Convocation ceremonies, which were held virtually for two consecutive years due to the global pandemic.
Professor Rajat Moona, Director, IITGN, said, “The achievement of our alumni makes us proud as much as they feel about IITGN. This ‘Homecoming’ event is truly a remarkable occasion as we celebrate a decade of our first batch, the achievements of our alumni, and hold a Grad Walk for the Class of 2020 and 2021 so that they can refurbish the experience and memories of graduating from IITGN.”
Dr Anil Bhardwaj, Director of the Physical Research Laboratory, and Chief Guest of the Grad Walk ceremony, encouraged them to take calculated risks in life, treat failures as the stepping stone to success, and shared his experience of working on some of the most crucial space missions of ISRO, such as the Mars Orbiter Mission. Quoting the famous ‘Madhushala’ poem of Shri Harivansh Rai Bachchan, Dr Bhardwaj said, “Fix your goals in life and follow it with full dedication, conviction and commitment, and you will attain your goals. There are no shortcuts.”
Among other major highlights, the event also saw a Decennial Reunion of the first batch of IITGN from 2012, who were also felicitated on this memorable occasion. This was followed by interactive sessions between alumni, faculty, and current students of IITGN. In the evening, interactions over a campfire dinner at the Central Arcade brought back the memories of their college days at the Institute.
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