They were my golden years...

Professor Damodar Acharya took over as the director of IIT Kharagpur on June 30, 2007. In his first every media interview Acharya told Mou Chakraborty about his association with the institute and his future plans

How does it feel to come back to your alma mater? Tell us a little bit about your association with IIT Kharagpur.
I have been with this institute for 37 years barring about four and one-half years when I was on lien to Biju Patnaik University of Technology and All India Council for Technical Education. Thus I was never away from IIT as I had my office, quarters and even students pursuing their research work. For two and a half years I have been teaching postgraduate students on weekends. So, this is not really homecoming after a long gap. It is, in fact, one of shouldering greater responsibilities, like becoming a head of the family. While it feels good one is constantly reminded of one’s responsibility of how to make the family stronger and better with the assured welfare of all.

You are the first director of the institute who was also its alumnus. You are also known as a very good administrator, which means more expectation from students, teachers and the whole academia. How will you cope with so much expectation?
Being an alumnus and also a faculty for over three decades, one enjoys the advantages of knowing the system well. One also is passionately attached to the institution and has full appreciation of its rich culture and heritage. I also know people personally and believe in using informal channels of communication in solving many problems. At the same time there are disadvantages like others know about one’s weaknesses. Coping with the high expectation of students, teachers and the entire IIT community including the alumni is no doubt a pleasant challenge. I am happy to say that I have been able to get cooperation and confidence of the entire IIT community.

Please share some of your memories as a student and a teacher?
The six years I spent in IIT as a student were the golden period in my life and helped shape my personality. I learnt more through personal interaction that I had with my teachers. This possibly is the unique feature of IIT system.

IIT-KGP is the first IIT of the country and one of the most respected institutions in the world, how do you visualize its future? What are your plans for the institution?
IIT Kharagpur is one of the best engineering institutes in the country. It is supported by the Data Quest IDC) rankings. The IIT appears in Shanghai ranking of top 500 institutions in the world. It has an excellent academic environment and a teacher-student relationship. The first challenge for the institute is to maintain its leadership position. Its infrastructure including hostels and housing requires urgent renewal. This simultaneously provides an opportunity to give a new look to the campus and an environment appropriate to a world-class institute. IIT is known by its pockets of excellence in both education and research. The next 5 years should see the creation of several such islands of excellence.

As the dean of sponsored research and industrial consultancy system at IIT-KGP, you initiated intellectual property rights (IPR) movement, what new things you want to do as a director?
IIT Kharagpur has definitely done well in the area of sponsored research and industrial consultancy. In the field of IPR movement, the institute has obtained large number of patents, transferred many technologies and even ventured into the arena of offering a law degree programme to engineers/scientists to make them patent attorneys and technical law experts. The effort should now be to go global in attracting leading universities, institutions and industries to the task of Intellectual Property creation through joint research and development.
Mou.Chakraborty@hindustantimes.com