Few annual functions can summon a grand gathering of minds as sharp as of those who brave the exacting educational terrain of the Indian Institutes of Technology, or IITs. Bright brains, therefore, were in no short supply at the annual day organised by PanIIT Alumni Association, Qatar, at Oryx Rotana Doha on Friday evening.
Autonomous public institutes of higher education, the IITs are India’s elite engineering institutions, pegged high in the global rankings and whose alumni are spread all over the world, including Qatar. At their annual day celebration, the throng of IIT alumni serving in Qatar, from across the IITs, held wide-ranging discussions on how to contribute to Qatar-India technology partnership and assist Qatar and Indian governments in various technical and economic initiatives.
The theme of the event was set around technology, social innovation, entrepreneurship, environment and sustainable development. The Guest of Honour for the event was P Kumaran, ambassador of India to Qatar. Kumaran, an IIT Chennai alumnus himself, said that IITians and other Indian engineers in Qatar have taken great initiatives towards contributing in the growth of Qatar and this association has helped further the relationship between India and Qatar.
Kumaran praised the ongoing efforts by members in key development schemes of India and in promotion of Science and Technology in various schools of Qatar. He also advised alumni members to enhance their effective participation in development of host country Qatar and homeland India.
Venky Kandalla, General Manager of Petrotec Sales and also a member of the Association, told Community, “IIT Alumni are at the leading edge of Indian industry, technically, and also have experience in several multinationals across the regions in the world. Hence, they bring a high degree of professionalism, technical expertise and personal integrity to the Qatar Oil & Gas industry and infrastructure segments. The highlight of the event was having the current Indian ambassador, an IITian himself, reminisce at length about his IIT days.”
The event also included brief talks by engineer-social activist-community leader Nilanshu Dey, who is the Vice President of International Society of Automation (ISA) for EMEA & Russia region, and Seenu Pillai, Vice President of Indian Cultural Centre (ICC). In his speech, Dey pointed out that more than 15,000 Indian engineers are currently working in Qatar, associated with various initiatives being undertaken by ministries, Qatar Foundation and Qatar Science and Technology Park. For his part, Pillai invited IITians to participate in various community activities of ICC, Doha.
Rambaboo Gupta, President PanIIT Alumni Association Qatar and an alumnus of IIT Kanpur, presented details of the various activities this association has been undertaking in Qatar. Gupta listed the seminars conducted by PanIIT Qatar on climate change, environment, gravitational forces, metro construction techniques and health-related seminars organised by the PanIIT Alumni Qatar.
Later, Dr Manoj Chaturvedi, Secretary of the Association and an alumnus of IIT Bombay, gave a technical presentation on water, food and energy security and significance of renewal energy resources for sustainable development of the world. He highlighted how online platforms of governments can be utilised to contribute in sustainable development. Avaneesh Agarwal, Joint Secretary of the Association and an alumnus of IIT Roorkee, co-ordinated the entire programme and shared some great insights, keeping the ceremony entertaining for all through.
Kandalla, who proposed a vote of thanks to all guests and those who contributed towards the successful organising of this event, said, “Based on valuable inputs from our ambassador, Pillai and Dey, PAN IIT Alumni, will strive to contribute to our host nation Qatar and our homeland India as intellectuals, professionals, entrepreneurs and volunteers.”
The PanIIT group plans to continue to provide avenues for technocrats, entrepreneurs, mentors and professionals to meet and discuss important issues in future.
The theme of the event was set around technology, social innovation, entrepreneurship, environment and sustainable development.
