IIT Delhi 57th convocation tomorrow; PM Modi to address 3000 graduates, inaugurate 'Param Pragya'

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi will hold its 57th convocation ceremony on August 8, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend as the chief guest and address 3,036 graduating students, including 587 Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) scholars, according to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). During the ceremony, the graduating students will be conferred their degrees.

IIT Delhi Director Rangan Banerjee said the institute will confer degrees on 3,036 students this year, nearly 10% more than last year. The graduating cohort includes around 1,200 BTech students, 1,200 master's students and 587 PhD scholars. The institute will also award degrees to 245 women PhD scholars, while the first batches of the Bachelor of Design, MA in Culture, Society and Thought, and Executive MBA programmes will graduate this year.

As per the press release, the Prime Minister will also present the institute's highest honours to meritorious students. These include the President's Gold Medal, Director's Gold Medal, Shankar Dayal Sharma Gold Medal, and Perfect Ten Gold Medals, recognising outstanding academic performance.

Apart from the convocation ceremony, Modi will inaugurate Param Pragya, an AI-powered high-performance supercomputing facility established at IIT Delhi's Sonipat campus.

According to an official statement, the new facility is expected to strengthen the institute's capabilities in artificial intelligence, data science, advanced computing and interdisciplinary research.

Also read IIT Delhi, Cisco sign MoU to boost AI, cybersecurity research and workforce development

PM to inaugurate AI-powered supercomputing facility

The Prime Minister's Office said the inauguration of Param Pragya reflects India's continued focus on promoting cutting-edge research and artificial intelligence.

The official statement said, "The state-of-the-art facility is expected to significantly enhance the institute's capabilities in AI, data science, advanced computing, and interdisciplinary research."

Ahead of the convocation, the institute also highlighted recent academic and research initiatives, including MoUs with 21 institutions, of which 18 are National Institutes of Technology (NITs), under its Alliance Scheme for student and faculty exchange. It also announced a joint MSc in Biological Sciences and PhD programme with Sorbonne University, new research projects worth over Rs 700 crore this year, and annual research funding exceeding Rs 600 crore.

The convocation ceremony will begin at 11 am tomorrow, August 8, where the Prime Minister will interact with the graduating class and honour students for their academic achievements.

IIT Delhi is one of the country's engineering institutions and holds its annual convocation to confer undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral degrees on students completing their academic programmes.