NEW DELHI: Pan IIT Alumni India, representing over 500,000 alumni from all 23 IITs worldwide, marked 75 years of the IIT ecosystem on Saturday with the launch of the PanIIT Book club and the unveiling of its inaugural publication, IIT: The Story of India’s Most Prestigious Educational Ecosystem.
Authored by Prabhat Kumar, IRS, Chairman of Pan IIT Alumni India, the book chronicles the evolution of the IIT ecosystem and its contribution to India’s growth over the past seven decades.
The event, held at the Lecture Hall Complex of IIT Delhi on Saturday, brought together over 400 distinguished IIT alumni, policymakers, entrepreneurs, academicians, students and industry leaders to celebrate the legacy and future of India’s premier technological institutions.
Delivering the inaugural address, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla described the IIT ecosystem as one of India’s greatest nation-building enterprises. Reflecting on its journey from a single institution established at Hijli in 1951 to a globally respected network of 23 IITs, Birla praised the contributions of IIT graduates across sectors and geographies.
“Today, IITians are not merely engineers; they are the architects of the modern world. From Silicon Valley to the Indus Valley, they are leading technological revolutions, pioneering research and shaping the future of humanity,” the speaker said.
Birla urged IITians to contribute to artificial intelligence, semiconductors and quantum technologies and play a key role in achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047. He also said the expertise of IIT alumni should be utilised in important parliamentary deliberations and policy discussions.
The Lok Sabha Speaker lauded Pan IIT Alumni India’s efforts to connect the global IIT diaspora and welcomed initiatives such as the PARINITI AI Think Tank and the proposed PanIIT Venture Fund aimed at strengthening India’s deep-tech and innovation ecosystem.
Speaking on the occasion, Prabhat Kumar said the book celebrates the IIT legacy while serving as a call to action for future generations. “The IIT story is India’s story,” he said.