1360 students awarded degrees during 55th Convocation of IIT Kanpur

21 students received Outstanding PhD Thesis Awards

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, hosted its 55th Convocation during which a total of 1360 students got degrees, out of which, 116 are from PhD, and 10 are from MTech-PhD (Joint Degree).

This year, the institute welcomed Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty, Founder and Chairperson of Narayana Health, as the Chief Guest. A renowned cardiac surgeon, a successful entrepreneur, and a philanthropist, Dr. Shetty is revered for his ingenious ideas and reforms in the health sector. He is credited for the scheme Yeshaswini – an inexpensive micro health insurance that has benefited more than 3.4 million rural poor in Karnataka.

This year, a total of 1360 students got degrees, out of which, 116 are from PhD, 10 are from MTech-PhD (Joint Degree), 144 are from MTech, 556 are from BTech, 53 are from MBA, 14 are from MDes, 25 are from MS (by Research), 40 are from PGPEX-VLFM, 144 are from MSc (2 year course), 24 are from Double Major, 108 are from Dual Degree, 21 are from MS-PD (MS part of the Dual Degree), and 105 are from BS.

Last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the first-of-its-kind blockchain degree initiative at IIT Kanpur. This is a unique in-house technology developed by CRUBN, an IIT Kanpur-incubated company, under the National Blockchain Project. The technology is Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI)-enabled and can be verified globally and are unforgeable. The same technology has recently been used by the Ministry of Women & Child Development for issuing certificates to the awardees of the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar 2022. It is also being used to implement land records in some states. This time also, the same technology was used to issue digital degrees to the students. The students will be able to access the digital degrees through an app named Indisi Wallet.

Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Director, IIT Kanpur said, “The Convocation is one such occasion that all the students await eagerly. It is a momentous annual occasion for the institute as well, as on this day, we celebrate the learnings of another batch, who are going out into the world to do greater good for the nation and society, at large. Like every year, I wish the very best for the graduating students and the awardees. I hope that they will continue inculcating the values taught at our institute, and will grow to be better human beings going out into the world.”

Being present virtually as the Chief Guest, Narayana Health Chairperson Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty said, “First of all, congratulations to the ones receiving their degrees and awards today. I’m glad to be part of this auspicious occasion where we’re seeing another batch of change makers going out into the world with the resolve to bring positive changes. IIT Kanpur has been leading when it comes to innovative research and cutting-edge technology. It has also led many life-saving medical innovations and initiatives over the years. I hope that the degree-receiving students today would reflect the same ideals as inculcated at IIT Kanpur and would try to make this world a better place.”

The graduating students were conferred the degrees by the Chairperson, Senate in the event. In addition to the degrees, 51 categories of prizes and medals were given, while a total of 21 students were awarded the Outstanding PhD Thesis Award. This year, the President’s Gold Medal was conferred to Shashwat Gupta from the Computer Science and Engineering Department, the Director’s Gold Medal (4-year UG program) was conferred to Priydarshi Singh from the Aerospace Engineering Department, the Director’s Gold Medal (5-year UG program) was conferred to Prateek Yadav from the Mechanical Engineering Department, the Ratan Swarup Memorial Prize was conferred to Atin Vikram Singh from the Electrical Engineering Department, and the Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma Medal was conferred to Rupesh R Chafle from the Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) Department.

The dress code for this year’s convocation was traditional cream-color Kurta, and white pyjamas for the male students, and traditional cream-color Kurta, and white churidar or leggings for the female students, along with formal footwear.

After last few years’ disruptions due to COVID, this time, the convocation was held physically by adhering to prevalent COVID protocols.

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