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It is a joy to think of the days that we spent in the acquisition of knowledge as a student, sucking the vital potions of wisdom from the graceful breasts of the alma mater, where the foundations for what we are today were laid and where our culture, our values and our pursuits sprouted, took shape and are what they are today. A travel down the memory lane is a soul-stirring experience. What single individual would not like to revisit his or her temple of education, would not be overjoyed to meet the friends of those days - the co-bencher, the side-bencher or the back-bencher?
The Indian Institute of Technology - that makes the cream of the country's intellectual wealth - established its Alumni Association 37 years back, in the year 1964 with a view to enable its old students to come back to the nest, share the joy with the co-nestlings and to renew relations among students and also the teachers and students, wherever they are, whatever they are now.
When the IIT Madras Alumni Association celebrated its 25th year of establishment in 1991, the old students expressed the desire that there should be a separate office to look after the association and its activities in the IIT Campus itself. The IIT administration allotted the necessary land for the purpose and deputed the needed staff to man the office. The Office has been functioning with all modern equipment and amenities since then.
 The Alumni Association has been acting as a bridge between the old students, new students and the professors. It also engages itself in development and welfare activities. It has an impressive record of developmental activities.
The Association has taken steps to solve the problem of water scarcity in the IIT Campus. It has planned to construct a classroom with 100 computers. A digital library and a fibre optics laboratory are on the anvil. Ambitious plans indeed. But how to translate the plans into reality? Where are the resources to undertake such ventures that would benefit the Institution and its wards? That's where the IIT Alumni comes in. In paying back at least a token of their gratitude to the immeasurable debt that they owe to their alma mater.
The number of students graduated from IIT last year touched 998. It is a massive total of 24,000, over a period of past 38 years. And almost all IITians are well-placed and well-settled in their lives. It is not impossible to go ahead with the plans, if everyone comes forward to contribute his or her share to their mother who helped them to reap their dreams.
'But taking the news to all the old students is not such an easy job,' says Mr. P. M. Venkateshan, Executive Secretary of IIT Madras Alumni Association. 'Many are not aware that such an Association exists at all and even those who know this fact are not aware of its activities. It is with a view to take the news to them that we are publishing a house-journal by name 'Alma Mater', a quarterly, which is mailed to around 7000. Apart from this we are maintaining a website
(www.iitmaa.org) for this purpose. The website is well designed to include every little information on and about IIT. Then we also organise a meet once in three months.
 'Then there is the scheme of appointing co-ordinators. An old student is appointed as co-ordinator and he or she would take an all out effort to spot the other students who graduated along with him or her, in a particular year. Apart from all this, we are running a separate e-group, in which there are around 5000 member now.'
'And once the old students get the information, they come forward to render all possible assistance. After all, it is their mother, you see. Many amenities have been provided with the funds raised from them as donations. For instance, the provision of toilet facility in the Ganga Hostel, TV for the Godhavari Hostel, Computer room for Sarayu Women's Hostel, Cycle Stand for Jamuna Hostel……… the list goes on an on.'
'Hundreds of old students living abroad have liberally donated several crores
thus far. Those in India have not hesitated to contribute their mite. In fact, we do not approach any of them with an appeal. Whatever we have received so far has been given voluntarily out of sheer love and gratitude for their institution. The happy news is that many of them do not stop with merely sending in their contribution. They partake in the activities, they plan, design and execute the schemes personally.'
 'Gururaj Deshpande and his wife Jaishree Deshpande have donated more than
Rs.4 crores for the construction of 'Saravati' Women's Hostel. Not only
that, they involved themselves personally in the construction activities.
There are 376 rooms in this hostel. Dr. Deshpande has also announced a
donation of $5 million per year for the next 20 years.'
'Gururaj Deshpande and his wife Jaishree
Deshpande have come forward to
bear all the expenditure for construction of a Girl students' mess at a
cost of approximately Rs.3crores. 600 students can have their meals at any given point of time, in the
mess. And Gopalakrishnan, Dy. Managing Director of Infosys has contributed over 6
crores and has borne the cost of Computer Cafe' for the students, class Room
Modernisation, Electronic Class rooms, Educational Technology Cell upgradation, part of Digital library. Dr.Thomas Alexander and
T.T.Jagannathan have contributed Rs.54 lakhs and Rs.50 lakhs for establishment of
chairs.'
'Students completing their 25th year of graduation gather here to celebrate their memories. Such a meeting is organised every year. When they come here to meet old friends, they invariably go into the question of the present requirements of IIT. They identify the areas, estimate the expenditure and assure their share.'
'Graduates of the year 1974 collected and donated 50 lakhs, when they met in 1999 to celebrate their 25th year. And an amount of 25 lakhs came from graduates of the year 1975. Those who are completing their silver jubilee next year have started working on what they are going to do and the funds needed for it. It is something innate and inborn in everyone of our students to come forward voluntarily and contribute their mite to the Institution that they love, cherish and worship.'
 V. Varadarajan, Executive Officer of Alumni Affairs had this to say. 'The old students can be categorised into three groups. The first group consists of those who have reached a point of stability within a period of ten years. Those who are progressing in their career very well within ten years fall under the second. The third comprises the group that has established itself, settled down and is flourishing in a period of ten years.'
'Naturally, it is the third category that is more enthusiastic in donating liberally. Not only that. They come forward to guide the present students. They teach them. They assist them with career guidelines.'
'It is for this reason that we want to get the message across to all our old students. Every single one of them should have the opportunity do whatever he or she can.'
 'As for the present students, the IIT continues to infuse in them the most precious knowledge and a sense of values. When the old students come here to teach them, they are able to see their old-timers and their achievements and thus get a vision of what they can do for this institution and country at large. We provide them with career guidance after they complete their courses. And needless to mention, we have the enthusiastic support of the present students too,' beamed P. M.
Venkateshan.
'Many of the 24000 of IITians are working abroad. There are around 400 of them working as professors in various American Universities. It is our desire to bring about a change in the scenarios. It is our dream to make IIT the best institution in the world so that students from all over the world come to it, one day,' says
Varadarajan.
Yes Mr Varadarajan, the day is not far off. It would happen very soon. With the kind of the bright young faces that you have now - engineers, businessmen, technocrats and academicians of the future - it would happen really very soon.
The Alumni Association can be contacted at:
IIT Madras Alumni Association
HSB-266, I.I.T, Chennai-600036
Ph: 044-4458765
E-mail: alumni@acer.iitm.ernet.in
website: www.iitmaa.org
Interviews by Saravanan
Text in English by Hari Krishnan
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