New Delhi [India], July 17 (ANI): As many as 1,338 students received their degrees in various disciplines during the 23rd Convocation of the Indian Institute of Technology in Guwahati on Friday.

The convocation ceremony was held in virtual mode.

Among those who received their degree, four received joint degrees with Gifu University in Japan.

The passing out students include 649 BTech and BDes students, 175 PhD students, and 518 Master's degree students. As many as 45 dual degrees have been already awarded.

Considering that the duration between the previous convocation (September 2020) and the present is just over 9 months, the number of graduating students, especially PhD is highly notable.

During the reporting year, IIT Guwahati has set up four new schools - Mehta Family Foundation School of Data Sciences and artificial intelligence which is supported by Mehta Family Foundation from Houston, TX, USA philanthropic support, School of Health Sciences and Technology, Converted Center for Rural technology to School of Agro and Rural technologies which received funding from Cadila Pharma, Center for Energy has been upgraded to School of Energy Sciences and Engineering with new plans for offering Bachelors, Masters and PhD programme with an interdisciplinary focus.

IIT Guwahati achieved a QS World Ranking of 41 in 'Research Citation per Faculty', which was second-best in India, while the number of Research Publications as per Scopus 2020 was 1,965.

At present, 279 research projects are in progress with a total sanctioned value of Rs 291.79 crore. During the reporting year, Rs 62.33 crore was sanctioned for 79 new projects by different funding agencies. The major sponsoring agencies include the Ministry of Education, DST, SERB, DBT, BRNS, DRDO, and ICMR, among others. During the year the Institute received 168 Consultancy projects with a sanctioned value of Rs 13.13 crore.

IIT Guwahati attracts the brightest students from the country for its Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral programmes. In the 27 years of its existence, more than 16,000 students have graduated from IIT Guwahati.

The Institute adapted rapidly to the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Online classes were held for as many as 448 courses, the assessment and grading also being completed using online methods for the ensuing semester.

Delivering the Convocation address virtually, Chief Guest NR Narayana Murthy, Founder, Infosys, said, "The only instrument you have to remember is performance, performance leads to recognition, recognition leads to respect. I have hope that 50 years from now, this country will have 70-75 years old who have achieved their aspirational dreams. I have confidence they will create a developed India, an India that is not held back by problems of poverty, sickness, and malnourishment"The PhD and Postgraduate Admissions for July 2020 and December 2020 Sessions were also completed in online mode. Short-duration multiple online continuous assessments were held during regular periods. The components of evaluation and weightage were decided by instructors and announced to students at the beginning of the Semester.

Congratulating all the graduating students and presenting the Annual Report, Prof. TG Sitharam, Director, IIT Guwahati, said, "IIT Guwahati has set a goal to be recognized as one of the world's top Institutes/Universities within the next three years. IIT Guwahati is trying to leap forward by embracing the rising demands of newer and interdisciplinary areas of research and technology development by incorporating NEP2020 policies, including industry interactions and participating in offering courses in futuristic areas, providing thrust to startup culture, Entrepreneurship at all levels and creation of jobs in the North East." (ANI)