As soon as you hear the name of IIT, the picture of excellent education, big labs, magnificent campus and recognition in the country and the world starts coming to your mind. But do you know that the country’s first IIT was not started in any palace or new building, but in an old jail camp. This is the story of IIT Kharagpur, where freedom lovers were once kept closed, but later a new light of engineering was lit.

Before independence, in the year 1946, it was understood that large-scale technical institutions were needed to take the country forward. At the same time a committee was formed, headed by N.R. The government did it. This committee suggested that big technical institutes should be opened in four parts of the country, East, West, North and South. The level of their education should be like the best institutions of the world. Not only degrees, research and good teachers should also be prepared here. The committee said that first institutions should be started in the East and West. It was with this thinking that the first IIT was about to be born.

Journey from Kolkata to Hijli

The first IIT started in May 1950. Initially its classes were run from a building in Esplanade East, Kolkata. But within a few months it was shifted to Hijli area of ​​Kharagpur. This place later became known as IIT Kharagpur. It was formally inaugurated by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad on 18 August 1951. Even before that it was named Indian Institute of Technology.

where freedom fighters were once imprisoned

Hijli building was earlier Hijli Detention Camp. During the British rule, the youth involved in the freedom struggle were kept here without trial. On 16 September 1931, two unarmed prisoners Santosh Kumar Mitra and Tarakeshwar Sengupta were shot here. This incident spread anger across the country. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose came here to collect his dead body. Many leaders including Rabindranath Tagore opposed it. This building later became a center of studies. There would be very few such institutions in the world which started from a prison.

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The journey started with how many students?

When the first session started in August 1951, there were 224 students and 42 teachers. Classes, labs and offices were run in the same historic building. At that time studies started from only 10 departments. In March 1952, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru laid the foundation of the new building. Gradually the size of the campus started increasing.

The campus was designed under the guidance of Dr. Werner Moser, a renowned Swiss architect. Many modern machines were procured with the help of the Industry Ministry. The workshop of that time was considered the best workshop in the country. IIT Kharagpur had the great scientist Sir J.C. as its first director. Ghosh met. Under his leadership the institute gained a strong foundation. Many foreign professors also came to teach here in the initial period. The first head of the Electronics Department also came from abroad.

institute of national importance

On 15 September 1956, Parliament passed a law, under which IIT Kharagpur was declared an institute of national importance. It also got the status of an autonomous university.

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