Latest news with #IITKGP
Time of India
28-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
IIT Kharagpur director introduces SETU outreach initiative for students
Advt Following four unnatural student deaths on campus this year, IIT Kharagpur on Friday launched a mental health and wellness framework titled SETU - Support, Empathy, Transformation and Upliftment - aimed at creating a resilient, inclusive and student-driven support SETU@IITKGP, a human-tech renaissance in higher education , it was formally launched on Friday by IIT Director Professor Suman initiative is designed not as a standalone support service, but as a deeply integrated, tech-powered and human-centric ecosystem, an institute spokesperson a bridge in Sanskrit, SETU is a metaphor for turning isolation to inclusion, vulnerability to strength, distress to resilience, mind to heart, tradition to technology. marking a bold paradigm shift, the spokesperson rollout follows the tragic deaths of four students in 2025 - Shaon Mallik (Jan 12), Aniket Walker (Apr 20), Mohammad Asif Qamar (May 4), and most recently Ritam Mondal (July 18) - which triggered widespread concern about the mental health and academic stress among spokesperson said, "SETU offers one-on-one therapy, psychiatric care, group sessions, 24/7 online counselling (via YourDOST) and campus-wide outreach without stigma. It also includes an AI-powered emotional health monitoring embedded in halls, academics enabling real-time, culturally sensitive support through anonymous check-ins and early-alert systems."The initiative also encompasses peer-led empowerment through groups like welfare committees and hostel-level units, making wellbeing a decentralized student-driven culture.
The Hindu
16-07-2025
- Science
- The Hindu
No need for more technocrats, IIT Kharagpur to focus on human-centric R&D, says Director
On the 71st convocation of the Indian Institute of Technology on Tuesday (July 15, 2025), Kharagpur (IIT-KGP) director Dr. Suman Chakraborty said 'the world does not need more technocrats', highlighting the institute's renewed focus on human-centric, multidisciplinary technology research. 'Let me be clear: the world does not need more technocrats. It needs humans who can think and feel — who can use algorithms, but are not ruled by them. The future belongs to those who can combine emotional intelligence with technical intelligence,' the director said. In an exclusive interaction with select media, Mr. Chakraborty elaborated that earlier, technocrats relied on extensive research and skill-learning, whereas in the current day scenario, AI systems like ChatGPT can generate answers to most science and tech questions. 'Unfortunately, it will take a whole lot of time to create a four-year undergraduate programme where answers will not be generable by ChatGPT. So, when these things are already there, students have to elevate themselves where they can innovate, interpret between lines, converge between domains, and come up with solutions that are both technologically advanced as well as human-centric,' the director said. He added that IIT KGP is looking to equip future students with the knowledge of using AI more ethically. Focus on convergence Mr. Chakraborty also highlighted how the research on AI, deeptech, cloud computing, etc., at IIT KGP is advancing in converging domains, with a mix of traditional and non-traditional subjects like AI in diagnostics, medicine, law, humanities, etc. 'In terms of research on AI, we are also thinking of exploring certain domains where the research will be led by non-AI domain experts… Usually, the engineering and science departments kick off science and tech projects, taking humanities and social sciences as complementary aspects in some cases. In that way, we are concerned with how AI can be more empathetically used to bridge the gap between AI and humans,' he said. Mr. Chakraborty also said that IIT KGP is pushing boundaries with research across cybersecurity, AI, cloud computing, and disease modelling. He added that the AI models designed by the institute are being used for disaster response and precision agriculture. 'Our AI department, now a full-fledged academic unit, offers BTech., MTech., and interdisciplinary dual degree programs. It has become a national leader in responsible and explainable AI with real-world applications in healthcare, climate, and linguistics, and with emphasis on human-centric AI… we are therefore not just building machines, we are building meaning,' he added. The Director also unveiled PLATO, an AI-powered coding tutor that offers real-time, personalised guidance to students learning computer programming. Better amenities at IIT KGP The director said that the institute is working on its 'shortcomings' to make itself a more preferred choice for nationwide talent. 'We are good at classroom teaching, but beyond that, we are working on improving infrastructure, improving quality of life, and making campus life more vibrant. We should connect everything. As part of our Platinum Jubilee, we are also building a special amenities centre, an all-in-one unit that can help students have an enjoyable lifestyle while facilitating all-round growth,' Mr. Chakraborty said. More women in STEM Mr. Chakraborty also touched upon the global gender disparity in science, technology, medicine and engineering, 'Women are not just contributors — they are disruptors, creators, and changemakers — and at IIT KGP, we thrive not merely to preach this spirit but portray the same in practice,' he added. Notably, gender ratios in several branches of the IIT remain skewed despite girl students excelling in all-India examinations. On Tuesday, less than half of the graduating students being awarded prestigious medals at IIT KGP's convocation ceremony were women. 71st convocation This year, IIT KGP awarded a total of 3,731 degrees across various disciplines, including 277 PhD, 18 MS, 956 50 MCP, 142 MBA, 23 EMBA, 58 PGDBA, 5 MMST, 28 MHRM, 18 47 LLM, 31 LLB, 786 Dual Degree, 614 (Hons), 46 (Hons), 151 Four-Year B.S, 260 Five-Year 214 Two-Year 3 3 Three-Year and 1 Certificate of Excellence in Research (CER). Awards such as the President's Gold Medal, Prime Minister's Gold Medal, and others were conferred upon graduating students and scholars. Dr. S. Somanath, former chairperson of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), was the chief guest.
The Hindu
15-07-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
Campus Mothers to supplement professionals, not replace them: IIT Kharagpur Director
Director of the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (IIT KGP), Dr. Suman Chakraborty, said on Monday (July 14, 2025) that the 'campus mothers' initiative is part of a new five-pronged programme geared towards student well-being, and 'not a standalone initiative at the expense of professional counselling.' 'We cannot look at the 'campus mothers' initiative in isolation. It is not designed to replace trained psychologists, but to supplement them with a motherly touch. We aim to make student welfare more holistic and not centred only on professional counselling,' he said. On Monday, a day before the institute's 71st convocation, Dr. Chakraborty announced 'SETU' (Support, Empathy, Transformation, and Upliftment), a new, five-pronged mental health framework. It expands student welfare from core psychological counselling to multiple granular, tech enabled, and scientifically designed intervention programmes spanning hostels, gymkhana, academic units etc, he said. 'In addition to the 'campus mothers' initiative, SETU includes an upgraded counselling centre, an AI-driven student welfare app, campus wellness groups, hostel welfare units, and student engagement projects. The framework comprises these five pillars working together', Dr. Chakraborty said. According to the Director, the programme was designed by professional psychological experts and technology experts, both from the institute and outside. These developments assume significance in light of multiple suicides and unnatural deaths on the IIT KGP campus in the last few years, with three students passing away this year itself. Addressing past incidents, the Director, on Monday, emphasised on 'prevention of unfortunate incidents over being procedurally sound afterwards.' 'Earlier, student well-being was mainly centred around the counselling centre. Whoever faced any trouble would be directed there. But with a campus that has 20,000 students, the counselling centre alone should not be tasked with their welfare. We must assume that at some point in time, each of those students would require emotional support and that support should be available at all levels,' Dr. Chakraborty said. Currently, the counselling centre has roughly 15 on-campus counsellors. Additionally, a team of external experts will be visiting the institute on July 21 to consult on student welfare issues, he added. Notably, as part of SETU, the on-campus counselling centre is being 'upgraded' to include 24/7 online counselling, group sessions, stress management workshops, and hostel-level outreach programmes along with one-on-one therapy and psychiatric consultations. The upgrade is in its 'advanced stages'. The Director also highlighted the involvement of peers, especially hostel mates, in early identification and intervention as part of the new framework. 'Hostel peers can play an important role in vigilance, and in identifying and flagging sudden and complex behavioural changes. Students can normalise openness and provide accessible support to each other in ways no top-down model can replicate. In fact, we will have welfare units granulated up to each wing of every hall of residence,' Dr. Chakraborty said. The new SETU framework, which is being developed on 'war footing', is expected to be launched with the arrival of the new batch of students on July 25. The Director said he would give an elaborate presentation on the same to incoming students and guardians. 'Not a gendered programme' Dr Chakraborty also addressed allegations and grievances that have cropped up online and in the mental health fraternity against the 'campus mothers' programme. 'This is not a gendered programme. Rather this is a gender balancing programme, to engage more women in student welfare initiatives. Ninety percent of the committees and programmes are already dominated by men,' he said. He also added that the volunteers will be trained by professional psychologists to ensure 'ethical, respectful interactions.' The 'campus mothers' initiative, newly introduced by IIT KGP and expected to launch on July 25, seeks to involve elder female volunteers from among campus residents to offer informal emotional support to students and add a 'motherly touch' to the student welfare framework. However, it was heavily criticised by mental health professionals for taking a 'gendered' approach. Questions were also raised on whether volunteers would practise non-judgment, confidentiality, and other professional counselling ethics. Campus security plan in the works The IIT KGP Director on Monday also announced that a similar, multi-pronged campus security plan is in the works. 'Campus security not just includes safety of women, but also preventing instances of physical attacks, substance abuse, etc. However, tightening security does not mean harassing people unnecessarily. We are planning to develop similar pillars to bolster campus security, and like in SETU, tech will be used for improved data management. We will prepare for the best, but we cannot guarantee outcomes,' Dr Chakraborty said. This development follows multiple instances of crime against women in educational institutions in the State, namely RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, South Calcutta Law College, and most recently, the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta.
The Hindu
11-07-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
IIT Kharagpur's ‘campus mothers' programme draws mixed response
The Indian Institute of Technology at Kharagpur (IIT-KGP) recently announced an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven student welfare app, and a community engagement programme with 'campus mothers', drawing concerns from mental health professionals around ethics and gender. Titled 'HEART' (Help, Empower and Resiliently Thrive: A Mother's Touch for Campus Wellness)' the programme seeks to enlist a two-pronged approach towards student welfare. 'We have planned to introduce an all-in-one app. It will have a chat service to help students ventilate at a preliminary level and navigate the three main student spaces in the university namely the hostel, department, and the social and extracurricular spaces. It will also assist students with availing medical or financial facilities,' director of IIT KGP Professor Suman Chakraborty told The Hindu. He said the app will be partially driven by AI and will provide analytics to authorities concerning the overall mental health of students. 'However, if someone is struggling, it cannot be resolved entirely through analytics or mechanised intervention. Hence the app will have a physical interface — a human touch — in the form of community engagement with campus mothers who can emotionally support our students. We feel those who have tasted motherhood have a natural ability to meet the emotional needs of young adults… While psychologists are respected and needed for their expertise, they cannot be scalable for 16,000 students,' Professor Chakraborty said. He added that 'campus mothers' would undergo an orientation programme by trained psychologists and would be told about limits that they should practise while interacting with students. He further said that the programme can help tackle the stigma of directly approaching a mental health professional. 'Any female campus resident, whether staff or family members of staff, can sign up to be a campus mother. We announced the programme on Wednesday (July 9, 2025) and so far, 20 women have already registered to volunteer. Their efforts would be recognised through a token honorarium and out of pocket allowance that they can use to take students out for meals or small outings,' the Director said. Professor Chakraborty added that the programme should be operational, at least in a skeletal form, by June 22 when the new batch of incoming students is expected to join the institute. Concerns around gender and ethics However, activists and mental health professionals have raised concerns over the gendered nature of the programme, and questioned the ethics around judgment and confidentiality by participating faculty members, staff and their relatives. 'It's laudable that the new director of IIT Kharagpur is prioritising student mental health. Community support spaces within campus are important, however, they do need to be facilitated well. Due to diverse backgrounds and mindsets, peer community spaces can create internal conflicts. The idea of the facilitation by trained professionals is to create safe spaces where people can feel safe, seen, heard, supported, and accepted. It's also important to have accountability measures in place to create meaningful safe spaces,' said Pompi Banerjee, a Kolkata-based practising clinical psychologist. She highlighted that a large number of student suicides are a result of experiences of prejudicial treatment by peers and faculty members, and that without, addressing such issues, surface level support interventions may not be fully effective. 'Moreover, many students may have experienced difficult parental relationships. It's therefore important to have campus 'parents' or 'elders', not just mothers, who are trained to hold non-judgmental listening and support spaces. In the queer community, people often use the term 'chosen family' - indicating a network of people who feel safe and supportive, not due to any mandate, but because of sheer human connection, affection and care. This approach often works wonders especially in the queer community, where experiences with natal families are filled with distress and rejection. Any intervention to curb student suicides also must engage with the natal families and primary caregivers of the students to promote a more sustainable impact,' she added. Dr. Sudip Kumar Som, a senior child and adolescent psychiatrist in Kolkata, raised questions over whether the campus mothers would be screened and trained to be non-judgmental, non-dictatorial, practise confidentiality, and have unprejudiced values. 'I also feel that instead of limiting this to women, they can also involve male volunteers, as well as retired staff and senior citizens who often suffer from loneliness and can benefit from companionship with students. However, in all such cases, adequate screening, training, and supervision by trained professionals is a must,' Dr. Som added. Aparna Ladha Somani, a Kolkata-based clinical psychologist, said empathy from a mothers' group is a great way to identify first signs and symptoms of mental illness provided they are trained well by professionals. 'They can convince the struggling student to take professional help overcoming student stigma. Mothers' group as a first step can be helpful provided they receive training in first aid and basic red flag identification,' she said.
Indian Express
11-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
With highest package at Rs 2.14 crore, IIT Kharagpur sees 1,800 job offers this placement season so far
Achieving a major milestone that reinforces its legacy of academic and professional excellence, IIT Kharagpur bagged 1,800 job offers including 409 pre-placement offers (PPOs) and 25 international offers, despite a 'challenging global employment landscape'. 'This season also witnessed nine students receiving offers exceeding INR 1 crore, with the highest compensation package reaching a staggering INR 2.14 crore per annum. These marquee offers came from reputed multinational organizations, demonstrating confidence in the Institute's training, innovation culture, and student potential,' a press release from IIT Kharagpur stated. So far, over 400 companies have participated in the 2024-25 placement process, recruiting students across sectors such as software, analytics, finance, banking, consulting, and core engineering. Amit Patra, Director of IIT Kharagpur, said, 'The achievement of over 1,800 placement offers in the 2024-25 season marks a defining moment for IIT Kharagpur, reaffirming our stature as a global leader in shaping the next generation of industry-ready innovators. As AI and deep-tech continue to redefine industries, we must introspect and evolve our traditional knowledge to counter the challenges in the job scenario. At IIT Kharagpur, we are committed to evolve our curriculum, making it more agile, interdisciplinary and focused so that our graduates not only adapt to these shifts but actively shape them. The strength of our vibrant alumni network and our unwavering focus on real-world problem-solving ensure that our graduates emerge as visionaries, ready to drive the future of technology with purpose and impact.' Rajib Maity, Chairperson of IIT KGP's Career Development Centre, remarked, 'The impressive results we are seeing reflect the strength of our collaborative approach in navigating challenges in today's job market. By fostering teamwork and targeted engagement, we empower our students to showcase their talents and secure meaningful career opportunities. The ongoing success of the placement season at IIT Kharagpur stands as a testament to the Institute's academic rigour, industry readiness, and continued efforts to foster excellence in education and career development.' Ravik Bhattacharya is the Chief of Bureau of The Indian Express, Kolkata. Over 20 years of experience in the media industry and covered politics, crime, major incidents and issues, apart from investigative stories in West Bengal, Odisha, Assam and Andaman Nicobar islands. Ravik won the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award in 2007 for political reporting. Ravik holds a bachelor degree with English Hons from Scottish Church College under Calcutta University and a PG diploma in mass communication from Jadavpur University. Ravik started his career with The Asian Age and then moved to The Statesman, The Telegraph and Hindustan Times. ... Read More
