9 hours ago
Engineering (Government) Regaining the tech edge
IIT Bombay reclaims its No. 1 spot with renewed focus on research, bold teaching shifts, and a campus revamp in full swing
No. 1: IIT BOMBAY
In a major shake-up at the top of the rankings, IIT Bombay has reclaimed the No. 1 position among government engineering colleges, overtaking IIT Delhi after a seven-year gap. This achievement underscores its growing edge in academics, research and campus development.
With an intake of 1,128 students in undergraduate courses for 2025-26, and 750-plus full-time faculty members—including the highest number of women faculty (125) among all IITs—IIT Bombay continues to set national benchmarks. 'Having more female faculty not only brings greater representation,' says Shireesh B. Kedare, the institute's director, 'but also offers students inspiring role models.'
A key priority now is a shift from traditional teaching to learning-centric pedagogy. From this summer, several courses across departments will adopt activity-based formats and problem-solving modules. 'Talking is not teaching—we want to focus on learning,' explains Kedare. In a first-year design course, for example, students access study material put online by the faculty in advance and use classroom time for discussion and assignments. Research and innovation remain core to the institute's mission. Projects span drone technology, CAR-T cancer therapy, 5G, AI tools and quantum sensing. IIT Bombay has a 99 per cent patent success rate in the past three years, with patents in solar cells, robotics, agri-sensors etc.—many of which have been licensed to industry.
ROBUST COLLABS
Consultancy and government collaboration are also robust. The institute has advised on infrastructure projects like Mumbai's Gokhale Bridge and signed MoUs with the Maharashtra government to align research with state priorities.
On campus, IIT Bombay is undergoing a Rs 2,500-crore infrastructure overhaul, with the plan to add 24 new buildings by 2029. Expansion of its SINE incubator and research park is fostering entrepreneurship with new co-working spaces and mentorship hubs. For Shirish Deodhar, a serial tech entrepreneur from the class of 1980, the transformation is phenomenal. 'I am hopeful,' he says, 'that IIT Bombay will take its rightful place among the world's top universities.'
