Who Is Preeti Aghalayam, The First-Ever Woman Director Of An IIT?

New Delhi: Preeti Aghalayam has been appointed as the director-in-charge of the IIT Madras' Zanzibar campus, which is the first offshore campus of the Indian Institute of Technology. Aghalayam, who is an IIT Madras alumna, has also become the first-ever woman director of an IIT.

"Aghalayam is the first woman to be an IIT director. We will see many more encouraging things. We are following sustainable development goals and one of the important goals suggests that we need to bring in gender balance," IIT Madras director V Kamakoti told a press conference.

It's a big honour: Preeti Aghalayam on becoming first-ever woman director of an IIT

Reacting to the development, Preeti Aghalayam expressed that becoming the first-ever woman director of an IIT is 'such a big honour'.

"I am an alumnus of IIT Madras and doing something of this magnitude for the institute and for the country is such a big honour. Every time we visited Zanzibar as part of the IIT Madras contingent, we noticed that the representation of women on their side is quite significant. So, it was important that we do this mindfully," Aghalayam said.

Aghalayam, who is also a marathon runner, completed her BTech in Chemical Engineering from IIT Madras in 1995. She then did her PhD at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2000.

She has also worked as a postdoctoral researcher at MIT, Cambridge and faculty at IIT Bombay.

Aghalayam joined IIT Madras in 2010, where she is currently a Professor in the Chemical Engineering department. 

She was recently acknowledged as one of the 75 Women in STEM by the Principal Scientific Advisor's office.

#WomenInSTEM Prof. Preeti Aghalayam, Dept of Chemical Engg, IIT Madras known for her achievements has played a role in empowering other women. She has more than 50 articles published in international journals. She has been awarded the INAE Young Engineer & Amar Dye Chem awards. pic.twitter.com/nYsc8vuULv — IIT Madras (@iitmadras) March 17, 2021

Zanzibar is first IIT campus outside India 

Zanzibar in Tanzania will have the first IIT campus outside India. An MoU was recently signed between India and Tanzania, the final procedural step that paves the way for this campus.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who visited Tanzania last week, described the move as a 'historic step' that reflected India's commitment to the Global South.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the IIT campus in Zanzibar-Tanzania is envisioned as a world-class higher education and research institution with a broader mission to develop competencies in response to emerging global requirements.

"It will serve as an example to the world of the aspirational qualities of Indian higher education and innovation," it said in a statement.

The beautiful permanent #campus will be spread across 200 acres on Zanzibar Island. The admission process for the first Academic Year of 2023–24 has commenced, and the classes are scheduled to start in October 2023.@MoETanzania #IITMadras — IIT Madras (@iitmadras) July 10, 2023

Several IITs have been receiving requests from the Middle-East and South Asian countries to set up their campuses. While IIT-Madras is setting up its campus in Tanzania, IIT-Delhi is considering setting up a campus in UAE.

IIT campuses are also in the pipeline in Egypt, Thailand, Malaysia and the UK.

Debut session at IIT Zanzibar campus to begin in October

The first academic session at the IIT-Madras' Zanzibar campus is set to begin in October with the offshore campus offering two full-time academic programmes, top officials said on Monday.

"Classes for the first academic year (2023-24) are scheduled to commence in October 2023, offering two full-time academic programmes -- a four-year Bachelor of Science in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence and a two-year Master of Technology in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence," IIT-Madras Director V Kamakoti told reporters.

"The total student intake will be 70, including 50 students for Bachelors and 20 for Masters courses. Applications for the 2023 batch are currently open," he said.

"Faculty will be deputed from IIT-Madras or recruited from India during the initial days of this campus. Activities to ensure local talent is developed and can be employed as faculty are underway already," he added.

"The Zanzibar campus is planned to have a structure with degree programmes hosted by schools. The first school is the School of Science and Engineering, which will host both the planned degrees for the 2023-24 session," Kamakoti said.

.@iitmadras is inviting applications from candidates around the world. You will contribute to a world-class teaching & research program at the newly established campus in Zanzibar.

To learn more, visit https://t.co/YaVUK9kYxo#IITMadrasZanzibarCampus #IITMadras #Hiring pic.twitter.com/Gh21AYEVFP — Office of Global Engagement, IIT Madras (@ogeiitm) July 10, 2023

He said a detailed evolution plan for academic programmes is under development, with inputs from expert members in India and Zanzibar. The courses will be open to foreign students from all countries including India.

Elaborating on the admission process, Kamakoti said, "The office of global engagement, IIT-Madras, will coordinate the student entrance process, which will include a screening test developed by faculty experts at IIT-Madras and an interview, as per the IITM Senate-approved admission process for international students".

The fees will be USD 12,000 per year for the bachelors course while for the masters course, it will be USD 4,000 per year.

"Presently the institute will operate out of a temporary campus in the Bweleo district of Zanzibar while the permanent campus, spread over 200 acres, will be located in Zanzibar Island, off the East African mainland and is being planned as a unique and game-changing educational partnership between India and Zanzibar-Tanzania.

"The faculty strength will be based on required teaching expertise and the quality assurances of IIT-Madras including but not limited to maintaining robust faculty-student ratios," Kamakoti said.