Kolkata alumni commit to build Imperial-industry connections

Imperial alumni promoted links with Indian industry at an event in Kolkata on 8 January.

Rajive Kaul (BEng Engineering, 1971), President of the Imperial College Alumni Association of India (ICAAI), hosted an event for alumni and business leaders at his home, with guest of honour President & Rector Sir Keith O'Nions.

Among the guests was Syamal Gupta, Chairman of the Imperial College India Foundation, established in 2007 to support collaborations between the College and Indian industry and higher education, and to increase Imperial's profile in the country. Mr Gupta, formerly Chairman of Tata International Limited, spoke of his proud relationship with the College over the past fifty years, starting with his student days under the “visionary” engineer Professor Sir Hugh Ford.  He said, "Imperial creates an environment for innovation that industry needs. Promoting this strength is good for the College and good for industry."

Speaking of his motivations for establishing the Foundation, Mr Gupta said: "Imperial has made a deep impression on me and other alumni. The time has come for us to give back - to help Imperial to train more people, continue its cutting edge research and to serve society at large." He described how Imperial's strong reputation supported alumni in their careers, adding, "I tell alumni, 'If Imperial does well, you do well, so please help them.'"  

Rima SenSharma, Chair of the Kolkata Chapter of ICAAI, described how she was keen to raise awareness of the opportunities offered by the College. She said, "India is an evolving country, with two worlds co-existing - that of the common man and that of the privileged. There is a tremendous need to bridge the gap to create equality of opportunity, and education provides a cohesive bond."

See a slideshow of images from the event below or the  full set of photographs on flickr.