Did you know the conceptualiser of IITs in India?
The concept of the IITs originated even before India gained independence in 1947. After the end of the Second World War and before India got independence, Sir Ardeshir Dalal from the Viceroy’s Executive Council foresaw that the future prosperity of India would depend not so much on capital as on technology. He, therefore, proposed the setting up of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research. To man those laboratories, he persuaded the US government to offer hundreds of doctoral fellowships under the Technology Cooperation Mission (TCM) program. However realizing that such steps can not help in the long run for the development of India after it gains independence, he conceptualized institutes that would train such work forces in the country itself. This is believed to be the first conceptualization of IITs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Indian_Institutes_of_Technology
Adershir was born on 24 April 1884 in Bombay to Rustomjee Dalal, who worked as share-broker.[2] In 1905 he applied for J. N. Tata Scholarship for higher studies went to London and finally appeared for ICS examination and joined Indian Civil Service in 1908.[1]
He served as Collector in various areas of India before he became the first Indian to become Municipal Commissioner of Bombay in 1928.[2]
He was the founder of IIT’S. He joined Tata Group as a Director of Tata Steel in 1931 and served Tata group till 1941 and again from 1945 his death in 1949.[2] He was knighted in 1939.[3]
He was one of the signatories to the Bombay Plan formulated in 1944.[4]
In June 1944, he resigned from Tatas as the Viceroy, Lord Wavell, invited him to join the Viceroy’s Executive Council as Member-in-Charge of Planning and Development.[1][2] His contributions as one of the architects of the Government of India’s post war economic plan formulated in 1945 have been noted.[1]
He was knighted again as a KCIE in 1946[5] died on 8 October 1949.[1]
A hospital-cum-nursing college in Jamshedpur has been named after him as Ardeshir Dalal Memorial Hospital.[6]
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The brilliance of some men before us, gone and forgotten otherwise, continues to shine silently in the dark nights many many moons after they have gone …. We appear so small compared to their achievements and much smaller compared to their contributions.
Thank you for the valuable information about a parsi Mr Ardeshir Dalal who was the first IITian we are proud of him