Courtesy : School of Science Campus Life
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is a public, deemed, research university for higher education and research in science, engineering, design, and management. It is located in Bengaluru, in the Indian state of Karnataka. The institute was established in 1909 with active support from Jamsetji Tata and thus is also locally known as the “Tata Institute”. It is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in India and has the highest citation per faculty among all the universities in the world. It was granted the deemed to be university status in 1958 and the Institute of Eminence status in 2018.# ISO certification in India
History
Jamsetji Tata, founder
After an accidental meeting between Jamsetji Tata and Swami Vivekananda, on a ship in 1893 where they discussed Tata’s plan of bringing the steel industry to India, Tata wrote to Vivekananda five years later: “I trust, you remember me as a fellow-traveller on your voyage from Japan to Chicago. I very much recall at this moment your views on the growth of the ascetic spirit in India… I recall these ideas in connection with my scheme of Research Institute of Science for India, of which you have doubtless heard or read.”# ISO certification in India
Impressed by Vivekananda’s views on science and leadership abilities, Tata wanted him to guide his campaign. Vivekananda endorsed the project with enthusiasm, and Tata, with the aim of advancing the scientific capabilities of the country, constituted a Provisional Committee to prepare a plan for setting up of an Institute of research and higher education. The committee presented a draft proposal to Lord Curzon on 31 December 1898. Subsequently, Sir William Ramsay, a Nobel Laureate, was called on to propose a suitable place for such an institution who suggested Bangalore as the best location.# ISO certification in India
The land and other facilities for the institution were donated on behalf of the State of Mysore by Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV, and Tata himself. The State of Mysore donated about 371 acres (150 ha) of land. Tata gave several buildings towards the creation of IISc. State of Mysore also contributed Rs 500000 towards capital expenditure and Rs 50000 for annual expense. The 7th Nizam of Hyderabad- Mir Osman Ali Khan also contributed in terms of money which amounted to 3 lakh Rupees over a period of 31 years.
The constitution of the institute was approved by the Viceroy, Lord Minto, and the necessary Vesting Order to enable it to function was signed on 27 May 1909. Early in 1911, the Maharaja of Mysore laid the foundation stone of the institute, and on 24 July, the first batch of students were admitted to the Departments of General and Applied Chemistry under Norman Rudolf and Electro-Technology under Alfred Hay. Within two months, the Department of Organic Chemistry was opened. In 1958 the institute was granted the deemed university status by the UGC.# ISO certification in India
At the time of the inception of IISc in 1909, Morris Travers, Sir William Ramsay’s co-worker in the discovery of the noble gases, became its first Director. For Travers, this was a natural continuation of his work on the institute, since he had played a role in its founding. The first Indian Director was the Nobel Laureate Sir C.V. Raman.
The institute was the first to introduce Masters programs in Engineering. It has also started integrated doctoral programs in Biological, Chemical, Physical and Mathematical Sciences for natural science graduates.# ISO certification in India
In 2018, IISc was one of the first six institutes to be awarded the Institute of Eminence status. In 2019, IISc launched its brand statement: “Discover and Innovate; Transform and Transcend; Serve and Lead”.
In 2022, IISc received a private donation of 425 crore Indian Rupees, the largest in its history to establish a postgraduate medical institute.
Bangalore Campus
The IISc campus is located in the north of Bangalore, about 6 kilometers from Bangalore City Railway Station and Kempegowda Bus Station, on the way to Yeshwantpur. The institute is about 35 kilometers from Kempegowda International Airport. A number of other research institutes, Raman Research Institute, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Wood Research Institute and Central Power Research Institute (CPRI), are close to IISc. Most of these institutes are connected to IISc by a regular shuttle bus service. The campus houses more than 40 departments marked by routes such as the Gulmohar Marga, the Mahogany Marga, the Badami Marga, the Tala Marga, the Ashoka Marga, the Nilgiri Marg, the Silver Oak Marg, the Amra Marga and the Arjuna Marga. The institute is fully residential and is spread over 400 acres of land in the heart of Bangalore city. The campus features six canteens (cafeterias), a gymkhana (gymnasium and sports complex), a football ground and a cricket ground, five dining messes (halls), one multi cuisine restaurant, nine men’s and five women’s hostels (dormitories), an air strip, a library, two shopping centers and residences of the faculty members and other staff, besides other amenities.# ISO certification in India
The IISc campus harbors both exotic and indigenous plant species with about 110 species of woody plants. The roads on the campus are named after the dominant avenue tree species.
The architecture of the main building, which today houses the administration and the Faculty Hall, is classical in style, fronted by a grey, handsome tower. In front of it stands the work of Gilbert Bayes, a monument erected in the memory of J. N. Tata. At its feet is an inscription that serves to remind future generations of the generosity of Jamsetji Tata and the persistence with which he worked for the welfare of India. The building, as one of the prominent landmarks of Bangalore, was designed by C. F. Stevens and Company of Bombay in 1912–13.# ISO certification in India
The buildings for the metallurgy and aerospace departments were designed by the German architect Otto Königsberger in 1940.
One of the oldest building of IISc
Challakere Campus
A second campus is in Challakere, on 1,500 acres (6.1 km2) lot of land. Infrastructure developed here includes the Talent Development Centre, Skill Development Centre funded by HAL under CSR Act, Solar Power Research Center and a Climate Observatory. The Centre for Sustainable Technologies has commenced its activities here under the project “C-BELT” i.e., the Centre for Bio-energy and Low-Carbon Technologies.# ISO certification in India
Janardhana Swamy, then Member of Parliament from the Chitradurga Lok Sabha as well as a notable alumnus of IISc and Amalan Biswas, then DC of Chitradurga District played significant roles in setting up the IISc’s new campus at Challakere. They were instrumental in identifying all the required 1500 acres of land for the new campus, getting the existing building leased from the Sheep Farm, obtaining the various needed approvals from the government, and having the initial funds released from the State.# ISO certification in India