Breaking away from tradition, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) allowed its first “formal” convocation on Saturday, held 105 years after its inception, to become an informal affair.
The convocation itself, in the words of Prof P Balaram, Director, IISc, was an “experiment”
and a break from the long tradition of the institution where students “quietly take their degrees and go out into the world”.
The dress code was white shirt/T-shirt and black trousers. While many chose to follow the dress code, there were others who came dressed casually in their institution’s white T-shirts.
Deepak, who got a gold medal for his PhD, came dressed in a green kurta and a dhoti. To top this act, he had the chutzpah to wear his shades soon after collecting the medal from the chief guest, K Kasturirangan, Member, Planning Commission.
This amused the audience, including Balaram and Kasturirangan. Even Kasturirangan obliged to become one with the informal atmosphere on a number of occasions. When one of the gold medallists was receiving his medal, the ribbon holding the medal suddenly gave way and fell on the floor. An unflinching Kasturirangan coolly tied a knot to hold the medal and put it around the student.
There were 47 gold medallists. A total of 350 Masters and 300 PhD degrees were handed out on the occasion (in person as well as in absentia).
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