Alumni from 16 countries are expected to participate in the Global Alumni Meet of SDM College of Engineering and Technology (SDMCET) in Dharwad to be held on Saturday.
Addressing presspersons in Dharwad on Thursday, principal of the college K. Gopinath said that over 500 alumni have already confirmed their participation in the event, which will be inaugurated by district in-charge Minister Santosh Lad at 10 a.m.
Along with him, alumni of the college and MLA Arvind Bellad, flautist Praveen Godkhindi and VTU Registrar B.E. Rangaswamy will be special guests for the inaugural event.
Dharmasthala Dharmadhikari D. Veerendra Heggade will address the alumni meet via virtual platform.
Prof. Gopinath said that over 20,000 students have completed their engineering education from the college, which was established in 1979, and are now occupying important positions across the globe.
“The SDMCET Alumni Association has been active and extended a helping hand in building the alumni auditorium plus guesthouse at a cost of ₹1.5 crore in 2005 and an indoor sports complex worth ₹4 crore in 2022,” he said.
He said that the meet has been organised with an objective of establishing a lifelong connect for alumni with their alma mater.
Awards
Prof. Gopinath said that the Alumni Appreciation Awards will be presented to 12 people for their meritorious service to humanity.
They include space scientist from Chandrayaan-2 mission Anuradha Desai and Chirag Shah who saved thousands of lives during COVID-19 by making more than 500 non-functional ventilators functional. This apart, retired teachers and principals will be felicitated during the event, he said.
President of SDMCET Alumni Association Vasudev Parvati said that they will launch four new facilities, innovation and tinkering lab for creative thinking in students, new basketball and volleyball courts, institution of Arun Shetty Memorial Sports Award in the memory of ace cricketer and a State-level annual competition for students in design thinking will be launched during the meet, he said.
