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Banyan (Ficus benghalensis) (fruits and leaves)

Banyan (Ficus benghalensis) (green fruits and leaves)

Red Cassia (Cassia roxburghii) (tree in bloom)

Rauwolfia tetraphylla. Identification by Dr. Badrinarayanan.

Palmyrah (Borassus flabellifer) (flowers, male tree)

Pipal (Ficus religiosa) (fresh leaves)

The Special Convocation was held to confer the honourary degree of Doctor of Science to Dr. Eppler. In an article published in The Hindu, it is mentioned, “Prof. S. Sampath, Deputy Director, read the citation which described Dr. Eppler as a scholar-statesman of outstanding eminence.” The convocation was held before the Computer Centre inauguration, which also took place at the Central Lecture Theatre (CLT). On the stage, from left, Prof. S. Sampath (Deputy Director), Mr. C. V. Sethunathan (Registrar), Mr. K. T. Chandy (Chairman, Board of Governors) and Dr. Erhard Eppler (Minister for…

Mr. C. Subramaniam inaugurated the Computer Centre at IIT Madras on 17 November. The event also saw the IBM 370 computer system being inaugurated. It was a turning point for computing at IIT Madras. Prior to this, there was no powerful computing facility at the Institute. Seen in the image, Mr. T. N. Venkataraman (Chief Security Officer, extreme right), Mr. A. L. Taylor (Regional General Manager, IBM, India, second from right) and Mr. C. Subramaniam (Union Minister for Industrial Development and Science and Technology, third from right).

In the book ‘Computer Education in India: Past, Present and Future’, there is a report about the event and some details of Dr. Eppler’s speech. According to the report, Dr. Eppler emphasized on the fact that the newly installed IBM 370 computer at IIT Madras could be of use in tackling various problems of the country. He also highlighted the fact that no other university in the country had an advanced system such as the IBM 370. Reportedly, he noted that the system would aid the Institute in becoming self-reliant. Dr. Eppler was the Minister for Economic Co-operation for the Federal…

Dr. Eppler was conferred the honourary degree of Doctor of Science on the same day as the Computer Centre inauguration. A special convocation was held before the inauguration of the Computer Centre at the Central Lecture Theatre (CLT). During his talk, “he said that developing countries must not imitate the course of development in the advanced countries and single mindedly pursue higher growth rates and larger gross national products.” He insisted that countries need to focus on meeting the basic requirements of its people in terms of quality of life and employment.   The event has…

This photograph was taken during the Special Convocation. The convocation took place on 17 November. It was held to present the Doctor of Science degree to Dr. Erhard Eppler who was the Minister for Economic Co-operation for the Federal Republic of Germany. Incidentally, the Computer Centre was inaugurated on the same day at the Central Lecture Theatre (CLT). We know that the Special Convocation was held before the Inauguration through Prof. Pandalai’s speech at the Computer Centre inauguration. The Archive of IIT Madras has documented the original speech in text form. Receiving Dr. Eppler…

The IBM 2741 was a printing communication terminal, inspired by the IBM Selectric typewriter. According to Wikipedia, it offered up to 50% higher speed compared to the teletypewriter machines which were used as printing terminals at the time. It also offered top quality printing, interchangeable type fonts and also upper and lower case letters. It also operated without much noise. A news report in The New Indian Express provides details about parts of the 370 computer system. According to the report, there were three typewriter terminals at IIT Madras that could type 15.5 characters per…

A special convocation was held for Dr. Erhard Eppler (Minister for Economic Co-operation, Federal Republic of Germany) on 17 November 1973. He was conferred the honourary degree of Doctor of Science. In a report in The Hindu, it is mentioned that Mr. Chandy (Chairman, Board of Governors) welcomed the gathering during the event. Mr. Chandy was the Founder-Director of the first Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in India — IIM Calcutta. He served various positions, as Chairman of Food Corporation of India, Hindustan Steel Limited and Kerala State Industries Development Corporation (KSIDC…