History
A Legacy of its Own
Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee has its roots in the Roorkee College, which was set up in 1847. It was renamed as the Thomason College of Civil Engineering in 1854. The College laid the foundation of modern engineering education and the use of civil engineering practices in the infrastructure development of the country. It got elevated as the first Technical University of the country in 1948 through the University of Roorkee Act, 1947 passed by the United Provinces Legislature. On September21, 2001, the University was converted into an IIT by the Government of India through an Act of Parliament and recognized as an Institution of National importance.
Since 1966
The Department of Humanities and Social Sciences in IIT Roorkee (erstwhile University of Roorkee) was established in 1966 with a vision to integrate human values and social concerns with technical education. Over the years, it has developed into a lively department, encompassing teaching and research programmes in the areas of English, Economics, Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology, Fine Arts and related inter & cross-disciplinary subjects. Seventy two scholars have been awarded the Ph.D. degrees across different disciplines of the department. One of the notable achievements in recent years has been the expansion in research activities and exchanges of ideas, facilitated by the constant surge of discussions, consultations and publications in esteemed and high impact journals. Besides, there has been considerable progression of tangible and scholastic infrastructure which in process provides an impetus to its bright future.