IIT Delhi has crowdsourced money from alumni donors to establish a Chair in the name of distinguished faculty member Prof Anshul Kumar.

"In recognition of Prof Kumar's distinguished service to IIT Delhi, over 50 alumni donors came together in 2018-19 to fund the Prof Anshul Kumar Chair in the areas of Computer Architecture and Electronic Design Automation," a statement said here on Thursday.

Prof Kumar, who retired on July 31, 2018 after serving the Institute for 44+ years, joined IIT Delhi as an undergraduate in 1969.

After his B Tech (1974, President's Gold Medal) he joined IIT Delhi as a Project Scientist while simultaneously working for his PhD.

Later, in 1983 he joined IIT Delhi as a faculty member. Speaking about the Prof Kumar Chair, Prof V Ramgopal Rao, Director, IIT Delhi said, "The establishment of this chair is a tribute to Prof Anshul Kumar's long and dedicated service to the students of IIT Delhi and to the institution. I am glad that our alumni have come together to ensure that the legacy of one of their great teachers goes on to inspire faculty into the future."

Prof Anshul Kumar has played a key role in the establishment and growth of the Computer Science and Engineering (CSE)department in IIT Delhi as well as in the growth of VLSI Design/EDA in India.

He is currently a Professor Emeritus in the CSE department, and continues to play an active role in research and teaching.

Prof M Balakrishnan (CSE dept, IITD), a close collaborator of Prof Kumar, was instrumental in organising the crowdsourcing effort.

"Our alumni have a lot of affection and respect for their teachers. They acknowledge the role of the faculty in helping them achieve their career goals. Besides, the success of our fundraising efforts shows that IIT Delhi alumni are keen to become active stakeholders in the development of the institution into a world-leader," Prof Balakrishnan said.