Praful Dand, a chemical engineer from the BTech batch of 1971, and his wife and co-donor, Chetna Dand, have transferred their land in Coimbatore to the institute. The land will need to be monetised and used as per the request of the donors, said an official. The institute, in a statement on social media, mentioned that the donors deepened their long-standing commitment to student scholarships at the institute through a significant new contribution. It also mentioned that Dand has been continuously supporting the institute since 2011, and that the recent gift will help establish endowments, ensuring lasting opportunities for two students to pursue their dreams at the institute each year.
This is the second such donation in real estate the institute has received this week. Vijay Rajadhyaksha, President of a consulting services, from the 1974 batch, and his wife Meera, also donated their land in Karjat to the institute, and the proceeds from their donation were to be used towards the batch’s legacy project. The institute has been receiving donations in kind over the last few years. In 2021, the widow of the late Prof Subir Kar bequeathed her flat in Powai to the institute, and in 2022, one of the institute’s founding faculty members, the late Prof RS Ayyar’s wife and daughters, donated two flats, one each in Powai and Ghatkopar, for the development of the institute.