Sundar Pichai gets honorary doctorate from IIT-Kharagpur: 'My parents always hoped...'

Sundar Pichai with his honorary doctorate from his alma mater IIT Kharagpur. (Image: @sundarpichai/Instagram)

IIT-Kharagpur honoured Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai with a Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) Award in San Francisco. The institute also recognised his wife, Anjali Pichai, with the Distinguished Alumnus Award, marking a significant occasion for the couple.

The event was attended by VK Tewari, Director of IIT-Kharagpur, along with Pichai’s parents and daughter Kavya.

IIT-Kharagpur bestowed the honour on Pichai for his work towards “digital transformation, affordable technology, and pathbreaking innovations”.

President Droupadi Murmu, a Visitor of IIT-KGP, bestowed the degree at the 69th Convocation of IIT-Kharagpur in December last year. However, as Pichai was not present at the convocation, the institute held the programme this month in the US.

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Expressing his gratitude, Pichai wrote in an Instagram post, sharing pictures, “Last week I was grateful to receive an honorary doctorate from my alma mater IIT Kharagpur. My parents always hoped I would get my doctorate, I think an honorary one still counts. The access to education and technology at IIT put me on a path to Google and helping more people access technology. IIT’s role in technology will only grow in importance with the AI revolution, and I will always be thankful for my time there.”

Sundar Pichai graduated with a BTech degree in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from IIT-Kharagpur. Anjali Pichai, with a background in Chemical Engineering, completed her BTech from IIT-Kharagpur in 1993.