Pan IIT Alumni India issues caution over World Wisdom Connect event

Pan IIT Alumni India has issued a public cautionary notice regarding the "World Wisdom Connect (wwCONNECT)" event scheduled for August 23 in New Delhi and activities associated with the entity calling itself the "IIT Alumni Council".

In its notice, Pan IIT Alumni India said the event, the proposed "Distinguished Alumni Awards" and other initiatives of the IIT Alumni Council are not organised, recognised, endorsed or supported by PanIIT Alumni India or any IIT by virtue of any association with PanIIT.

Pan IIT Alumni India said the IIT Alumni Council is an independent entity and is not part of the Pan IIT movement. The organisation also said public records indicate that the IIT Alumni Council is a private limited company owned, controlled and operated by a few individuals, and is distinct from the alumni associations traditionally associated with IITs.

Pan IIT Alumni India also referred to a collective media release issued by the 23 Indian Institutes of Technology in July 2020, stating that the IITs had publicly dissociated themselves from the IIT Alumni Council. According to the notice, the IITs had also debarred the Council from using the logo of any IIT without express written concurrence.

The institutes had clarified that the IIT Alumni Council was separate from authorised alumni associations working in association with the respective IITs.

Pan IIT Alumni India has advised IIT alumni associations, media organisations, sponsors, government agencies, educational institutions, students and other stakeholders to independently verify claims of affiliation, endorsement or representation before associating with or supporting initiatives of the IIT Alumni Council. The notice was issued "in the interest of the IIT alumni community",PanIIT Alumni India said.

Pan IIT Alumni India said it remains committed to protecting the integrity, unity and credibility of the IIT alumni community and urged stakeholders to exercise appropriate due diligence.