IIT Guwahati leads Ind into top 100 global varsity rankings

PTI LONDON BUREAU 

London, May 1 (PTI) The Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati has taken India into the world's top 100 university rankings for the first time with an entry at No.87.

IIT Guwahati is the only Indian educational institute in the 2014 league table of '100 Under 50' institutions released by the 'Times Higher Education' (THE) magazine here on Wednesday.

The IIT shares the 87th rank on the list with Portugal's New University of Lisbon and Australia's University of Western Sydney.

The annual evaluation of the world's top 100 universities under 50 years of age had a distinct Eastern stance with South Korea's Pohang University of Science and Technology topping the list for the third consecutive year.

"There has been a great deal of soul-searching in India over the fact that none of its universities make the World University Rankings' top 200 – a serious concern given the country's great intellectual history and growing social and economic influence," said Phil Baty, rankings editor at THE magazine.

"But this new analysis, which examines the next generation of global university stars, should be encouraging. Of the 'BRICS' nations, Russia, mainland China and South Africa do not make the grade, so it is cause for optimism that the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati breaks into the top 100," he added.

The '100 Under 50 2014' uses the same comprehensive list of 13 performance indicators that underpin the prestigious THE World University Rankings, but employs an especially re-calibrated methodology to better capture the characteristics of young institutions.

"It looks to the future by examining a new breed of global universities – those that have managed to join the world elite in a matter of decades rather than centuries, and those with the potential to become the next generation's Harvard or Oxford," THE said in a statement.

Asia again makes an impressive showing in the rankings, bolstered by India's inclusion. The top Asian nation in terms of numbers is Taiwan, which has four representatives (down from five), led by the National Sun Yat-Sen University in 40th, the statement said.

Switzerland's Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne retains second position and at the third position is another South Korean institute - Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. 

Carl Lewis named event amabassador for World 10k Bangalore run

B D Narayankar reports

Bangalore, Apr 23 (PTI) Carl Lewis, the legendary
sprinter who won 10 Olympic medals and as many in the World
Championships, has been named as the event ambassador for the
TCS World 10K Bangalore run, which will be flagged off from
Kanteerava Stadium on May 18.
    “It gives me great joy to come to India, a country I love
and respect, to spread the magic of running and sport amongst
the beautiful populace. In the last decade or so, India has
witnessed a running revolution and the sport has grown
manifold in terms of strength, popularity and interest
generated,” said Lewis.
     The nine-time Olympic gold medallist added: “The TCS
World 10K is an ideal blend of speed and endurance and I’m
sure the run will attract many of the best in the world. It’s
an honour for me to be associated with the event and witness,
in action, these running enthusiasts. I hope my presence will
only inspire and encourage them to reach greater heights of
performance and success."
     Leading up to the event, he will meet and interact with
the participants.
     His Olympic gold came first in 1984 in the 100 metres. At
the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, Lewis won gold in the
100-metre final and was credited with a world record. In the
1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Lewis jumped 8.67m in the first
round of the long jump. In the 4×100 m relay, Lewis anchored
another world record, in 37.40 seconds, a time, which stood
for 16 years. He covered the final leg in 8.85 seconds,
winning two gold medals at the event.
     In 1996, Lewis qualified for the American Olympic team a
record fifth time in the long jump.. He won gold and became
one of only three Olympians to win the same individual event
four times.
     His world record in the indoor long jump has remained
unbeaten since 1984 and a stunning 65 consecutive victories in
long jump, achieved over a span of 10 years, is one of the
sport’s longest undefeated streaks.
     Since his retirement in 1996, he has devoted his time to
charity through the Carl Lewis Foundation.