About Us

Research as a theme has always been the center of attention at IIT Kanpur. To generate necessary intellectual and physical infrastructure for further research, Institute created Dean of Research & Development position in 1966. This was the first ever appointment of a Dean for Research anywhere in the IIT system. Prof. H. K. Kesavan from the department of Electrical Engineering was appointed as the first Dean of Research & Development. However, a stand-alone R&D office came into existence in 1971 with just four staff members. Today, the R&D office has a staff of around 55 including regular and project employee and maintaining individual accounts of over 700 projects at any given time, processing papers related to purchase, travel, appointment, and salaries.

To facilitate smooth and existing functioning of existing Dean’s office the positions of Associate Dean for Industrial Collaboration (ADIC) and Associate Dean of Innovation and Incubation (ADII) were created in 2014. In July 2018, positions of Professor-in-charge (PIC) Innovation and Incubation and Professor-in-charge Research Park were created to oversee the responsibilities of the SIDBI Innovation & Incubation Centre (SIIC) and Science and Technology Park (Technopark@IITK), respectively. Subsequently, the two Associate Dean positions (ADIC and ADII) were abolished, and an Associate Dean of Research & Development (ADRD) was created in April 2019. The ADRD was also empowered executive powers, including the financial powers and was authorized to officiate as Acting DORD.