Entering HSB - First Interview
I still remember climbing the HSB staircase from the alumni avenue side to the HSS department on a sunny morning to attend the MS interview during May/June 1984[cite: 16, 17]. I had completed Mechanical Engineering from College of Engineering Guindy and was interested in Operations Research[cite: 17].
My GATE score was not sufficient for MTech, so I applied for the M.S (by Research) in Industrial Management[cite: 18]. The interview happened in the seminar room (now HSB339), where I was shocked to see about 15 professors sitting opposite a single chair[cite: 20]. Luckily, Prof R Rajagopalan interviewed me, asking about my BTech project on O.R models[cite: 23, 24, 25].
After a brief stay at IISc, I eventually joined the HSS department as an M.S scholar in September 1984[cite: 33, 35].
The HSS Department (1984)
In 1984, the HSS department had eighteen faculty members divided into Humanities, Social Sciences, and Industrial Management[cite: 37, 38]. The IM group included Profs Dipak Chaudhuri, R Rajagopalan, TT Narendran, LVLN Sarma, MDP Rao, and S Jayachandran[cite: 41].
We had the PhD program in all areas and the MS program specifically in IM[cite: 48]. There were about 15 to 20 PhD scholars across various disciplines including Economics, English, and Psychology[cite: 54].
M.S Student (1984-1986)
Since I joined in September, I could not register for courses immediately[cite: 62]. Prof TTN spent a lot of time helping me settle in[cite: 65]. I eventually worked on 'valuation of convertible debentures' for my MS thesis, formally guided by Prof TTN and advised by Prof Marti Subrahmanyam from NYU[cite: 79].
I remember collecting data at the Madras Stock Exchange during the 'World Championship of Cricket' in Australia, hearing the scores from people entering the reading hall[cite: 81].
PhD Student (1987-1990)
I submitted my M.S thesis in June 1986 and applied for a PhD[cite: 88]. Prof Rajagopalan advised me to wait and apply for a faculty position only after completing my PhD[cite: 97]. I started my PhD research in early 1988, focusing on grouping problems in Cellular Manufacturing[cite: 99, 100]. My first paper was accepted in IJPR by 1989[cite: 103].
The Delays
Between 1984 and 1990, many things were delayed—admission letters, thesis approvals, and even the foreign examiner's reports for my PhD[cite: 107, 108, 111]. My PhD viva-voce finally happened in July 1990[cite: 113]. IIT Madras waited for my degree and offered me a Lecturer (on Contract) position, which I joined on 14th September 1990[cite: 116, 117].
Lecturer (1990) to Professor (2004)
I started as a guest faculty teaching 'Advanced Operations Research' before formally joining[cite: 120]. I was an Assistant Professor on contract by 1993, became an Associate Professor in 2001, and finally a full professor in January 2004[cite: 127, 131]. In 1997, I went on a sabbatical to Lehigh University under the 'BOYSCAST' fellowship[cite: 132, 133].
Few Institute Positions
Director Prof R Natarajan identified me for institute work, leading to my role as the Institute Management Representative for ISO in 2001[cite: 130, 142]. I was also involved in the Integrated Computing Environment (ICE) project, which created the first internal web portal[cite: 144]. I even served as the warden of Jamuna Hostel[cite: 146].
MTech and MBA in HSS
Management education at IITM started with a PG Diploma in Industrial Engineering in 1966[cite: 153]. By 2001, the HSS department decided to start the MBA program[cite: 164]. Prof LS Ganesh suggested a 'quarter' system to allow for more electives[cite: 167, 170]. The program eventually moved to the Department of Management Studies (DoMS) in April 2004[cite: 179].
Students
I enjoyed combining qualitative and quantitative approaches in research, such as a thesis on Solid Waste Management with Prof VRM[cite: 184, 185]. Notable alumni include K Sudhir (MTech 1991), now a professor at Yale[cite: 196]. My 14 years as faculty in HSS were filled with excellent interactions with UG students[cite: 199].
HoDs
I worked under eight HoDs, including Prof A V Krishna Rao, Prof S Ambirajan, and Prof TT Narendran[cite: 203, 204, 207, 220]. Prof Ambirajan was a great scholar in Political economics[cite: 209]. Prof LVLN Sarma, a Professor of Finance, had a famous paper in the Journal of Finance[cite: 223].
A Look at History
The department was called 'Humanities Department' until 1967-68[cite: 245, 246]. Prof TT Narendran, who joined the faculty in 1977, spent 33 years in HSS as both student and faculty[cite: 251, 252]. Other pioneers included Prof R K Gupta, Prof V Anantaraman, and Prof S Ramani[cite: 256].
The Trio + 1 (Research scholar friends)
I started making friends when C Rajendran and Venu joined in 1985[cite: 273]. Later, Mahadevan joined, and we formed a research group under Prof TTN[cite: 275]. We became 'The Trio'—Venu, Mahadevan, and I—and later '3+1' when Kochikar joined and I became faculty[cite: 281, 282].
3+1 Labs in HSS
In 1984, the department had a Language Lab and an Industrial Engineering lab[cite: 287]. The 'Systems Lab' started in 1987-88 with three Aurolec computers[cite: 297]. Prof Dipak Chaudhuri also started a Reliability Engineering Lab around 1990[cite: 215, 304].
HSB 333 and the Changes
The layout of the department was a long corridor with about 50 rooms[cite: 311, 312]. HSB333 was a major classroom that could accommodate 144 students[cite: 327]. I taught there for 18 years[cite: 328]. In 2012, HSB333 was converted into the HoD office and Seminar Room[cite: 324].
Mentors from IM (RR and TTN)
Prof RR and Prof TTN shaped my career[cite: 338, 339]. Prof RR was a versatile scholar who taught everything from O.R to German and Ethics[cite: 346, 350, 352]. Prof TTN, an excellent communicator and veena player, was a simple and dedicated mentor for over 42 years[cite: 356, 357, 361].
Friends from HSS - Dilip and VRM
D Veeraraghavan (Dilip), who lost his vision in school, had deeper insight than most[cite: 371, 373, 376]. We shared a love for cricket and Carnatic music[cite: 380]. Prof VR Muraleedharan (VRM) and I have been friends for 42 years; our families lived in campus homes very close to each other[cite: 391, 397].
Blossoming of the O.R teacher
My style as an O.R teacher was shaped in HSS, learning board organization and vertical lines from Prof TTN[cite: 416, 421]. In 2003, I started making videos of the O.R course which became NPTEL courses[cite: 435]. The material for my O.R book was written in 2005[cite: 436].
Back to HSS for a 'talk'
On 3rd November 2014, I delivered a Dilip Veeraraghavan memorial Trust lecture on "Ponniyin Selvan" in HSB334[cite: 442]. This was my 'Last lecture' in the HSS department building[cite: 445].
More memories of HSS family
The HSS family included staff like Mr PM Krishnamoorthy and Mr 'Typist' Balu, known for his dry wit[cite: 448, 452]. Mrs McMurray, who joined on compassionate appointment, was described as 'motherly' to all of us[cite: 479, 481]. The department was also famous for its German teachers like Mr K Schleusener and Prof B Subramanian[cite: 486, 487, 492].
Silent memories
Nothing lasts forever, and many of the people mentioned are no longer with us[cite: 509]. Memories can be written about or enjoyed in silence[cite: 510]. I hope these memories remain with us[cite: 512].