IIT Bhubaneswar celebrates International Women’s Day

Bhubaneswar : Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bhubaneswar has celebrated International Women’s Day and organized a function on 18th March 2024. The Women Welfare Committee (WWC) of the Institute organized the event in a grand scale. Professor (Dr) Sweta Singh, Head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, AIIMS Bhubaneswar graced the occasion as the chief guest.

Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Shreepad Karmalkar, Director, IIT Bhubaneswar highlighted that the enrollment of female students in technical education is on the rise in recent years as per different surveys. He said that various affirmative measures are being taken up to enhance the representation of women in different professions, apart from the conventional ones. “One of the reasons for this change is the change in the socio-economic structure due to development of technology. We must acknowledge the role of technological development in women empowerment,” he mentioned. He stressed on the change in attitude towards women and their professional growth.

In her address, chief guest Professor (Dr) Sweta Singh presented elaborately on ‘Inspire Inclusion: Supporting Women’s Health’. She provided valuable information on health-related threats like Cervical Cancer and Breast Cancer. In her presentation, she shared insights on the risks and preventive measures to protect women from these ailments. She made the audience aware about the various vaccines available to prevent cervical cancer. She also spoke on the care to be taken during pregnancy.

Dr.  Manaswini Behera, Chairperson, Women Welfare Committee spoke on the various activities being taken up by the Committee to ensure the wellbeing of the female members of the Institute. Dr. Prama Bhattacharya, Member Secretary, WWC, proposed a vote of thanks.
The winners of various competitions held earlier in the month were handed over prizes on the occasion. The students and residents of the Institute performed various cultural programmes to enthral the audience.