The surprise announcement came at IIT-Bombay’s two-day Golden Jubilee Conference held in New York. According to sources present at the event, Misra said that his resignation had been submitted some time earlier and had been accepted by the Ministry of Human Resource Development.

His departure comes at an unexpected time for IIT-Bombay, which is celebrating its Golden Jubilee year. Misra has been with the institution for over six years, and had two more years to go in his tenure as director.

“He announced at the function that he was resigning and that the Ministry had accepted his request,” said Computer Science Department Chair and Head and one of the convenors of the conference Deepak Phatak. Phatak, who has worked closely with Misra during his tenure at IIT-B, confirmed that he was joining an international company.

He was also all praise for Misra for adding a lot to the institution during his tenure as director. “Like all directors, he brought his own value. He increased the research focus. Today, IIT-B is in a prime position,” Phatak noted.

IIT-B 1969 alumnus and RTI activist Shailesh Gandhi described the outgoing director as a proactive entrepreneur.

“As a director, vice-chancellor and administration head, he had great vision,” Gandhi said, adding that IIT-B had had established several tie-ups with foreign companies and built cooperative international relations during Misra’s tenure.