The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi is often spoken about for its academic excellence. Over the decades, the institute has produced innovators, engineers and scientists who now work in some of the world\u2019s leading organisations. It frequently appears in global rankings such as the QS World University Rankings and remains one of India\u2019s most sought-after engineering institutes.<\/p>\n
But beyond classrooms, laboratories and rankings, IIT Delhi hides a quieter story, one where architecture meets physics.<\/p>\n
Read Full Story<\/p>\n
Students who walk through the campus often talk about a place they call the \u201cwind tunnel.\u201d It is not a laboratory experiment, nor a mechanical device used in aerodynamics. Instead, it is a corridor between buildings where wind flows strongly, creating a sudden rush of cool air.<\/p>\n
For generations of students battling Delhi\u2019s summer heat, walking through this corridor has become almost a ritual.<\/p>\n
Few realise that the experience is linked to a famous concept from physics: Bernoulli\u2019s Principle.<\/p>\n
THE CAMPUS ‘WIND TUNNEL’<\/p>\n
The corridor popularly called the wind tunnel is formed by the way some academic buildings are positioned close to each other. As wind enters the wider open space of the campus and then passes through the narrower corridor, its speed increases.<\/p>\n
The result is a noticeable gust of wind rushing through the passage.<\/p>\n
Students often gather there during hot afternoons to feel the breeze. Over time, the spot became part of campus folklore. For many freshers arriving at IIT Delhi, experiencing the \u201cwind tunnel\u201d is almost as memorable as attending their first lecture.<\/p>\n
Recently, the feature returned to conversation when Dhariya Sandhyana, who secured AIR 29 in the JEE Advanced 2014, mentioned it during a podcast conversation on YouTube. While describing daily life on campus, she spoke about the famous wind corridor and how students often pass through it to escape the heat.<\/p>\n
Her remark sparked curiosity among aspirants preparing for the Joint Entrance Examination Advanced, many of whom first encounter Bernoulli\u2019s Principle while solving physics problems.<\/p>\n
Imagining that same concept playing out in the corridors of a dream institute adds a certain charm to the campus experience.<\/p>\n
WHAT IS BERNOULLI’S PRINCIPLE?<\/p>\n
Bernoulli\u2019s Principle is a fundamental idea in fluid dynamics named after the Swiss mathematician and physicist Daniel Bernoulli.<\/p>\n
In simple terms, the principle states that when a fluid such as air moves through a narrower space, its speed increases while its pressure decreases.<\/p>\n
This concept explains many everyday phenomena, from the lift of an aircraft wing to the way air flows through narrow spaces in buildings.<\/p>\n
At IIT Delhi, students say they experience this principle while simply walking through the campus.<\/p>\n
THE ARCHITECTURE BEHIND IT<\/p>\n
The story begins in the early 1960s, when IIT Delhi\u2019s campus was designed.<\/p>\n
The institute was built between 1961 and 1968 on a 311-acre site in Hauz Khas, New Delhi. The project was led by architect J.K. Chowdhury and structural engineer Gulzar Singh.<\/p>\n
Chowdhury\u2019s architectural ideas were influenced by his association with renowned modernist architects Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret.<\/p>\n
The campus reflects the Brutalist style of architecture, a design approach that uses exposed concrete and bold geometric forms. Most buildings in the academic complex were constructed using exposed concrete surfaces, giving the institute its distinctive visual identity.<\/p>\n
While planning the campus, the designers also chose to preserve the natural topography of the land rather than flatten it.<\/p>\n
The positioning of buildings, open spaces and corridors created natural air channels across parts of the campus \u2014 which students today experience as the famous wind tunnel.<\/p>\n
WHERE PHYSICS MEETS EVERYDAY LIFE<\/p>\n
For students preparing for engineering exams, Bernoulli\u2019s Principle often appears as a formula on a page. At IIT Delhi, however, the concept becomes something you can feel while walking across the campus.<\/p>\n
It is a reminder that physics does not only exist in textbooks or laboratories.<\/p>\n
Sometimes, it quietly flows through the spaces between buildings, carried by nothing more than the wind.<\/p>\n
– Ends<\/p>\n
Published By: <\/p>\n
Rishab Chauhan<\/p>\n
Published On: <\/p>\n
Mar 11, 2026 13:49 IST<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Indian Institute of Technology Delhi is often spoken about for its academic excellence. Over the decades, the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":520067,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[234839,234841,234842,234843,234840,199,79,234844],"class_list":{"0":"post-520066","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-physics","8":"tag-iit-delhi-architecture","9":"tag-iit-delhi-architecture-speciality","10":"tag-iit-delhi-latest","11":"tag-iit-delhi-qs-ranking","12":"tag-iit-delhi-wind-tunnel","13":"tag-physics","14":"tag-science","15":"tag-when-did-iit-delhi-found"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/520066","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=520066"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/520066\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/520067"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=520066"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=520066"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=520066"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}