Prof. Gonsalves took charge as the first full-time Director of IIT Mandi in January 2010. Under his leadership, IIT Mandi grew from an Institute with only 97 students in 2009 to one with 1655 students (2019–20) that has graduated over 1500 alumni. It has a vibrant research culture, with 125 faculty. As of 2020, the Institute had brought in external research funding to the tune of Rs. 110 Cr. From a green-field project initiated in 2009, IIT Mandi has 1.4 lakh sq. mt. constructed space with residential, academic and recreational facilities at par with the best higher education institutions in India. In the National Framework Institute Ranking of the
Government of India (2019), IIT Mandi was ranked 20th among engineering colleges in India, and best Institute among all categories in Himachal Pradesh. In the ARIIA 2020 it was ranked 7th in a nationwide survey. Within a decade of its establishment, IIT Mandi earned praise, including from the Indian Vice-President, and the Governor and Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, for establishing its unique identity in the education map of the country. Prof. Gonsalves was instrumental in setting up IIT Mandi Catalyst, the first technology
business incubator in Himachal Pradesh, in 2016. He served as the Chairman of its Board of Governors. Catalyst has helped over 370 startups since 2017, and is changing both the industry profile and entrepreneurial mindset in Himachal Pradesh. As of June 2020, Catalyst had secured external funding of Rs. 24 Cr from various funding agencies. In 2019, IIT Mandi became the first IIT to introduce a B. Tech. programme in Data Science. Prof. Gonsalves has mentored other educational institutes in Himachal Pradesh by serving on their board. He has served as the Vice-Chairman of the State Higher Education Council, Himachal Pradesh (2014 – 2017), and as Chairman of the Board of Governors for
Jawaharlal Nehru Government Engineering College (2012 – 2017). Prof. Gonsalves was appointed the National Project Coordinator for FarmerZone, a project that harnesses artificial intelligence for crop management advisories to small and medium farmers, initially helping over 1000 potato farmers in Punjab,
Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh. This prestigious project was funded to the tune of Rs. 9.7 cr (2018-2021) by the Indian
Department of Biotechnology. Another example of IIT Mandi achieving national leadership during his tenure: in 2018 IIT Mandi was nominated as the nodal institution for Germany in the nationwide SPARC (international researchers’ mobility) programme of
Ministry of Human Resource Development. In keeping with IIT Mandi’s vision to bridge the gap between academia and the local community, Prof. Gonsalves initiated ‘Prayas’, a citizen’s forum with residents and administrators in Mandi town, and served as its Chairman.
Initiative to increase female enrollment in the Indian Institutes of Technology In 2017 he chaired the Joint Admissions Board sub-committee for increasing female enrollment in B.Tech. at IITs. The committee recommended an increase in female enrollment in IITs from 8% in 2016 to 14% in 2018-19, 17% in 2019-20 and 20% in 2020-21 by creating supernumerary seats. As a result of this and other efforts at IIT Mandi including scholarships for female students and the setting up of a help-desk, IIT Mandi surpassed this target by achieving 20.22% female admissions to its B. Tech programme for the Academic Year, with 53 female students among 262 total program admissions. This was the highest proportion of female students in a BTech programme in any of the 23 IITs. This effort has been a national success as well: female enrollment in BTech at all IITs more than doubled from 8% in 2016 to 18% in 2019.
Five Week Induction Programme for BTech Students Since 2016, under Prof. Gonsalves' leadership, IIT Mandi has organized a fully faculty-mentored induction or orientation programme for its new BTech students. The aim of this five-week programme is to provide training to the new students and help them in the transition from school to college, to improve their respective skills and proficiency, and to help them to appreciate the significance of engineering’s societal connection.
Retirement from IIT Mandi After over 10 years of his contributions as founding Director of IIT Mandi, Prof. Gonsalves stepped down on 30 June 2020. Thereafter,
Ajit Kumar Chaturvedi, Director of
IIT Roorkee, took additional charge as Director of IIT Mandi temporarily. Prof. Gonsalves continues his association with IIT Mandi as Professor Emeritus (Honorary) since 1 July 2020. In February 2021, IIT Mandi published a book ''Scaling the Heights: IIT Mandi's First Decade'' chronicling the growth of the institution from inception until 2019 under his leadership. ==Career after retirement==