Campus Diary for September 2000 Click here for all the news and past newsletters ...
NEWS UPDATE : CAMPUS DIARY 1st - 8th SEPTEMBER 2000
38th Convocation of IIT Bombay IIT Bombay held its 38th Convocation on Thursday, August 10, 2000. Shri Rajendra Pawar, Chairman, NIIT Ltd., was the Chief Guest at the function and delivered the Convocation Address. "Creating extraordinary economic wealth with a long - term purpose should be the number one goal for each student passing out of the IIT's", said Mr. Rajendra S. Pawar. He advised the young graduates, "as you advance in age, your urge to make investments in society without a direct financial return is bound to increase, and then you would be paying back to nourish your roots". Shri Pawar further added that this being an era of rampant capitalism and staunch materialism, we ought to focus on the positive aspects and make the most of it. Prof. M. G. K. Menon, Chairman, Board of Governors, IIT Bombay, in his address cautioned the gathering that we often tend to forget real values in the mistaken pursuit of happiness only through materialistic approaches. The Director, Prof. Ashok Misra in his report mentioned that the total financial support received for more than 260 new as well as ongoing projects in the current year amounted to Rs. 14.56 crores. This includes the grant received for over 130 new projects initiated with a sanctioned outlay of 12.6 crores. Prof. Misra asserted that the bold decision taken by the Institute led to proactively increasing the student intake, which has spurt to about 27% over the last 6 years. He also revealed that so far IIT Bombay has awarded a total of 23,600 degrees. Dr. K. Kasturirangan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organization was conferred with a Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) for his outstanding contribution to the Indian Space Programme. In his response, Dr. Kasturirangan emphasized the need for closer links between universities, research laboratories and industries for commercializing of technology. At the 38th
convocation, 937 degrees were awarded which are as follows:
The newly introduced Institute Gold Medal was awarded to Mr. Manoj Malathi Prabhakaran of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering. Other Medals
The Institute Silver
Medals were awarded to the following students who were most outstanding
in the respective branch of Engineering/Science:
The Independence Day was celebrated at IIT Bombay, with the flag hoisting ceremony, held at the Institute Lawns. Director Prof. Ashok Misra, unfurled the National Flag and gave an Independence Day Address. The National Anthem was led by the Gymkhana music group. MOU Signed between IIT-B and Tohoku University A Memorandum of Understanding on Student Exchange was signed between Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and Tohoku University, Japan, on the 21st of August 2000. As per the memorandum each institution will enroll no more than 5 students from the other side, each year and the period of enrollment will not exceed one year. The Director Prof. Ashok Misra on behalf of IIT B and Mr. Hiroyuki Abe, President, Tohoku University on behalf of the Tohoku University signed the MOU. In accordance with a mutual desire to promote further international cooperation between India and Japan, IIT B and Tohoku University also joined hands by signing an agreement for Cultural, Educational and Scientific Cooperation. The general forms of cooperation agreed upon were: Joint research activities, Exchange of invitation to scholars for lectures, talks, participation in conferences, Exchange of information and faculty for study, education and research. Unless review of this agreement is required, it will automatically be extended every 5 years. Prof. A. N. Chandorkar, Department of Elect. Engg., has been selected for the 6th IETE - S V C Aiya Memorial Award of the Institute of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers in recognition of his distinguished contribution in the field of "Motivating Research Work in Micro-electronics Devices" during the past ten years. The award will be conferred upon him during the inaugural session of the 43rd Annual Technical Convention of the IETE at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi on 30th September 2000. The award consists of a medal, cash prize of Rs. 1000/- and a certificate. Prof. Inder K. Rana, Department of Mathematics, has been selected for the "C. L. Chandana Mathematics Award" for the year 2000. This award, comprising of a cash award of Rs. 51,000/- and a silver plaque, is being instituted by "Saraswati Vikas Canada" since 1998 and is being conferred upon Indian Mathematicians for their distinguished contributions to Mathematics Research and Teaching. Dr. J. C. Mandal, Associate Professor, Aerospace Engineering Department, has been selected by International Biographical Center (IBC), Cambridge, England for inclusion of his biography under the title "Outstanding People of the 20th Century". Mr. R. C. Misra, Lab Supdt. (S.G), Department of Chemical Engg., and former editor of "Kshitij" (1991-2000) has been awarded the "Dr. Gorakh Prasad Science Award - 1999" for excellence in science writing, by the Vigyan Parishad, Prayag, Allahabad. Prof. Amiya Kumar Pani, Department of Mathematics visited Global Analysis Research Centre in the Department of Mathematics at the Seoul National University, South Korea as a visiting Professor during May-June 2000 and gave several lectures. He also visited the Younsei University and Korean Institute of Science and Technology. During his stay he also participated in the Korea-French joint conference on 'Smart materials and high performance computing', the international conference on 'Applied Nonlinear Analysis 2000' held at the Pukyong National University, and Applied Mathematics Forum of Korea. Thereafter he participated in the Third World Congress on Nonlinear Analysts held in Catania (Italy) and gave a talk. Prof. Mohan C. Joshi, Department of Mathematics participated at the Third World Congress of Nonlinear Analysts held at the University of Catania, Italy during 19-26th July under the auspices of International Federation of Nonlinear Analysts (IFNA). He gave a lecture about the activities of the Industrial Mathematics Group at IIT Bombay. He was also the Convenor of the Organized Session on "Applied Analysis and Industrial Mathematics". Dr. V. Govardhan Rao, Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, has been nominated as a member of the Academic Council of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Technological University, Lonere, Maharashtra for a period of 3 years with effect from 1st June 2000 to 31st May, 2003. Dr. P. Selvam, Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, delivered a talk on "Mesoporous Molecular Sieves – A New Class of Inorganic Solids" at the School of Chemistry, University of Madras, Chennai on the 11th of August. Prof. B. Bandyopadhyay, Systems and Control Engg., visited the Ruhr University of Bochum, Germany during May-June 2000 and delivered a lecture on "Spatial Control of a large pressurized heavy water reactor by periodic output feedback" at the Lehrstuhl Fur Elektrische Steuerung Und Regelung. Dr. J. C. Mandal, Associate Professor, Department of Aerospace Engineering, was invited to deliver a talk on "Computation of Moderator Flow inside Calandria of Nuclear Reactor" at the 3rd Annual CFD Symposium of CFD Division of Aeronautical Society of India held during 11 -12 August at Bangalore. Mr. Arjun Mahto, Hindi Officer, was invited to deliver a lecture on "Hindi in the age of Information Technology" at the inaugural session of the conference of Hindi Officers organized by MTNL on the 11th of August. He also delivered an invited lecture on "Hindi: Its Constitutional Importance" at Hindi Workshop organized by the Indian Airlines at Kalina, Central Engineering Complex on the 17th of July. A team consisting of Mr. Alex Robinson, Director, Mr. Peter Hill, Director and Mr. Peter Mackenzie Smith, Director - Education, from Marconi Corporation, U.K visited IIT Bombay on the 21st of August 2000. They met the Director, Dy. Director, Dean (R & D), Head, Dept. of Electrical Engg., Prof. S.C. Sahasrabudhe, Prof. U.B. Desai, Prof. S. Chaudhari, Prof. A. Karandikar and Prof. D. Manjunath, Dept. of Electrical Engg. They also visited the Department of Electrical Engineering. Dr. Wendell R. Ogroosky, Vice Chancellor accompanied by Dr. Ashok Midha, Chair, Mech. & Aerospace Engg. & Engg. Mechanics, Dr. Robert Davis, Professor of Basic Engineering and Dr. Vittal S. Rao, Rutledge-Emerson Distinguished Professor of Elect. & Com. Engg., Director - Intelligent Systems Centre of the University of Missouri-Rolla visited IIT Bombay on the 7th of August 2000 to explore the possibility of research collaboration with IIT Bombay in the areas of mutual interest including the exchange of faculty members. They had a meeting with the Dy. Director, Dean (R & D), Assoc. Dean (R & D), Dean (RD), Heads - Mechanical Engg, Computer Science and Engineering, Aerpsoace Engg. and Kanwal Rekhi School of Information Technology. They gave lecture-seminar on "Multidisciplinary Research in Intelligent Systems" in the Dept of Mechanical Engg. and visited the Departments of Computer Science and Engg. and Electrical Engg. and the Kanwal Rekhi School of Information Technology. Dr. Sujit Banerjee and Dr. S. Bhaduri of Reliance Industries Ltd., visited IIT Bombay on the 18th of August. They had a meeting with the Director, Dean (RM), Dean (R & D), Heads of Department of Chemical Engineering and Department of Chemistry, Prof. M.K. Trivedi, Prof. D.V. Khakhar and Prof. A.S. Moharir and Prof. P. Selvam, Department of Chemistry. Thereafter, they visited the Department of Chemical Engineering and Department of Chemistry Department of Mechanical Engineering A seminar was held on the 7th of August on "Multi-disciplinary Research at the University of Missouri". Prof. Vittal S. Rao, Director, Intelligent Systems Centre, University of Missouri-Rolla, was the speaker for the occasion. Department of Mathematics A lecture was organized by the Department of Mathematics, IIT-B, Mathematics Association and Bombay Mathematical Colloquium on "Surfaces and paper folding" by Prof. A. R. Shastri, on the 4th of August. Department of Biomedical Engineering A seminar on "The Challenges of the Indian Medical Equipment Industry (R & D in the era of global competition)", was presented by Mr. J. V. Vaidya, Sr. Dy. General Manager, Medical Equipment Division, Larsen and Toubro Ltd., on the 4th of August, in the Electric Engineering Seminar Hall. The seminar and discussion was followed by a demonstration of medical equipments developed and marketed by L & T. Energy Systems Engineering A seminar was organized on "Computer Aided Architectural Representation" on the 16th of August 2000 in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. The speaker was Mr. Sabu Francis (B. Arch - IIT Kharagpur, 1984),a practicing architect having his own architectural consultancy since 1987. He has been awarded J.I.I.A award for excellence in architecture research in 1991 for proposing a new taxonomy. A seminar titled "Research on Fuel Cells as a Clean Source of Power" by Prof. Debendra K. Das, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, USA, was organized on the 16th of August in the Mechanical Engineering Department. Department of Chemical Engineering Prof. Uday Shenoy , Ex-Faculty, Dept. Of Chemical Engineering, IIT Bombay, held a seminar on "Effective Presentation: The Road to Better Technical Communication" on the 8th of August 2000. Some of the topics covered were basic guidelines for effective presentation, preparation of visual aids, audience likes and dislikes, nervousness and the need for preparation and power of persuasive gestures. He also held a seminar on "Effective Report Writing: The Road to Better Technical Communication" on the 17th of August. The topics covered were basic guidelines for effective writing, formatting of technical documents, structure of technical reports and styles of referencing. Prof. G. K. Sureshkumar, Department of Chemical Engg., IIT Bombay, delivered a lecture entitled "Oxygen and Oxidative Stress: Our Friends or Foes?" on the 24th of August. Department of Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science The Metals and Materials Association organized a Student Seminar entitled "Shape Memory Effect" on the 17th of August 2000. The speakers for the occasion were Shweta Bhandari, Anusha Sharma and Vinay Sharma (III B. Tech (MEMS)) A seminar entitled "Recovery of Metal Values from Wastes" was organized on the 23rd of August. The speaker for the occasion was Dr. Kyung-Ho Park, Korea Institute of Geology Mining and Materials. Department of Physics Prof. Y. K. Gambhir, Department of Physics, held a seminar titled "Highlights: International Nuclear Physics 'Bologna 200 - Structures of the Nucleus at the Dawn of the Century'" on the 23rd of August. Centre for Studies in Resource Engineering Prof. Venkatesh Raghavan, Osaka City University, Japan, held a seminar entitled "Development of Spatial Information System and its application for Geological Modelling" on the 18th of August. He spoke about the development of Spatial Information System by integrating GIS and RDBMS over the Internet. Spic Macay’s Virasat 2000 Spic-Macay's Virasat - The festival of concert series, was successfully held from 13-27 August 2000 at IIT Bombay. A unique feature of Virasat was the presentation of several young and upcoming artists along with the senior artists. The festival was a combination of classical music and dance, theatre, film-talk, and folk forms. Eminent artists like Sanjeev Abhyankar, Hariprasad Chaurasiya, Keshav Badge, Tijan Bai, Bahauddin Dagar, T.N. Krishnan, Veena Sahasrabuddhe, Shiv Kumar Sharma, Arti Anklekar, Birju Maharaj, Shruti Sadolikar, Niladhri Kumar, Ashwini Bhide, Ravi Kiran, Rajan & Sajan Mishra, and Fariduddin Dagar performed in this festival. Some unusual items included were a fifteen-day workshop on classical music by Fariduddin Dagar, craft workshop and yoga workshop. Most of the programmes were organized in the students’ hostels, with a motive of increasing student participation, and the arrangements were made in the hostel mess. It was beautifully decorated with rangoli and the Chief Guest inaugurated each function by lighting the lamp. The success of the festival was seen in the overwhelming participation; some of the events drawing more than 300 persons. Coolstartups Avenues 2000 Coolstartups Avenues 2000 - an idea primer event, was organized by the Entrepreneurship Cell Of IIT Bombay. The event explored the opportunities in the various fields in the entrepreneurial world and focused on the importance of the idea in making up of a successful venture. The event consisted of various sessions and discussions supplemented aptly by loads and loads of write-ups and information. A special highlight of the programme was 'The Churning Mill' - a panel discussion on the trends in the entrepreneurial arena in the coming times by Mr. Kanwal Rekhi, Mr. Dewang Mehta, Mr. Harish Mehta, Mr. Abhay Havaldar and Prof. D.B. Phatak. Science Club News The IIT Bombay Science Club launched its activities from the second week of August. The aim of the Science Club is to cultivate interest in science and technology and promote activities that would hold maintain this feeling. The many activities of the Club also include the Popular Science Lectures, which are given both by students and professors. These lectures provide a good insight into the topics that are not touched upon in the academic curriculum.
Dr. Dheeraj Sanghi, IIT Kanpur, has been appointed as a Visiting Faculty in the Kanwal Rekhi School of Information Technology, with effect from 31st July 2000. Prof. U. B. Desai, Department of Electrical Engineering has been appointed as the Dean of Student Affairs with effect from the 11th of August 2000. The appointment is for a period of 3 years. In the previous issue of Campus Diary, the information under Awards and Distinctions regarding Prof. S. M. Khopkar was erroneously printed. Regretting the error, we are providing the correct information as follows: Prof. S. M. Khopkar, Professor Emeritus, IIT Bombay was awarded the "Dr. V. T. Athawale Award – 1999" of the Indian Society of Analytical Scientists (ISAS) at Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Trombay on the 22nd of July 2000. The award is given once in three years to renowned scientists and technologists for excellence in the field of Analytical Chemistry. Retirements as on 31st August 2000
The Institute Academic Prizes are awarded to the students of the B.Tech., M.Sc. (Integrated), Dual Degree and M.Sc. (2-year) programme of the Institute The following students
are awarded the Academic Prizes for the year 2000-2001 on the basis of
their academic performance (average SPI) during 1999-2000.
III Year B.Tech./M.Sc.(Integrated)/Dual
Degree
IV Year B. Tech./Dual
Degree, M. Sc.(Integrated)
V year M.Sc. (Integrated) 1. Abhishek Kumar Jha I Chemistry V year Dual Degree 1.
Bhuvnesh Khurana &n
I Chemical Engg.
II year M.Sc. (2 - year) 1.
Kundnani Vinod Sidharath
I Chemistry
SHRI T.K. SUBRAMANIAN PRIZE FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE 1. Hrishikesh Vishvas Deo Mechanical Engg. JAYA SEETHA RANJANI HARIHAR SUBRAMANI PRIZE (CIVIL ENGG.) 1.
Jhaveri Ritesh Atul
II Yr. B.Tech.
URVISH MEDH MEMORIAL PRIZE (ELECTRICAL ENGG.) 1.
Bala Sandeep Prabhananda
II Yr. B.Tech.
PROF. M. N. VARTAK MEMORIAL PRIZE 1.
Markandey Upadhyay ( Applied Statistics & Informatics)
II yr. M.Sc.
1. Ananthnarayan Hariharan ( Mathematics) II Yr. M.Sc. |
Teachers Day was celebrated at IIT on September 5, 2000.The Chief Guest
was Dr. Shailesh J. Mehta, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Providian
Financial, USA and a distinguished alumnus of IIT Bombay. On the occasion IIT Bombay honoured eight of it's faculty members with the
"Excellence in Teaching" Awards which are given on the basis on thre
important criteria; the feedback from students, the organization of study
material and on past and present teaching methods. The award consists of a