S. Vishnu Sharma
IIT Mandi achievement is all about the accomplishments of the institute in 2020.
This year has indeed concluded on a positive note for the institute despite challenges posed by COVID-19 situation.
It was during this year that IIT Mandi played a key role in lending a helping hand to the local administration to help it battle the pandemic in Himachal Pradesh region.
IIT Mandi achievement: 2020 is a great year for it
As 2020 is nearing its end, IIT Mandi achievement in various spheres is recollected.
Effective measures
IIT Mandi achievement comprises quick and safety measures which it implemented to protect its students, faculty and staff from COVID-19.
Taking into consideration the guidelines issued by Ministry of Education of Government of India, the institute suspended all academic and extracurricular activities for its students and proactively opted for virtual classes in order to minimise the impact of the disruption on the students’ learning.
Convocation
Another worth praising IIT Mandi achievement was the convocation being celebrated virtually.
IIT Mandi conducted its 8th convocation in virtual mode for the outgoing B.Tech., Ph.D. and M.S. scholars, as well as arranged a virtual welcome of 330 students in the new B.Tech. batch.
IIT Mandi achievement with regards to academics is indeed great.
Teaching
Another worth mentioning IIT Mandi achievement was on the learning front.
The institute ensured that learning continued without any hinderance even during the pandemic.
For continual teaching, the institute arranged 15 dedicated classrooms for online teaching.
These classrooms were equipped with a computer, a large screen to view students, a collar microphone, a high-resolution web camera mounted on a tripod to cast presenter’s face, a green board to use chalk for writing and a high-resolution smart writing pad with a stylus for those who prefer to teach using these devices.
Speaking about IIT Mandi achievement on the teaching front Dean Academics at IIT Mandi Professor Pradeep Parameswaran said the institute quickly adapted to the online mode of teaching once the national lockdown started in March 2020.
The regular teaching activities of the institute are continuing in online mode.
‘We have set up more than 15 smart classrooms for online teaching purposes,’ he said.
Research and innovation
IIT Mandi achievement on research and innovation front was also equally impressive this year.
From developing face masks from waste PET bottles and low-cost smart ventilator, to tracking the spread of COVID-19 in India via social networks, IIT Mandi researchers and innovators have made tireless efforts and contribution to help tackle the pandemic.
Couple of prominent research and innovations that glorified IIT Mandi achievement this year are:
# Research on comparing disordered proteins in COVID-19
Dr Rajanish Giri, Assistant Professor, School of Basic Sciences, IIT Mandi, along with his research team used computational tools to understand an important part of the viral proteome called Intrinsically Disordered Protein Regions (IDPRs).
The research team investigated the disordered side of SARS-CoV-2 proteome using a complementary set of computational approaches to check the prevalence of IDPRs in its proteins and to shed some light on their disorder-related functions and also their disorder-based binding motifs, known as molecular recognition features.
The results of this work have been published in the journal, Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences.
This spectacular IIT Mandi achievement deserves a praise.
# Research on tracking the spread of COVID-19 in India via social networks
Dr. Sarita Azad, Assistant Professor, School of Basic Sciences, IIT Mandi, traced the spread of COVID-19 and its diffusion from the global to national level and identified a few superspreaders who played a central role in the transmission of the disease in India.
In the past few months, many articles have been published on COVID-19 but in this research, the team also showed the spread of COVID-19 using social network analysis which is not done so far.
No wonder why this IIT Mandi achievement is worth remembering always.
Along with this, IIT Mandi also played a key role to help tackle COVID-19 in the Himachal Pradesh region.
The Institute signed an MoU with Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Government Medical College & Hospital and extended its support to set up a real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) laboratory for diagnosing Coronavirus in the region.
The laboratory has helped the authorities in ramping up the testing process by analysing up to 1000 samples per day for the detection of COVID-19.
Another worth mentioning IIT Mandi achievement is that of Dr. Varun Dutt who is associate professor at School of Computing and Electrical Engineering at IIT Mandi.
Dr. Varun Dutt along with his B.Tech. students developed a website for the military personnel and their family members visiting the army canteens.
Through this website, visitors can register before visiting the canteen to help maintain social distancing.
The team also developed and installed an automatic thermal screening machine in the District administration office to prevent the spread of corona infection.
# High-Efficiency Face Masks from Waste ‘PET Bottles’
Another fantabulous IIT Mandi achievement was the successful implementation of waste to wealth concept.
This became evident when Dr. Sumit Sinha Ray, Assistant Professor, School of Engineering, IIT Mandi along with his research scholars developed an indigenous technology for manufacturing high-efficiency face masks from waste ‘PET bottles’.
The researchers achieved this by using waste plastic bottles to develop a single thin layer of nano-nonwoven membrane that provides desirable particle filtration efficiency, at par with N95 respirator and a medical mask.
The product has been developed and tested in the Multiscale Fabrication and Nanotechnology Laboratory at IIT Mandi.
This IIT Mandi achievement makes everyone proud.
# Wi-Fi Operated Smart Ventilator
IIT Mandi achievement that deserved a pat was the design of cost effective ventilator.
Dr. Apran Gupta, Associate Professor, School of Engineering, IIT Mandi, along with research scholars developed a smart ventilator costing only Rs 4,000.
The developed prototype is a mechanised Artificial Manual Breathing Unit (AMBU) bag with options to control breath rate and volume of air going into the patient’s lungs.
The unique feature of the developed product is, apart from manual operation, it can be controlled by a mobile application over wifi as well.
For the same, the smartphone application, ‘IIT Mandi Ventilator’ has been developed at IIT Mandi.
# UV-C Disinfection box
Dr. Himanshu Pathak and Dr. Sunny Zafar, Assistant Professors, School of Engineering, IIT Mandi, have developed an Ultraviolet-C (UV-C) light-based portable disinfection box at a cost of ₹35,000.
This will disinfect metallic, plastic and cardboard products like wallets, keys, spectacles, bags, courier packages and parcels, among others, to minimise the risk of COVID-19.
IIT Mandi director
Speaking about the IIT Mandi achievement in various fields, Professor Ajit K. Chaturvedi, director of IIT Mandi said 2020 held many challenges in front of us and I am happy to say that in spite of the pandemic, IIT Mandi has excelled in the fields of academics, innovation, international linkages, student placements and business incubation.
Thus, the institute developed many products for a self-reliant and sustainable ecosystem, he said.
Conclusion
With IIT Mandi achievement list being impressive, this year has concluded on a positive note for the institution.