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^maVr` àm¡Úmo[JH$r g§ñWmZ [^cmB© INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY BHILAI Vol. 4, Issue 1, January - June, 2020 The IIT Bhilai Newsletter Editorial IIT Bhilai Fights COVID19 Colours of Holi had not even An interview with Prof. Rajat Moona, Director, IIT Bhilai faded, and festive mood of spring days were still Indian Institute of Technology Bhilai has lockdown started, and students could not come reverberating at all beats of always kept its promise to lead the nation at back to the institute. We were not ready to bow our campus life, when tides all times. During the novel Coronavirus down to this situation. We wanted to carry on of Corona pandemic hit our outbreak, IIT Bhilai once again showed its with the academic activity, because the future of country. We hardly got any time to prepare spearheading initiatives and innovative our graduating students was at stake. Some ourselves for what we were going to face in next researches to help the country in its fight would be required to join jobs; others would go few months, but we evolved, improvised and against the pandemic. Our Newsletter Team for higher education or have some other plans. fought this battle together, with three P's- interacted with Prof. Rajat Moona, Director We therefore took a very big and bold decision: precaution, perseverance and progress. IIT Bhilai to know how various developments Commencement of Online Classes. We chose Always, the first challenge was safety of our at IIT Bhilai help meet these challenges. online platforms for delivery of classes. We trained and helped teachers to conduct them. We students, more than hundred of them was in worked with students to ensure its success. campus and their safety was of utmost importance. We shifted all students of castle Tria We were not ready to bow down to this situation. which was outside main campus, to Castle Ena The future of our graduating students was at stake and Dio inside the campus. Circles with gaps of six feet are drawn on the floors of the mess-area, ... We therefore took a very big and bold decision: mealtimes were staggered, maximum number of Commencement of Online Classes. students to travel on the shuttle buses at a time were also reduced. Sanitization kiosks were Prof. Moona, Director, IIT Bhilai installed at every prime entry points and no- contact-hand washing installed at main gate. Newsletter Team: That was really a pioneering Students were asked to go outdoors only at step IIT Bhilai took becoming a harbinger of a designated times, and those outdoor times had new era in our education system. How was it all also been staggered to preventing crowd. The arranged? number of students sharing rooms was also Newsletter Team: Professor Moona, would reduced within our scope of logistics. A taskforce Prof. Moona: From March end, we started holding you please tell us how IIT Bhilai faced the of faculty members and group of student online classes for all those courses in which final challenges when Novel coronavirus outbreak volunteers was formed to monitor, make aware year students were involved. Later, on conclusion started in India. How did the administration and engage our students in constant practice of of classes, online examinations were arranged ensure the safety of students and at the same distancing, the task which could never be which ran for almost a week. A timetable was time, continue with their academic successful without the enthusiastic cooperation drawn, and the students were asked to appear in curriculum? of our students. online method of examination. Students were It is always said that new age of technology Prof. Moona: The pandemic became suddenly given open book/notes exam. Their exam blooms amidst the age of fog and fight. The same prevalent around Holi and this was the mid solutions were checked by instructors and also can be said for today's India, now on her new semester break for our students. On 13th grading was carried out. It was noticed that path of 'Atmanirbhar Bharat'. IIT Bhilai shall March, the institute took a decision to grading was exactly similar as in other times of always be remembered in this journey as the postpone the classes and informed all the the offline activities. It was therefore a good harbinger of new age of online classes and online students to stay put wherever they were and learning experience for everybody and was done exam. Despite the challenges of growing not return to the campus. We allowed our flawlessly. pandemic and lockdown, Prof. Rajat Moona, the students to leave the campus to go home, if Newsletter Team: It is really assuring to all of us visionary educationist and Director of IIT Bhilai, they wish to. Some students left, but many that with these initiatives, education is in full led the institute through a new format of MTech and PhD students chose to stay back in swing at IIT Bhilai. education system and today our students are in the hostel. their full course of their curriculum and the first Prof. Moona: Yes, very much. Meanwhile, our batch of BTech has graduated. Newsletter Team: It must have been a very researchers, faculty members and others were difficult situation to carry out further involved in variety of things to contribute in their This issue of Ink, brings you all these stories of academic activities. Many other institutes own ways to handle COVID 19. Few faculty IIT Bhilai for the past six months, the pre- shut down their academic program members developed the sanitisers which are in lockdown tunes of events and workshops, the temporarily. What path IIT Bhilai chose? use in the campus. Faculty members contributed lockdown days and the era of transition. to the design of face shields which can be the first Prof. Moona: Yes, it was really a tough situation. From 25th March the first phase of (continued to page 2) Avishek Adhikary, Editor IIT Bhilai Fights COVID 19: An Interview with Prof. Moona First PhD from IIT Bhilai Faculty Awards Our Thanks !!! (continued from page 1) Dr. Suyash Kandele, a PhD student in the department Dr. Asrifa Sultana, Assistant Professor, Department of Mathematics was selected for the "Young Woman in A note of thanks to the line of protection for those people who are in the front line of of EECS successfully defended his PhD thesis in Science" award at the 5th Venus International Women housekeeping staff who handling potential corona patients. We worked with AIIMS Computer Science and Engineering on May 9, 2020. Awards - VIWA 2020. Dr. Asrifa received this award played a vital role in Raipur as well as Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital & Research He did his research in the area of Cryptography under during the 5th Annual Women's Meet (AWM 2020) on keeping the institute Centre, Bhilai. We even supplied some of these face shields to the supervision of Dr. Souradyuti Paul with thesis title as "Cryptographic Primitives based on Reverse March 7, 2020 at Chennai for her contributions in the premises clean, sanitised them and got very encouraging results and feedback. Mr. Debi Prasad Decryption”. Dr. Kandele has become the first PhD field of Mathematics. and safe. Despite labour Newsletter Team: Our researchers also designed full face and issues during lockdown, they have done an degreeMoU recipient of the institute which is not only a upper torso protection gear with air ventilation but better matter of pride to him but also to the institute for Student Awards Dr. Asrifa Sultana receiving VIWA Award impeccable task of maintaining the hygiene at than N95 kind of protection. graduating the first PhD student within three years the institute. since start of the program. R P Singh Memorial Award Prof. Moona: One of our faculty members developed a nano Personal Protective particle-based anti-viral/anti-microbial coating on clothing. Sri Pramodh Rachuri received the first R P Singh Memorial award during the Republic Day Celebrations Gear developed in We also took time to design throat swabs which can be at IIT Bhilai. The awarded consists of a certificate and cash prize of Rs. 10,000. This award has been IIT Bhilai to fight manufactured using synthetic material such as silicon. We set up with generous donation by Mr. Akash Keshav, an alumnus of IIT Gandhinagar in the memory of COVID-19 worked with AIIMS Raipur to find out if these will be useful and his grandfather Late. Sh. Ram Parash Singh. The purpose of this scholarship is to encourage students still are continuously working with them. We also worked on PAN IIT alumni network on to demonstrate leadership skills and engage themselves actively in social welfare activities. defining COVID 19 test plans; machines for doing large scale testing and specifications GeetAmal Ghosh-Roy Award were drawn. These basically became part of grand challenges posed PAN IIT to handle COVID issues. Sri Pramodh receiving R P S Memorial Award Shashwat Jaiswal, a first-year student of Computer Science and Engineering received the Geetamal Ghosh-Roy Award for 2019 (Winter Semester). He is awarded with a certificate and Rs. 26,000 cash. Newsletter Team: Professor, we have seen some foot operated hand washing system in The award is sponsored by Dr. R Ghosh Roy in memory of his parents. our entrance. COVID-19 Visualiser by IIT Students Teaching in the Time of Corona Prof. Moona: You are right. We created that non-contact-based water and soap audience. Students with poor internet connection followed the later while by Dr. Dhiman Saha dispenser which mandated to be used for every visitor or person entering the campus. Saksham Bhushan and Debajyoti Halder, BTech the former was popular with students with access to a high-speed And this was completely done and designed by IIT Bhilai staff in the central workshop.