Monthly Coverage Dossier August 2018

Prepared by

IIT Madras is a campus of choice for high ranking JEE students

Date: 30th August 2018 Publication: Edition: //Pune/Bangalore/ Page No: 22 Journalist: Sreeradha Basu Professor: Prof Manu Santhanam Headline: Pre-placement offers at IITs set for record high this year URL: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/jobs/pre-placement-offers-at-iits-set-for-record-high-this- year/articleshow/65601308.cms

IIT Madras is a multi-cultural campus

Date: 4th August 2018 Publication: Times of Edition: Kochi Page No: 9 Journalist: Manash Gohain Professor: Prof. R. Nagarajan Headline: IITs to form collective front to recruit foreign faculty URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/iits-to-form-collective-front-to-recruit- foreign-faculty/articleshow/65250989.cms

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: Edition: Kolkata/Ahemdabad Page No: 11 Journalist: Manash Pratim Gohain Professor: Prof R Nagarajan Headline: IITs to form collective front to recruit foreign faculty URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/iits-to-form-collective-front-to-recruit- foreign-faculty/articleshow/65250989.cms

Date: 15th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India -Chennai Times Edition: Chennai Page No:10 Journalist: Ms Purnima Sah Students: Susanth Lavuya, Bhanu Mitra B,Anagh Sonam,A Venu Madhuri,Chandna Bhukya and Nikhil Bharadwaj Headline: Students and their idea of Independence

IIT Madras is an Industry Friendly Institute

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: Indian Web Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: J. Mitra in Collab with IIT-Madras Launches ‘iQuant’, India’s First Portable Diagnostics Solution Device URL: https://www.indianweb2.com/2018/07/31/j-mitra-in-collab-with-iit-madras-launches-iquant- -first-portable-diagnostics-solution-device/

J. Mitra in Collab with IIT-Madras Launches ‘iQuant’, India’s First Portable Diagnostics Solution Device

One of India’s oldest and leading research-based biotechnology company, J. Mitra & Co., in collaboration with IIT Madras’ HTIC (Healthcare Technology Innovation Centre), has launched India’s first portable diagnostic solution – the iQuant immunoassay analyzer in the Indian market.

The developed device, named iQuant, is designed to read multiple test kits, and reads the calibration information directly from the test kit without the need for a separate calibration chip. The product is meant for small to medium labs, and is hence designed in an aesthetic desktop form factor, with an intuitive touch screen display, battery back-up and capabilities for advanced data storage, syncing and transmission capabilities. iQuant provides 8 separate diagnostic tests for — TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone), T3 (Tri-iodo thyronine), T4 (Thyroxin), Vitamin D, Dengue NS1 Antigen, Dengue IgM, Dengue IgG and HbA1c test.

This portable, battery-powered device is a state-of-the-art Fluorescence Immunoassay Analyzer for quantitative and qualitative determination of blood test parameter. Beta-testing for the product had been going on for the past 8 months and has generated tremendous positive response and demand. With this launch, various highly-active and sought-after diagnostic solutions will be available across the country and in the remotest of locations at the fraction of a cost. J. Mitra is India’s leading IVD (in-vitro diagnostic) tests manufacturing company with exports to more than 45 countries across the globe. J. Mitra also holds the maximum number of patents (over 55 patents) in the IVD segment for its innovative and research-based solutions.

J. Mitra will be adding to the number of diagnostic solutions, which will be available as a software upgrade on the cloud. Speaking on the occasion, Jatin Mahajan, managing director, J Mitra said, “iQuant is an innovative mix – on the product side, it is a mix of science, IT, healthcare and research, while on the implementation side it is great combination of social conditions, ground realities coupled with business sense.” He further added, “This is an innovative, path-breaking product that will greatly influence the detection and diagnostic process, which will hasten the treatment and cure process – resulting in a healthier India, in line with government’s healthcare-for-all initiative.”

This is a home-grown innovative solution – a “completely Made-in-India” offering. While being the most cost-effective solution available in the market today, what sets it apart is the fact that it is completely portable. It can be carried with ease and has a self-sustaining power supply. It is thus quite suited for Indian conditions, especially for remote and electricity-dark areas.

Performing all these broad varieties of tests generally requires more than one instrument in any laboratory, however, with iQuant analyzer it is possible to perform all these tests on a single machine. The analyzer is equipped with state of the art fluorescence immunoassay technology and has unique features like use of high-end processors, inbuilt memory that stores up to 1-lac patients data, ergonomic design, 10-inches color display, Bluetooth for wireless printing, Wi-Fi connectivity for online support, iCloud facility for up gradation of software and training, 1-hour battery back-up in case of power failure and very easy portability owing to its light weight of approx. 2 kgs.

J. Mitra, which is India’s leading in-vitro diagnostics manufacturing company, is currently offering these Quanti range test kits to be performed on i-Quant analyze. These tests are high volume builders for the laboratories. This FIA technology of i-Quant offers the advantage of ease of use of rapid tests and sensitivities far better than other conventional test methods like ELISA. Each test cartridge is precision engineered and assembled through robotic technology. There are no lot specific calibrations required as each kit is embedded with lot specific data on QR codes present on each test cartridge. J. Mitra has launched these kits on advanced FIA (Fluorescence immunoassay) technology with accurate results and at very affordable prices.

It may be recalled that in June, Tata Trusts’ Foundation for Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship (FISE) with its incubatee startup, Voxelgrids, launched a high-tech portable Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner, a first ever in the country, designed to make MRI affordable and accessible for everyone.

Last year in July, launched – Sohum, a new hearing screening device meant especially for newborns and developed by School of International Biodesign (SIB) startup Sohum Innovation Labs .

In October 2016, Medi Tech Innovations, a healthcare IT start-up launched a ‘Solar Powered Health Care Screening Kits’ for the Indian armed forces and para-military. This specially designed kit helps keep a record of the vital information such as blood sugar level, blood pressure, heart rhythm of the people posted in remote locations.

Date: 1st August 2018

Publication: Times Now Edition: Online Professor: Prof Dileep N. Malkhede Journalist: NA Headline: AICTE recognises NPTEL online certification courses as Faculty Development Programmes URL: https://www.timesnownews.com/education/article/aicte-recognises-nptel-online-certification- courses-as-faculty-development-programmes/262303

AICTE recognises NPTEL online certification courses as Faculty Development Programmes

National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning, NPTEL online certification courses will be recognised by the All India Council for Technical Education, AICTE as Faculty Development Programmes under Career Advancement Scheme.

AICTE recognises NPTEL courses as FDPs; Image Credits: nptel.ac.in AICTE recognises NPTEL courses as FDPs; Image Credits: nptel.ac.in National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning, NPTEL and All India Council for Technical Education, AICTE have signed a Memorandum of Agreement. NPTEL online certification courses for faculty development programmes, FDPs for faculties of engineering colleges have been approved by the AICTE, under Career Advancement Scheme. A total of 141 courses are there for the period of July-December 2018.Professor Dileep N. Malkhede, AICTE’s Research, Institute and Faculty Development Advisor, highlighting the advantages of the initiative said, "Due to limited opportunities available for faculty to attend face-to-face, residential fulltime training programs, faculty promotions under CAS are adversely affected. The one-stop solution to overcome all such problems is to register for the NPTEL-offered online courses." Professor Dileep Malkhede further told NDTV, "These courses are latest and can be attended at lower pace from anywhere and still at par with conventional FDPs. Joint certification by AICTE-NPTEL makes it authentic and recognizes it for promotions under CAS. Faculty members should take benefit of these courses.NPTEL offers a wide range of programmes and the faculty can also take up courses in other disciplines. Courses in cutting-edge technology such as Block Chain Management, IoT, Deep Learning and Smart Cities would also be provided. Since these courses are online, they can be taken from anywhere in the country.Professor Andrew Thangaraj, NPTEL Co-ordinator, IIT Madras, in conversation with NDTV said, "We hope that this initiative will encourage more faculty members across the country to upgrade/refresh their knowledge more easily. This initiative where faculty completing NPTEL advanced courses being recognized by AICTE will be a great boost to the teaching community. We also hope that bodies such as the University Grants Commission, UGC will also approve the same for the teachers under colleges affiliated to them." NPTEL was established by seven IITs along with the IISc Bangalore in 2003. It is one of the largest Massive open online course providers in India today. The list of courses offered can be checked here.

Date: 1st August 2018

Publication: Web India 123 Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Andrew Thangaraj Headline: AICTE approves NPTEL courses for FDPs URL: https://career.webindia123.com/career/education-news-events/2018/aicte-approves-nptel- courses-for-fdps-30-07-2018.htm

AICTE approves NPTEL courses for FDPs

National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning, NPTEL online certification courses will be recognised by the All India Council for Technical Education, AICTE as Faculty Development Programmes under Career Advancement Scheme.

AICTE recognises NPTEL courses as FDPs; Image Credits: nptel.ac.in AICTE recognises NPTEL courses as FDPs; Image Credits: nptel.ac.in National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning, NPTEL and All India Council for Technical Education, AICTE have signed a Memorandum of Agreement. NPTEL online certification courses for faculty development programmes, FDPs for faculties of engineering colleges have been approved by the AICTE, under Career Advancement Scheme. A total of 141 courses are there for the period of July-December 2018.Professor Dileep N. Malkhede, AICTE’s Research, Institute and Faculty Development Advisor, highlighting the advantages of the initiative said, "Due to limited opportunities available for faculty to attend face-to-face, residential fulltime training programs, faculty promotions under CAS are adversely affected. The one-stop solution to overcome all such problems is to register for the NPTEL-offered online courses." Professor Dileep Malkhede further told NDTV, "These courses are latest and can be attended at lower pace from anywhere and still at par with conventional FDPs. Joint certification by AICTE-NPTEL makes it authentic and recognizes it for promotions under CAS. Faculty members should take benefit of these courses.NPTEL offers a wide range of programmes and the faculty can also take up courses in other disciplines. Courses in cutting-edge technology such as Block Chain Management, IoT, Deep Learning and Smart Cities would also be provided. Since these courses are online, they can be taken from anywhere in the country.Professor Andrew Thangaraj, NPTEL Co-ordinator, IIT Madras, in conversation with NDTV said, "We hope that this initiative will encourage more faculty members across the country to upgrade/refresh their knowledge more easily. This initiative where faculty completing NPTEL advanced courses being recognized by AICTE will be a great boost to the teaching community. We also hope that bodies such as the University Grants Commission, UGC will also approve the same for the teachers under colleges affiliated to them." NPTEL was established by seven IITs along with the IISc Bangalore in 2003. It is one of the largest Massive open online course providers in India today. The list of courses offered can be checked here.

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: Bio Spectrum Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: J.Mitra, IIT-M launch iQuant analyzer URL: https://www.biospectrumindia.com/news/60/11409/j-mitra-iit-m-launch-iquant-analyzer.html J.Mitra, IIT-M launch iQuant analyzer 02 August 2018 | News

The device is designed to read multiple test kits, and reads the calibration information directly from the test kit without the need for a separate calibration chip.

J. Mitra & Co., in collaboration with IIT Madras’ HTIC (Healthcare Technology Innovation Centre), has launched India’s first portable diagnostic solution – the iQuant immunoassay analyzer in the Indian market.

The device is designed to read multiple test kits, and reads the calibration information directly from the test kit without the need for a separate calibration chip. The product is meant for small to medium labs, and is hence designed in an aesthetic desktop form factor, with an intuitive touch screen display, battery back-up and capabilities for advanced data storage, syncing and transmission capabilities. iQuant provides 8 separate diagnostic tests for TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone), T3 (Tri-iodo thyronine), T4 (Thyroxin), Vitamin D, Dengue NS1 Antigen, Dengue IgM, Dengue IgG and HbA1c test.

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Indumathi M Nambi Headline: IIT Madras’ Carbon Zero Challenge invites applications URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2018/aug/05/iit-madras-carbon-zero- challenge-invites-applications-1853522.html

IIT Madras’ Carbon Zero Challenge invites applications

The objective of this initiative is to recognise and nurture original solutions and enable them to reach a stage of market scalability.

CHENNAI: The second edition of Carbon Zero Challenge (CZeroC), a pioneering initiative by Indian Institute of Technology - Madras, aimed at encouraging environmental entrepreneurs, has opened applications this year. Application deadline is August 15, for interested candidates.The event will be hosted in collaboration with Virtusa and Shaastra 2019, Industrial Waste Management Association (IWMA) and YouNoodle.

The objective of this initiative is to recognise and nurture original solutions and enable them to reach a stage of market scalability. Through their efforts, the partners aspire to foster a sustainable ecosystem wherein renewable energy and clean technology ideas can emerge and develop into long-term solutions. CZeroC 2019 was launched at IIT-Madras on June 5 to commemorate World Environment Day 2018.

The thematic areas of the challenge are agriculture, industries, transportation systems, urban areas and cities, and water and waste management. The grand challenge posed to the competing teams was to develop a grid free or alternative system which is economically viable, socially acceptable, environment- friendly, and easily replicable in multiple areas. The challenge is to understand energy needs of these sectors and develop a sustainable green energy alternative by the combination of one or more renewable energy sources.

Speaking on the importance of the challenge, Indumathi M Nambi of Environmental and Water Resources Engineering Division, Civil Engineering Department, IIT-Madras, said,”We have traditionally imported technology for environmental protection that have not been India- centric, which often results in failure or not being cost effective. There is a need to develop affordable indigenous technology which requires less energy and chemicals and produces less waste and more recoverable material.” Details:http://czeroc.com

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: News Barons Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: iQuant – India’s First Portable Diagnostics Solution URL: https://www.newsbarons.com/it-ites/iquant-indias-first-portable-diagnostics-solution/

J. Mitra has launched India’s first portable diagnostic solution – the iQuant immunoassay analyzer in the Indian market.

In Collaboration with IIT Madras

To transform India’s healthcare scenario by providing cost-effective diagnostic solutions in remote locations and limited-resources settings

8 Diagnostics Test – Dengue NS1, Dengue IgM, Dengue IgG, HbA1c, TSH, T3, T4, Vitamin D with other tests to be added in a phased manner

Launched in collaboration with IIT Madras’ HTIC (Healthcare Technology Innovation Centre), this portable is a state-of-the-art Fluorescence Immunoassay Analyzer for quantitative and qualitative determination of blood test parameter – that includes TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone), T3 (Tri-iodo thyronine), T4 (Thyroxin), Vitamin D, Dengue NS1 Antigen, Dengue IgM, Dengue IgG and HbA1c test. Beta-testing for the product had been going on for the past 8 months and has generated tremendous positive response and demand. With this launch, various highly-active and sought-after diagnostic solutions will be available across the country and in the remotest of locations at the fraction of a cost.

J. Mitra is India’s leading IVD (in-vitro diagnostic) tests manufacturing company with exports to more than 45 countries across the globe. J. Mitra also holds the maximum number of patents (over 55 patents) in the IVD segment for its innovative and research-based solutions.

8 Separate diagnostic tests

Works on battery power

Portable. Can reach patients

Carry in a bag for non-road locations

Trained technician Not required

Results within 10–30 mins

Economical solution

Ideal for low-resource setting J. Mitra will be adding to the number of diagnostic solutions, which will be available as a software upgrade on the cloud. Speaking on the occasion, Jatin Mahajan, managing director, J Mitra said, “iQuant is an innovative mix – on the product side, it is a mix of science, IT, healthcare and research, while on the implementation side it is great combination of social conditions, ground realities coupled with business sense.” He further added, “This is an innovative, path-breaking product that will greatly influence the detection and diagnostic process, which will hasten the treatment and cure process – resulting in a healthier India, in line with government’s healthcare-for-all initiative.”

This is a home-grown innovative solution – a “completely Made-in-India” offering. While being the most cost-effective solution available in the market today, what sets it apart is the fact that it is completely portable. It can be carried with ease and has a self-sustaining power supply. It is thus quite suited for Indian conditions, especially for remote and electricity-dark areas.

Performing all these broad varieties of tests generally requires more than one instrument in any laboratory, however, with iQuant analyzer it is possible to perform all these tests on a single machine. The analyzer is equipped with state of the art fluorescence immunoassay technology and has unique features like use of high-end processors, inbuilt memory that stores up to 1-lac patients data, ergonomic design, 10-inches color display, Bluetooth for wireless printing, Wi-Fi connectivity for online support, iCloud facility for up gradation of software and training, 1-hour battery back-up in case of power failure and very easy portability owing to its light weight of approx. 2 kgs.

J. Mitra is currently offering these Quanti range test kits to be performed on i-Quant analyze. These tests are high volume builders for the laboratories. This FIA technology of i-Quant offers the advantage of ease of use of rapid tests and sensitivities far better than other conventional test methods like ELISA. Each test cartridge is precision engineered and assembled through robotic technology. There are no lot specific calibrations required as each kit is embedded with lot specific data on QR codes present on each test cartridge. J. Mitra has launched these kits on advanced FIA (Fluorescence immunoassay) technology with accurate results and at very affordable prices.

Date: 6th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Chennai Page No: 4 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Indumathi M Nambi Headline: IIT Madras’ Carbon Zero Challenge invites applications URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2018/aug/05/iit-madras-carbon-zero- challenge-invites-applications-1853522.html

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Deccan chronicle Edition: Chennai Page No: 21 Journalist: NA Headline: Are you ready for the Carbon Zero challenge

Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 9 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT-M to double funded research to Rs 500 crore

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: India Education Diary Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ravindra Gettu and Prof. L Prakash Sai Headline: IIT Madras aims to re-define management education for the digital era URL: http://indiaeducationdiary.in/iit-madras-aims-re-define-management-education-digital-era/

IIT Madras aims to re-define management education for the digital era

Chennai: Indian Institute of Technology Madras is working to re-define Management Education to meet the challenges of the digital era. The Department of Management Studies (DOMS), IIT Madras, hosted a Business Conclave today, 10th August 2018, in collaboration with some of the top multinational companies in the world.

The disruptions occurring in the digital era are bringing about a paradigm shift in workplaces, and hence management education needs to be re-engineered to meet the challenges. This Conclave was conceived in this context to think through on how industry and academia can get together to co-create and redefine management education in the digital era.

Delivering the keynote Address of the Conclave, Mr. Pradeep Shilige, Executive Vice President – Digital Systems and Technology, Cognizant Technology Solutions, said, “In 2007, out of the top 10 largest companies by market capitalization, only One was a tech company. In 2012, three tech companies came in the list and in 2017, seven companies made their place in this list. AI and automation will not destroy jobs but will change the nature of jobs and many new jobs would be created.”

He also spoke about what was enabling a large scale disruption, namely:

1. Virtualization- At production and conception point

2. Platform provided by internet- We don’t need a physical platform for starting a new business

3. Change in mind set of millennial generation

The last few years have witnessed sweeping changes in business environments. Advances in, and adoption of, technology has resulted in a significant shift of business operations towards the digital space. This has important implications for a wide range of models and functions–shared economy, cloud computing, digital marketing, and data science to name a few. In this context, it is hyper-relevant that management education undergoes commensurate changes. This conclave seeks to be a step towards the effective realization of such a change.

Prof Ravindra Gettu, Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), IIT Madras, talked about the importance of management in every aspect of life

Speaking about the importance of this Conclave, Prof. L Prakash Sai, Head, Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras, said, “Business Schools around the world are facing existential crisis owing to cataclysmic forces, ranging from digitalization to disruption, invading industries and institutions. While the new millennial workforce wishes to pursue boundary less and protean careers, institutions imparting management education need to re-examine the curricula and reinvent their own business models.”

Further, Prof. L Prakash Sai said, “It is in this context, Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras is bringing academic and industry together to deliberate on emerging business imperatives and technological trends – be it Internet of Things, cloud computing, machine learning or predictive analytics that have a bearing on management thought and practice”

A panel discussion on ‘Shared Clarity: Future ready deployable talent in the digital era’ was moderated by Prof G. Arun Kumar, Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras. The panellists include Mr. Srinivas Ananthanarayanan, Head Human Resources, Saint Gobain Research India, Mr. Sudipto Mukherjee, MD & Head – Global Finance Services, Standard Chartered, Dr. Abhijit Phadnis, Director, Giltedge Financial Counsel Pvt. Ltd., and Dr. Anil Maddulapalli, Director, Customer & Credit Analytics, Ford Motor Company.

Some of the important points highlighted in this session include putting emphasis on business knowledge and business decision making and making courses more experiential, co-creating course content with corporations to ensure that learning is more application based.

Another panel discussion on the topic ‘Dilemma in the Digital Era: Re-engineer, Disrupt and Create’ was moderated by Prof R. P. Sundarraj, DoMS, IIT Madras. The Panelists include Mr. Varun Prakash, Engagement Manager, McKinsey Consulting, Mr. Santhanakrishnan, Vice President – Analytics Consulting, Tiger Analytics, and Mr. Venkat Paruchuri, Head of Information Security, Standard Chartered Bank.

Some of the companies that take part include Amazon, McKinsey, Saint Gobain, Ford, Cognizant, Flipkart and Wipro.

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: The Hans India Edition: Delhi/Hyderabad Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT-Madras to re-define management education for the digital era URL: http://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/Young-Hans/2018-08-11/IIT-Madras-to-re-define- management-education-for-the-digital-era/404939/

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: ÏÏT-M to re-defme managemet studies in digital era

Date: 15th August 2018 Publication: The Hans India Edition: Delhi/ Hyderabad Page No: 13 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof B Ravindran and Prof Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT-M signs MoU with North-Western University URL: http://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/Young-Hans/2018-08-15/IIT-M-signs-MoU-with-North- Western-University/405662

Date: 15th August 2018 Publication: News wave Edition: Online Journalist: Arvind Gupta Professor: Prof B Ravindran and Prof Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT Madras to collaborate with Northwestern University for research in Data Science URL: http://newswave.co.in/iit-madras-collaborate-with-northwestern-university.html

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: UNI Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof B Ravindran and Prof Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT Madras inks pact with Northwestern varsity in US URL: http://www.uniindia.com/iit-madras-inks-pact-with-northwestern-varsity-in- us/states/news/1319766.html

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: The Economic Times Edition: Online Journalist: Sreeradha Basu, Professor: Professor: Prof B Ravindran and Prof Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT Madras to collaborate with Northwestern University for research in data science URL: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/education/iit-madras-to-collaborate- with-northwestern-university-for-research-in-data-science/articleshow/65400545.cms

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 10 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof B Ravindran and Prof Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT-M and US univ collaborate for research URL: https://www.dtnext.in/News/City/2018/08/15025224/1084290/IIT-Madras-and-US-University- collaborate-for-research.vpf

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Chennai Page No: 3 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT-M to collaborate with Northwestern Univ

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: Web India 123 Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof B Ravindran and Prof Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT-Madras inks pact with Northwestern varsity in US URL: https://news.webindia123.com/news/Articles/India/20180814/3412040.html

IIT-Madras inks pact with Northwestern varsity in US

The Indian Institute of Technology-Madras on Tuesday tied up with Northwestern University, US, for carrying out broad-based research collaboration in data science, web science, network science and computational social science.

The Institutes signed the MoU to launch a joint project on the development of features for three web- based software platforms that focus on network-based approaches to facilitate team assembly and processes. Prof Ravindra Gettu, Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), IIT-Madras, and Dr Jonathan Holloway, Provost, Northwestern University signed the MoU on behalf of their respective Institutions.

Speaking about the importance of this collaboration, Prof B Ravindran, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, IIT-Madras, said, "the SONIC research group at Northwestern University is a world leader in the field of network science.''This MoU would allow IIT-Madras to collaborate closely and work on problems that would have a global impact, he said.

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: India Education Diary Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof B Ravindran and Prof Ravindra Gettu Headline: #IITMadras to collaborate with #NorthwesternUniversity for research in Data Science URL: http://indiaeducationdiary.in/iitmadras-collaborate-northwesternuniversity-research-data- science/

#IITMadras to collaborate with #NorthwesternUniversity for research in Data Science

Chennai: Indian Institute of Technology Madras has tied up with Northwestern University, U.S., for carrying out broad-based research collaboration in data science, web science, network science and computational social science.

The Institutes signed an MoU recently to launch a joint project on the development of features for three web-based software platforms that focus on network-based approaches to facilitate team assembly and processes. Prof. Ravindra Gettu, Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), IIT Madras, and Dr. Jonathan Holloway, Provost, Northwestern University, U.S., signed the MoU on behalf of their respective Institutions.

Speaking about the importance of this collaboration, Prof. B. Ravindran, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, IIT Madras, and one of the principal collaborators in this project, said, “The SONIC research group at Northwestern University is a world leader in the field of network science. This MoU will allow us to collaborate closely and work on problems that will have a global impact”

Further, Prof Ravindran added, “The Robert Bosch Centre for Data Science and AI at IIT Madras has a significant expertise in the area of network science and this collaboration is the first of our initiatives to reach out to international partners with similar interests”

The first project under this collaboration is a web-based platform called “My Dream Team” that focuses on assembling people with harmonizing skillsets together. Concretely, these platforms take advantage of the survey and the digital trace data generated through sources like enterprise social media platforms to help recommend potential teammates to an individual or make managerial decisions using features rooted in the theories of network science and machine learning.

The principal collaborators on this project are: Prof. B. Ravindran, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, IIT Madras, and Head, Robert Bosch Center for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, IIT Madras; and IIT Madras Distinguished Alumnus Prof. Noshir Contractor, Jane S. and William J. White Professor of Behavioural Sciences and Director of the Science of Networks in Communities (SONIC) Research Group at Northwestern University.

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 4 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT-M ties up with US univ for research

Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: Digital Learning Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Prof B Ravindran Headline: IIT Madras partners Northwestern University for research in data science URL: http://digitallearning.eletsonline.com/2018/08/iit-madras-partners-northwestern-university-for- research-in-data-science/

IIT Madras partners Northwestern University for research in data science Views: 933

IIT Madras has partnered with Northwestern University, US, for carrying out researches in data science, web science, network science and computational social science.

The two institutes have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) recently to launch a joint project on the development of features for three web-based software platforms that focus on network- based approaches to facilitate team assembly and processes.

Explaining about the importance of collaboration, Prof B Ravindran, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, IIT Madras, said, “The SONIC research group at Northwestern University is a world leader in the field of network science. This MoU will allow us to collaborate closely and work on problems that will have a global impact”

“The Robert Bosch Centre for Data Science and AI at IIT Madras has a significant expertise in the area of network science and this collaboration is the first of our initiatives to reach out to international partners with similar interests,” Prof Ravindran added.

“My Dream Team” will be the first project under this collaboration which is a web-based called that focuses on assembling people with harmonising skillsets together. These platforms are likely to take advantage of survey and digital trace data generated through sources like enterprise social media platforms. The data generated through these platforms will help recommending potential teammates to an individual or make managerial decisions through network science and machine learning. Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT-M starts campaign for school students

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras inaugurates newproect

Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT-M students to organise entrepreneurship training URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/iit-m-students-to-organise- entrepreneurship-training/article24797542.ece

IIT-M students to organise entrepreneurship training

The ‘E21’ campaign will involve around 150 school students Students of the Indian Institute of Technology - Madras launched a campaign ‘E21’ to prepare school students for the challenges of the 21st century.

Around 150 students from the city’s government and private schools will participate in the year-long workshop-cum-lecture series that will focus on enhancing skills such as innovation, creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership and risk-taking.

Out of the box

Rohan Nair, a 13-year-old entrepreneur founder of startup ‘Sprinklebytes,’ said his biggest inspiration was a critic who told him that he had strayed off-course.

“I firmly believe that by straying off the regular path I can possibly create a new path for young innovative minds to follow,” he said.

Raghavendra Hunasgi, Global Shaper, World Economic Forum (WEF) and Founder and CEO of ThoughtFolks Digital, termed it an apt platform for students.

The institute’s faculty advisor for e-cell, Ashwin Mahalingam, hoped the students’ entrepreneurial zeal and academic excellence can be passed on to school students.

Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: NDTV Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras Students Launch Initiative To Promote Entrepreneurship Skills In Schools URL: https://www.ndtv.com/education/iit-madras-students-launch-initiative-to-promote- entrepreneurship-skills-in-schools-1907069 IIT Madras Students Launch Initiative To Promote Entrepreneurship Skills In Schools Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras students are launching a year-long education initiative focussed on preparing Government and Private school students for the challenges of 21st century. IIT Madras Students Launch Initiative To Promote Entrepreneurship Skills In Schools

CHENNAI: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras students are launching a year-long education initiative focussed on preparing Government and Private school students for the challenges of 21st century. The Institutes' Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell) today launched the 'E21' campaign to focus on skills such as innovation, creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership and risk-taking among 150 students from various schools in Chennai. The E-Cell has taken up this initiative to provide students with the skills to handle challenges of the 21st Century. Educators from different sectors will celebrate examples of successful 21st-century learning and illustrate how entrepreneurship empowers all learners to gain the skills they need.

Through different workshops cum lectures series, educators will teach students about how to think creatively and make innovations happen. Further, these students will also get mentored by students of IIT Madras in various aspects of life. This new resource will support schools in making meaningful and sustainable improvements in education quality and help students to obtain a competitive advantage vis a vis their peers.

Launching the initiative, Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi, Global Shaper, World Economic Forum (WEF), and Founder and CEO, ThoughtFolks Digital, said, "this was an apt platform and event hosted by the e-cell at IIT Madras covered the most crucial aspects. It's high time we reconsider our style of education and tailor the courses that will create entrepreneurs and innovators."

A Harvard Business School Alumni, Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi further added, "The curriculum build a decade ago will no longer hold any relevance unless we couple it with new age technology courses and frameworks."

Giving a pep talk and a demonstration on the occasion was Mr. Rohan Nair, a 13-year-old entrepreneur who has founded a startup called 'Sprinklebytes.'

Rohan, at a very tender age, was mentored by India's national Tennis coach who helped him in working with real world. Motivated, he decided to help other students by connecting them with mentors in their respective fields.

Interacting with students during the program, Rohan said, "I have drawn my biggest inspiration from a critic who told me that I have strayed off course. I firmly believe that in straying off the regular path I can possibly create a new path for young innovative minds to follow."

Speaking about the importance of this initiative, Prof Ashwin Mahalingam, Faculty Advisor, E-Cell, IIT Madras, said, ""This is a fantastic initiative. I am particularly happy that IIT-M's students are taking the lead on this and I hope that their entrepreneurial zeal and academic excellence can be passed on to students from schools across the country."

Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: India Education Diary Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras students launch initiative to prep school students for 21st Century Challenges URL: http://indiaeducationdiary.in/iit-madras-students-launch-initiative-prep-school-students-21st- century-challenges/

IIT Madras Students Launch Initiative To Promote Entrepreneurship Skills In Schools

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras students are launching a year-long education initiative focussed on preparing Government and Private school students for the challenges of 21st century. Education | NDTV Education Team | Updated: August 27, 2018 21:40 IST by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Our Country's Pride: Female Athletes (IndusInd Bank) IIT Madras Students Launch Initiative To Promote Entrepreneurship Skills In Schools

CHENNAI: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras students are launching a year-long education initiative focussed on preparing Government and Private school students for the challenges of 21st century. The Institutes' Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell) today launched the 'E21' campaign to focus on skills such as innovation, creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership and risk-taking among 150 students from various schools in Chennai. The E-Cell has taken up this initiative to provide students with the skills to handle challenges of the 21st Century. Educators from different sectors will celebrate examples of successful 21st-century learning and illustrate how entrepreneurship empowers all learners to gain the skills they need.

Through different workshops cum lectures series, educators will teach students about how to think creatively and make innovations happen. Further, these students will also get mentored by students of IIT Madras in various aspects of life. This new resource will support schools in making meaningful and sustainable improvements in education quality and help students to obtain a competitive advantage vis a vis their peers.

Launching the initiative, Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi, Global Shaper, World Economic Forum (WEF), and Founder and CEO, ThoughtFolks Digital, said, "this was an apt platform and event hosted by the e-cell at IIT Madras covered the most crucial aspects. It's high time we reconsider our style of education and tailor the courses that will create entrepreneurs and innovators."

A Harvard Business School Alumni, Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi further added, "The curriculum build a decade ago will no longer hold any relevance unless we couple it with new age technology courses and frameworks."

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Giving a pep talk and a demonstration on the occasion was Mr. Rohan Nair, a 13-year-old entrepreneur who has founded a startup called 'Sprinklebytes.'

Rohan, at a very tender age, was mentored by India's national Tennis coach who helped him in working with real world. Motivated, he decided to help other students by connecting them with mentors in their respective fields.

Interacting with students during the program, Rohan said, "I have drawn my biggest inspiration from a critic who told me that I have strayed off course. I firmly believe that in straying off the regular path I can possibly create a new path for young innovative minds to follow."

COMMENT Speaking about the importance of this initiative, Prof Ashwin Mahalingam, Faculty Advisor, E-Cell, IIT Madras, said, ""This is a fantastic initiative. I am particularly happy that IIT-M's students are taking the lead on this and I hope that their entrepreneurial zeal and academic excellence can be passed on to students from schools across the country."

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Edition: Chennai Page No: 11 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT Madras-Department of Management studies hosts a conclave Reengineering Management education

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Financial Express Edition: Delhi / Mumbai / Pune / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Chennai / Kolkata / Kochi / Ahmedabad / Chandigarh/Lucknow Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: Continental IIT-M sign deal for powertrain sols URL: https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/technology/technology-major-continental- corporation-ties-up-with-iit-madras-for-high-performance-computing/1295306/

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: NDTV Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT Madras, Continental Tie Up For Joint Research In Technology Solutions URL: https://www.ndtv.com/education/iit-madras-continental-tie-up-for-joint-research-in-technology- solutions-1907509

IIT Madras, Continental Tie Up For Joint Research In Technology Solutions

The technology company Continental and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for joint research in and high computing platform and cybersecurity for powertrain applications. Education | NDTV Education Team | Updated: August 28, 2018 16:27 IST by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored His operation date is due & we're broke. Please help us. () Our Country's Pride: Female Athletes (IndusInd Bank) IIT Madras, Continental Tie Up For Joint Research In Technology Solutions Prof Ravindra Gettu, IIT Madras exchanges the MoU with Mr. Soorajith Radhakrishnan of Continental

CHENNAI/BANGALORE: The technology company Continental and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for joint research in and high computing platform and cybersecurity for powertrain applications. The joint research addresses an industry white spot - cyber security for conventional drivetrains. The research will focus on intrusion detection and reporting on powertrain applications, said a statement from IIT Madras. Fast-paced evolution of mobility technologies demands higher computational power. Specifically for India, with the impending BS VI implementation, electronics content is on the rise, making higher computational power imperative. With high computing platforms, car manufactures will be able to maintain ability to compete on various innovative functions and enlarged flexibility on software development. Together with IIT Madras, according to the statement from the institute, Continental will conduct research on technologies that involve time deterministic behavior on powertrain controllers and its applications.

"Vehicles of tomorrow are computers on wheels, opening up areas of research hitherto unaddressed. Continental is implementing a sustainable growth strategy with a high level of investment in R&D and in capacities for future technologies. India is an important market and R&D location for Continental, and we will drive innovation from India," Soorajith Radhakrishan, who heads Continental's Powertrain business in India, said.

"For Continental, cyber security is at the heart of the development of products and services. We have a proactive approach that considers cyber security right from day one in product development, so that potential security loopholes do not arise. Cyber security for powertrains is still at its infancy for the industry, and as a technology company that focuses on mobility of tomorrow, this topic is important to address right now," he added.

"Our research team from IIT Madras involved in this project has made several research contributions in the inter-disciplinary area of Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS), specifically in the design of fault-tolerant, secure, and reliable systems. This project with Continental is an excellent opportunity to innovate further, focusing on the powertrain of a modern car - an area in which Continental brings industry- leading expertise," Pratyush K Panda, Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering, IIT Madras, said.

"Together we are looking forward to attack two interesting and timely problems: (A) how do we achieve high performance with reliable timing guarantees on the powertrain, and (B) how do we automatically detect and flag intrusions on to the powertrain software," he added.

Continental's MoU with IIT Madras earlier this year was for advanced research in machine learning and bio-inspired neural networks for Continental's ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business. The technology company had recently announced investments in the country, on a high three-digit crore rupees level within the next two years in India, and a plan to increase headcount to 10,000 in the same period.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 3 Journalist: Nandini Sen Gupta Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT signs MoU with firm for study on computing URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/iit-madras-signs-mou-with- continental-for-joint-research/articleshow/65580765.cms

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Dt Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT-M to conduct research for new-gen vehicles

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: India Finance News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains URL: https://www.indiafinancenews.com/continental-iit-m-to-find-cyber-security-solutions-for-vehicle- powertrains/

Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains

Continental, a leading global automotive supplier, and Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) have signed an agreement for joint research in high computing platform and cyber security for powertrain applications.

The company’s joint research with IITM addresses an industry white spot — cyber security for conventional drivetrains. The research will focus on intrusion detection and reporting on powertrain applications, according to a statement.

‘Mobile devices’

With vehicles becoming ‘mobile devices’ with permanent and seamless connectivity, the rate of risks and security becomes higher, an area of concern for vehicle manufacturers. Continental takes into account security from the beginning of component development, addressing the design of the product and its architecture, and the way it is developed.

Drive trains are no longer all-mechanical systems. Specifically for India, with the impending BS VI implementation, the electronics content is on the rise, making higher computational power imperative. With high computing platforms, car manufacturers will be able to maintain the ability to compete on various innovative functions and enlarged flexibility on software development.

Together with IIT Madras, Continental will conduct research on technologies that involve time deterministic behaviour on powertrain controllers and its applications.

“Cyber security for powertrains is still at its infancy for the industry, and as a technology company that focusses on mobility of tomorrow, this topic is important to address right now,” said Soorajith Radhakrishan, who heads Continental’s Powertrain business in India.

Second MoU

“This is our second MoU for joint research with Continental this year. Our respective areas of expertise are complementary, and I am confident of the results.” said Ravindra Gettu, Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), IITM.

Continental’s MoU with IIT Madras earlier this year was for advanced research in machine learning and bio-inspired neural networks for Continental’s ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Dt Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: Schoolkids to be prepared for 21st century challenges

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Jagran Josh Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ashwin Mahalingam Headline: IIT Madras students launched E21 campaign to promote entrepreneurship skills in schools URL: https://www.jagranjosh.com/news/iit-madras-students-launched-e21-campaign-to-promote- entrepreneurship-skills-in-schools-146584

IIT Madras students launched E21 campaign to promote entrepreneurship skills in schools

The Entrepreneur Cell (E-Cell) of the Indian Institute Technology (IIT) Madras has launched the 'E21' campaign to focus on skills such as innovation, creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership, and risk-taking among 150 students from various schools in Chennai. The main motive behind launching the initiative is to provide students with the skills to handle the challenges of the 21st Century. This year-long initiative was launched by Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras students and focusing on preparing Government and Private school students for the challenges of 21st century.

Educators from different sectors will celebrate examples of successful 21st-century learning and illustrate how entrepreneurship empowers all learners to gain the skills they need. During the workshops cum lecture series, educators will teach students about how to think creatively and make innovations happen. Raghavendra Hunasgi, Global Shaper, World Economic Forum (WEF), and Founder and CEO, ThoughtFolks Digital, during the launch of the initiative said, "this was an apt platform and event hosted by the e-cell at IIT Madras covered the most crucial aspects. It's high time we reconsider our style of education and tailor the courses that will create entrepreneurs and innovators."

Raghavendra, who is a Harvard Business School Alumni further added, “the curriculum build a decade ago will no longer hold any relevance unless we couple it with new age technology courses and frameworks."

It is believed that The Entrepreneur Cell (E-Cell) will further support the schools in making meaningful and sustainable improvements in education quality and help students to obtain a competitive advantage vis a vis their peers. Speaking about the importance of this initiative, Prof Ashwin Mahalingam, Faculty Advisor, E-Cell, IIT Madras, said, " This is a fantastic initiative. I am particularly happy that IIT-M's students are taking the lead on this and I hope that their entrepreneurial zeal and academic excellence can be passed on to students from schools across the country."

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Elets Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ashwin Mahalingam Headline: Now, entrepreneurs from school as well, IIT Madras launches initiative URL: http://digitallearning.eletsonline.com/2018/08/now-entrepreneurs-from-school-as-well-iit- madras-launches-initiative/

Now, entrepreneurs from school as well, IIT Madras launches initiative Views: 535

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has launched a year-long educational initiative to prepare students of government and private school for 21st century challenges.

“E21 Campaign” launched by the institute’s Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell) on Monday will focus on nurturing skills such as innovation, creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership and risk-taking among 150 students from various schools in Chennai.

Under the initiative, Educators from different sectors will illustrate learners how entrepreneurship empowers to gain the skills they need.

With the help of workshops cum lectures series, educators will teach students to think creatively and make innovations happen. The students enrolled for the campaign will also be mentored by students of IIT Madras in various aspects of life. The initiative is likely to support schools in making meaningful and sustainable improvements in education quality.

Launching the initiative, Raghavendra Hunasgi, Global Shaper, World Economic Forum (WEF), and Founder & CEO, ThoughtFolks Digital, said, “This was an apt platform and event hosted by the e-cell at IIT Madras covered the most crucial aspects. It’s high time we reconsider our style of education and tailor the courses that will create entrepreneurs and innovators.”

“The curriculum build a decade ago will no longer hold any relevance unless we couple it with new age technology courses and frameworks,” Hunasgi further added.

Explaining the importance of this initiative, Prof Ashwin Mahalingam, Faculty Advisor, E-Cell, IIT Madras, said, “This is a fantastic initiative. I am particularly happy that IIT-M’s students are taking the lead on this and I hope that their entrepreneurial zeal and academic excellence can be passed on to students from schools across the country.”

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: India Education Diary Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ashwin Mahalingam Headline: IIT Madras students launch initiative to prep school students for 21st Century Challenges URL: http://indiaeducationdiary.in/iit-madras-students-launch-initiative-prep-school-students-21st- century-challenges/

IIT Madras students launch initiative to prep school students for 21st Century Challenges

Chennai: Indian Institute of Technology Madras students are launching a year-long initiative education initiative focussed on preparing Government and Private school students for the challenges of 21st century.

The Institutes’ Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell) today (Monday, 27th August 2018) launched the ‘E21’ campaign to focus on skills such as innovation, creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership and risk-taking among 150 students from various schools in Chennai.

Giving a pep talk and a demonstration on the occasion was Mr. Rohan Nair, a 13-year-old entrepreneur who has founded a startup called ‘Sprinklebytes.’

Launching the initiative, Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi, Global Shaper, World Economic Forum (WEF), and Founder and CEO, ThoughtFolks Digital, said, “this was an apt platform and event hosted by the e-cell at IIT Madras covered the most crucial aspects. It’s high time we reconsider our style of education and tailor the courses that will create entrepreneurs and innovators.”

A Harvard Business School Alumni, Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi further added, “The curriculum build a decade ago will no longer hold any relevance unless we couple it with new age technology courses and frameworks.”

Mr. Rohan, at a very tender age, was mentored by India’s national Tennis coach who helped him in working with real world. Motivated, he decided to help other students by connecting them with mentors in their respective fields.

Interacting with students during the program, Mr. Rohan said, “I have drawn my biggest inspiration from a critic who told me that I have strayed off course. I firmly believe that in straying off the regular path I can possibly create a new path for young innovative minds to follow.”

The E-Cell has taken up this initiative to provide students with the skills to handle challenges of the 21st Century. Educators from different sectors will celebrate examples of successful 21st-century learning and illustrate how entrepreneurship empowers all learners to gain the skills they need. Speaking about the importance of this initiative, Prof Ashwin Mahalingam, Faculty Advisor, E-Cell, IIT Madras, said, “”This is a fantastic initiative. I am particularly happy that IIT-M’s students are taking the lead on this and I hope that their entrepreneurial zeal and academic excellence can be passed on to students from schools across the country.”

Through different workshops cum lectures series, educators will teach students about how to think creatively and make innovations happen. Further, these students will also get mentored by students of IIT Madras in various aspects of life. This new resource will support schools in making meaningful and sustainable improvements in education quality and help students to obtain a competitive advantage vis a vis their peers.

The E-Cell also hosted the five mentors of Mr. Rohan virtually over Skype calls to help IIT Madras students make informed career choices. The mentors include Mr. Brian Willman, Programme Director, London Business School, Mr. Nikhil Arora, Managing Director and Vice President, GoDaddy.com, Mr. Vipul Saini, Head – Partnerships, National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), Dr. G. Padmanabham, former Director, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), and Mr. Ori Sobovitz, Head, Government Relations and Israeli partnerships, OurCrowd.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: College Dekho Edition: Online Journalist: Abha Lalwani Professor: Prof Ashwin Mahalingam Headline: IIT Madras Plans to Promote Entrepreneurship Skills among School Students URL: https://www.collegedekho.com/news/iit-madras-promote-entrepreneurship-skills-school- students-14691/

IIT Madras Plans to Promote Entrepreneurship Skills among School Students

IIT Madras Plans to Promote Entrepreneurship Skills among School Students IIT Madras students have launched a one-year education-centric course for students of private as well as government schools of Chennai. The project is titled E-21 and focusses on imparting skills to students to enable them to face the challenges of the 21st century.

Indian Institute of Technology Madras is planning to launch a one-year education program titled 'E-21' for the government and private school students in order to prepare them to take up the challenges that are in store for the 21st century.

IIT Madras' entrepreneurship cell (E-cell) has launched the campaign with an objective to focus on skills and qualities like innovation, creativity, leadership, entrepreneurship & risk-taking. The institute plans to shortlist or select a total of 150 students from different schools across Chennai.

The campaign will train students in such a way that they are able to tackle the challenges of the 21st century. The participating educators will share different examples and tips and illustrate how entrepreneurship empowers the students to gain the needed skills.

Educators will enable students to think out-of-the-box and creatively through a series of workshop cum lectures. Apart from the teachers, the students will also e mentored by the students of IIT Madras about the various aspects of life. This new campaign will help the different schools in improving their education quality and help students to obtain a competitive advantage.

Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi, Global Shaper, World Economic Forum (WEF) & Founder and CEO, Thought Folks Digital, while launching the event said that it is a great platform and initiative hosted by the E-cell at IIT Madras. He added that it is about time that the education system considers courses that will create future entrepreneurs and innovators.

Further elaborating on the same, Harvard Business School Alumni, Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi said that the education course which started a decade ago makes no sense until and unless the course is changed and updated according to the 21st century.

Also Read: IIT Madras Collaborates with Northwestern University

Mr. Rohan Nair, a 13-year-old boy, founder of a startup called “Sprinklebytes” was giving a pep talk and demonstration on the occasion.

Rohan, at a very young age, was mentored by the Indian National Tennis coach who taught him how to work in the real world which motivated him to help other students by connecting them to mentors of their field of interest.

Also Read: This 21-YO IIT Madras Student is Using Peer Learning Methods

Prof Ashwin Mahalingam, Faculty Advisor, E-Cell, IIT Madras, while talking about the initiative said that he is delighted by this initiative taken up by IIT Madras and he hopes that the students' entrepreneurial zeal and academic excellence can be passed to the schools across the country.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT-M signs MoU URL: https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/technology/technology-major-continental- corporation-ties-up-with-iit-madras-for-high-performance-computing/1295306/

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 3 Journalist: Nandini Sen Gupta Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: IIT signs MoU with firm for study on computing URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/iit-madras-signs-mou-with- continental-for-joint-research/articleshow/65580765.cms

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Dinamani Edition: Chennai Page no.: 3 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT-Madras signs MoU with Continental for joint research

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Delhi / Mumbai / Pune / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Chennai / Kolkata / Kochi / Ahmedabad Page no.: 17 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/continental-iit-m-to-find-cyber-security-solutions- for-vehicle-powertrains/article24803906.ece

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: India Finance News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains URL: https://www.indiafinancenews.com/continental-iit-m-to-find-cyber-security-solutions-for-vehicle- powertrains/

Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains

Continental, a leading global automotive supplier, and Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) have signed an agreement for joint research in high computing platform and cyber security for powertrain applications.

The company’s joint research with IITM addresses an industry white spot — cyber security for conventional drivetrains. The research will focus on intrusion detection and reporting on powertrain applications, according to a statement.

‘Mobile devices’

With vehicles becoming ‘mobile devices’ with permanent and seamless connectivity, the rate of risks and security becomes higher, an area of concern for vehicle manufacturers. Continental takes into account security from the beginning of component development, addressing the design of the product and its architecture, and the way it is developed.

Drive trains are no longer all-mechanical systems. Specifically for India, with the impending BS VI implementation, the electronics content is on the rise, making higher computational power imperative. With high computing platforms, car manufacturers will be able to maintain the ability to compete on various innovative functions and enlarged flexibility on software development.

Together with IIT Madras, Continental will conduct research on technologies that involve time deterministic behaviour on powertrain controllers and its applications.

“Cyber security for powertrains is still at its infancy for the industry, and as a technology company that focusses on mobility of tomorrow, this topic is important to address right now,” said Soorajith Radhakrishan, who heads Continental’s Powertrain business in India.

Second MoU

“This is our second MoU for joint research with Continental this year. Our respective areas of expertise are complementary, and I am confident of the results.” said Ravindra Gettu, Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), IITM. Continental’s MoU with IIT Madras earlier this year was for advanced research in machine learning and bio-inspired neural networks for Continental’s ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business. Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Newsfeed Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains URL: https://newsfeed.co.in/tech/continental-iit-m-to-find-cyber-security-solutions-for-vehicle- powertrains/

Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains August 28, 2018 newsfeed Tech Comments Off on Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains

Continental, a leading global automotive supplier, and Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) have signed an agreement for joint research in high computing platform and cyber security for powertrain applications.

The company’s joint research with IITM addresses an industry white spot — cyber security for conventional drivetrains. The research will focus on intrusion detection and reporting on powertrain applications, according to a statement.

‘Mobile devices’

With vehicles becoming ‘mobile devices’ with permanent and seamless connectivity, the rate of risks and security becomes higher, an area of concern for vehicle manufacturers. Continental takes into account security from the beginning of component development, addressing the design of the product and its architecture, and the way it is developed.

Drive trains are no longer all-mechanical systems. Specifically for India, with the impending BS VI implementation, the electronics content is on the rise, making higher computational power imperative. With high computing platforms, car manufacturers will be able to maintain the ability to compete on various innovative functions and enlarged flexibility on software development

Together with IIT Madras, Continental will conduct research on technologies that involve time deterministic behaviour on powertrain controllers and its applications.

“Cyber security for powertrains is still at its infancy for the industry, and as a technology company that focusses on mobility of tomorrow, this topic is important to address right now,” said Soorajith Radhakrishan, who heads Continental’s Powertrain business in India.

Second MoU

“This is our second MoU for joint research with Continental this year. Our respective areas of expertise are complementary, and I am confident of the results.” said Ravindra Gettu, Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), IITM.

Continental’s MoU with IIT Madras earlier this year was for advanced research in machine learning and bio-inspired neural networks for Continental’s ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Devdiscourse Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: Technology major Continental Corporation has signed a Memorandum with IIT Madras URL: https://www.devdiscourse.com/Article/138357-technology-major-continental-corporation-has- signed-a-memorandum-with-iit-madras

Technology major Continental Corporation has signed a Memorandum with IIT Madras

Technology major Continental Corporation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with IIT Madras to take up research in high computing platform and cyber security for powertrain applications.

The partnership with IIT Madras addresses cybersecurity for conventional drive trains and would focus on intrusion detection and reporting on powertrain applications, a press release issued by Continental Corporation said here. Together with IIT Madras, Continental would conduct research and technologies that involve "time deterministic" behavior on powertrain controllers and its applications, the statement said.

"Vehicles of tomorrow are computers on wheels, opening up areas of research hitherto unaddressed. Continental is implementing a sustainable growth strategy with a high level of investment in research and development and in capacities for future technologies", Continental Powertrain Business Head Soorajith Radhakrishnan said.

Commenting on the signing of MoU, IIT Madras Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), Ravindra Gettu said, "this is our second MoU for joint research with Continental this year. "As an institution that is in the frontier of research, we are pleased to collaborate with Continental.

Our respective areas of expertise are complementary.", he said. Earlier this year, Continental had signed a MoU with IIT Madras for taking up advanced research in machine learning and bio-inspired neural networks for Continental's Advanced Driver Assistance Systems business, the statement added.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: ET Auto Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: Continental ties up with IIT-M for high performance computing URL: https://auto.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/auto-technology/continental-ties-up-with-iit-m- for-high-performance-computing/65582757

Continental ties up with IIT-M for high performance computing

The partnership with IIT Madras addresses cyber security for conventional drive trains and would focus on intrusion detection and reporting on power train applications. Chennai: Technology major Continental Corporation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with IIT Madras to take up research in high computing platform and cyber security for power train applications.

The partnership with IIT Madras addresses cyber security for conventional drive trains and would focus on intrusion detection and reporting on power train applications, a press release issued by Continental Corporation said here. Earlier this year, Continental had signed an MoU with IIT Madras for taking up advanced research in machine learning. Earlier this year, Continental had signed an MoU with IIT Madras for taking up advanced research in machine learning.

Together with IIT Madras, Continental would conduct research and technologies that involve "time deterministic" behaviour on power train controllers and its applications, the statement said.

"Vehicles of tomorrow are computers on wheels, opening up areas of research hitherto unaddressed. Continental is implementing a sustainable growth strategy with a high-level of investment in research and development and in capacities for future technologies", Continental Power train Business Head Soorajith Radhakrishnan said.

Commenting on the signing of MoU, IIT Madras Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), Ravindra Gettu said, "this is our second MoU for joint research with Continental this year.

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Earlier this year, Continental had signed an MoU with IIT Madras for taking up advanced research in machine learning and bio-inspired neural networks for Continental's Advanced Driver Assistance Systems business, the statement added.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Marke8ing Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains URL: https://marke8ing.com/2018/08/29/continental-iit-m-to-find-cyber-security-solutions-for-vehicle- powertrains/

Continental, IIT-M to find cyber security solutions for vehicle powertrains

Continental, a leading global automotive supplier, and Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) have signed an agreement for joint research in high computing platform and cyber security for powertrain applications.

The company’s joint research with IITM addresses an industry white spot — cyber security for conventional drivetrains. The research will focus on intrusion detection and reporting on powertrain applications, according to a statement.

‘Mobile devices’

With vehicles becoming ‘mobile devices’ with permanent and seamless connectivity, the rate of risks and security becomes higher, an area of concern for vehicle manufacturers. Continental takes into account security from the beginning of component development, addressing the design of the product and its architecture, and the way it is developed.

Drive trains are no longer all-mechanical systems. Specifically for India, with the impending BS VI implementation, the electronics content is on the rise, making higher computational power imperative. With high computing platforms, car manufacturers will be able to maintain the ability to compete on various innovative functions and enlarged flexibility on software development.

Together with IIT Madras, Continental will conduct research on technologies that involve time deterministic behaviour on powertrain controllers and its applications.

“Cyber security for powertrains is still at its infancy for the industry, and as a technology company that focusses on mobility of tomorrow, this topic is important to address right now,” said Soorajith Radhakrishan, who heads Continental’s Powertrain business in India.

Second MoU

“This is our second MoU for joint research with Continental this year. Our respective areas of expertise are complementary, and I am confident of the results.” said Ravindra Gettu, Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), IITM.

Continental’s MoU with IIT Madras earlier this year was for advanced research in machine learning and bio-inspired neural networks for Continental’s ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Express Computer Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Ravindra Gettu Headline: Technology Major Continental Corporation Ties Up With IIT-Madras For High Performance Computing URL: https://www.expresscomputer.in/artificial-intelligence-ai/technology-major-continental- corporation-ties-up-with-iit-madras-for-high-performance-computing/28026/

Technology Major Continental Corporation Ties Up With IIT-Madras For High Performance Computing

Technology major Continental Corporation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with IIT Madras to take up research in high computing platform and cyber security for power train applications. The partnership with IIT Madras addresses cyber security for conventional drive trains and would focus on intrusion detection and reporting on power train applications, a press release issued by Continental Corporation said.

Together with IIT Madras, Continental would conduct research and technologies that involve “time deterministic” behaviour on power train controllers and its applications, the statement said. “Vehicles of tomorrow are computers on wheels, opening up areas of research hitherto unaddressed. Continental is implementing a sustainable growth strategy with a high-level of investment in research and development and in capacities for future technologies”, Continental Power train Business Head Soorajith Radhakrishnan said.

Commenting on the signing of MoU, IIT Madras Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), Ravindra Gettu said, “This is our second MoU for joint research with Continental this year. “As an institution that is in the frontier of research, we are pleased to collaborate with Continental. Our respective areas of expertise are complementary.”, he said.

Earlier this year, Continental had signed an MoU with IIT Madras for taking up advanced research in machine learning and bio-inspired neural networks for Continental’s Advanced Driver Assistance Systems business, the statement added.

Date: 30th August 2018 Publication: Brainbuxa Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras signs MoU with the Continental company for Joint research URL: https://www.brainbuxa.com/education-news/iit-madras-signs-mou-with-the-continental- company-for-joint-research-8639

IIT Madras signs MoU with the Continental company for Joint research

Madras signs MoU with the Continental company for Joint research | Education News Photo Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Continental company to conduct joint research in fields of high computing platform and cybersecurity for the powertrain applications.

The primary focus of the research will be on intrusion detection and reporting on powertrain applications, a statement from IIT Madras said.

"Vehicles of tomorrow are computers on wheels, opening up areas of research hitherto unaddressed. Continental is implementing a sustainable growth strategy with a high level of investment in R&D and in capacities for future technologies. India is an important market and R&D location for Continental, and we will drive innovation from India," Soorajith Radhakrishnan, who heads Continental's Powertrain business in India, said. "For Continental, cybersecurity is at the heart of the development of products and services. We have a proactive approach that considers cybersecurity right from day one in product development, so that potential security loopholes do not arise. Cybersecurity for powertrains is still at its infancy for the industry, and as a technology company that focuses on the mobility of tomorrow, this topic is important to address right now," he added.

"Our research team from IIT Madras involved in this project has made several research contributions in the inter-disciplinary area of Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS), specifically in the design of fault-tolerant, secure, and reliable systems. This project with Continental is an excellent opportunity to innovate further, focusing on the powertrain of a modern car - an area in which Continental brings industry- leading expertise," Pratyush K Panda, Assistant Professor, Computer Science and Engineering, IIT Madras, said. Earlier, Continental has also signed a MoU with IIT Madras for research in machine learning and bio- inspired neural networks for Continental's ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business.

Date: 30th August 2018 Publication: Auto ET Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Continental to unveil exhaust technology for trucks URL: https://auto.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/auto-technology/continental-to-unveil- exhaust-technology-for-trucks/65593659

Continental to unveil exhaust technology for trucks

The primary aim would be to ensure more efficient conversion of the nitrogen oxides (NOx) into harmless emissions.

Continental to unveil exhaust technology for trucks New Delhi: Tyre maker Continental on Wednesday revealed its plan to present solutions to support efficient exhaust after-treatment in trucks at the 67th International Commercial Vehicle Show (IAA) scheduled to be held from 20-27 September, according to a company statement.

The company will present both types of solutions – close-coupled systems and, alternatively, an architecture based on a combination of diesel injection into the exhaust stream and an electric heating element mounted upstream of the catalyst.

The primary aim would be to ensure more efficient conversion of the nitrogen oxides (NOx) into harmless emissions.

“The exhaust after-treatment solutions we are presenting in Hanover for these two different basic architectures contribute both to improved fuel efficiency and reduced NOx emissions,” said Markus Distelhoff, Executive Vice President Fuel & Exhaust Management Business Unit, Powertrain Division.

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Join an exclusive conference on connected technology in automobiles “In both architectures, our robust NOx sensors play a key role. These sensors can also be directly integrated in the catalyst substrate, allowing them to supply more accurate data from within the process itself, and therefore to provide even more precise NOx control,” said Manuel Presti, Program Manager Fuel & Exhaust Management Business Unit.

The system is compatible with a range of applications– for example in delivery vehicles where ‘postal’- type driving cycles, with frequent engine shutdown, rarely allow adequate engine (and therefore exhaust) temperatures to be achieved, the statement added. Date: 31st August 2018 Publication: The Indian Wire Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras to launch schemes to promote Entrepreneurship skills in schools URL:https://www.theindianwire.com/education/iit-madras-launch-schemes-promote-entrepreneurship- skills-schools-72545/

IIT Madras to launch schemes to promote Entrepreneurship skills in schools

Indian Institute of Technology Madras students are launching a yearlong education initiative focussing on preparing Government and Private School student for the challenges faced in the 21st century. In the age of modernisation, many skills need to be upgraded or inculcated within the youth. This initiative is being done by the youth division as they themselves faced several challenges in pursuing the skills.

The Institute’ Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell) is a campaign launched to focus on skills such as innovation, creativity, entrepreneurship, leadership and risk taking ability among the youth. The Imitative has taken up to provide students with skills to handle challenges of the 21st century and the Educators from different sectors will come and set an example by learning and illustrating on how entrepreneurship empowers all learners to gain the skills they need.

The speakers will be conducting various workshops, lectures series and the motive is to teach the students on how to think creatively and make innovation happen. The students will also be mentored by the students of IIT Madras in various aspect of life. Overall, this will be a meaning full sustainable development in improving the education quality and will enhance the quality within the student which to the betterment of their life.

Launching the initiative, Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi, Global Shaper, World Economic Forum (WEF), and Founder and CEO, Thought Folks Digital, said, “this was an apt platform and event hosted by the e-cell at IIT Madras covered the most crucial aspects. It’s high time we reconsider our style of education and tailor the courses that will create entrepreneurs and innovators.” A Harvard Business School Alumni, Mr. Raghavendra Hunasgi further added, “The curriculum build a decade ago will no longer hold any relevance unless we couple it with new age technology courses and frameworks.”

Speaking about the importance of this initiative, Prof Ashwin Mahalingam, Faculty Advisor, E-Cell, IIT Madras, said, “”This is a fantastic initiative. I am particularly happy that IIT-M’s students are taking the lead on this and I hope that their entrepreneurial zeal and academic excellence can be passed on to students from schools across the country.”

Date: 31st August 2018 Publication: Free Automotive News Edition: Online Journalist: Ateen Dalal Headline: Continental India & IIT Madras sign MOU to jointly upgrade engines URL: http://freeautomotivenews.com/continental-india-iit-madras-sign-mou/

CONTINENTAL INDIA & IIT MADRAS SIGN MOU TO JOINTLY UPGRADE ENGINES

The Indian Institute of Technology, Madras and technology company Continental India have reportedly signed an MOU (memorandum of understanding) that allows them to collaboratively research and find solutions to protect vehicle engines (powertrains).

Sources claim that a new area now demands the auto manufacturer’s attention, with locomotives turning into powerful mobile devices that are seamlessly connected on the go. In this scenario however, the security risks associated with technology usage cannot be overlooked, they further speculate.

Reportedly, Continental India and IIT Madras will collaboratively design failsafe solutions to address the white spot of the industry – the cybersecurity solutions for regular drivetrains. Apparently, the research will empower powertrain applications by intrusion recognition and reporting.

According to a statement by Continental India, the novel fast-paced locomotive technology should go hand in hand with identical computational power as the all-mechanical era of vehicle drivetrains has passed long back.

In cooperation with IIT Madras, Continental will undertake research initiatives on technologies that encompass time deterministic behavior on powertrain controllers and its real-world applications.

According to sources familiar with the development, India specifically requires high computational power to meet the needs of its growing electronics market. The robust computational platforms would allow car makers to introduce innovative vehicle functionalities and enhance the flexibility in software development.

According to the Times of India, Head of Continental Powertrain India, Soorajith Radhakrishnan was quoted stating that automotives of the future are computers on wheels, uncovering areas of research previously unaddressed. To stay up-to-date with future technologies Continental India is investing heavily in R&D and heading towards sustainable growth. The booming automobile industry in India makes it an attractive avenue for Continental, and the company will lead innovation from India by engaging in R&D activities, Radhakrishnan added.

According to industry experts, Continental India is rather thrilled with this move and anticipates this collaboration to be a step toward next-generation solutions for drivetrain technology.

IIT Madras is a research-focused Institute

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business line Edition: Delhi / Mumbai / Chennai / Kolkata Page No: 2 Journalist: N Ramesh Headline: IIT-Madras professor CARES to save energy so it is not squandered URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/specials/clean-tech/iit-madras-professor-cares-to-save- energy-so-it-is-not-squandered/article24565740.ece

Date: 1st August 2018

Publication: The Better India Edition: Online Professor: Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras Develops Super Absorbent, Eco-Friendly Diapers From Seafood Waste! URL: https://www.thebetterindia.com/153983/iit-madras-researchers-eco-friendly-diapers/

IIT Madras Develops Super Absorbent, Eco-Friendly Diapers From Seafood Waste!

The researchers used chitosan obtained from seafood waste source, and two other easily available sustainable chemicals by Guest Contributor July 31, 2018, 6:33 pm

The use of disposable diapers is commonplace for baby care in urban areas. Diapers are also used for the elderly persons experiencing uncontrolled urination due to certain geriatric health problems.

Diapers contain super absorbing polymers (SAPs) which can absorb and retain large quantity of liquid. However, they are made of synthetic materials which are non-biodegradable. Safe disposal of used diapers is thus a major environmental problem.

In order to address the problem, scientists from the Department of Chemistry at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras have developed a biodegradable super absorbent polymer using chitosan (a kind of sugar extracted from seafood waste), citric acid and urea.

This superabsorbent has capacity – it can absorb 1250 gm of water for each gram of the polymer.

The researchers used chitosan obtained from seafood waste source, and two easily available sustainable chemicals – citric acid and urea. Water absorbing material from a commercial baby diaper was used for comparison. Baby diaper Image for representational purposes only. Source: Pixabay The materials – chitosan, citric acid and urea – were mixed in weight ratio of 1:2:2. The mixture was heated in aqueous medium to 100 degree C in a closed container to form a highly viscous and porous, cross-linked gel denoted as CHCAUR. The gel was then dried to remove residual solvent and powdered for further study.

It was found that the water absorption capacity of CHCAUR was about eight times compared to super absorbing polymers used in commercial diapers. The structure of this crosslinked polymer gel was analysed using powder x-ray diffraction method.

Its properties were studied extensively by various analytical techniques like solid state nuclear magnetic resonance, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis.

The scanning electron microscopy was used to confirm presence of macro pores in the gel surrounded by a fibrous network of chitosan molecules forming an agitated surface. The team also found that higher water absorption capacity of the gel could be due to the macro porous structure.

“In the present form, our material does not absorb water as rapidly as commercially available diaper materials, but it is biodegradable unlike fully synthetic commercial superabsorbents,” explained Dr. RaghavachariDhamodharan, the lead researcher, while speaking to India Science Wire.

He described the synthesis process as eco-friendly since water has been used in experiments instead of any synthetic chemicals. “We have tested our material as additive to soil for the growth of some potted plants like chilly, at home, and find that it is enough if they are watered once every four to five days,” said Abathodharanan Narayanan, another team member, while commenting on the study.

Eco friendly diapers by IIT Madras researchers The researchers at IIT Madras. Source: India Science Wire The gel has also been tested for its suitability as a scaffolding material in tissue engineering. Researchers feel it can also find applications in agriculture, especially as controlled releasing agent of micro and macro nutrients to soil.

The study also mentions that when applied to soil, CHCAUR was found to decrease water evaporation rate significantly.

At present, the research team is working on similar biodegradable polymers as substitute for polyurethane, polystyrene packaging materials that do not degrade.

The research team included Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan, Abathodharanan Narayanan, RavishankarKartik, and ElanchezhianSangeetha (Indian Institute of Technology, Madras). The results of the study have been published in journal Carbohydrate Polymers.

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: Firstpost Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Scientists at IIT Madras develop new biodegradable and super absorbent Diapers URL: https://www.firstpost.com/tech/science/scientists-at-iit-madras-develop-new-biodegradable-and- super-absorbent-diapers-4861821.html

Scientists at IIT Madras develop new biodegradable and super absorbent Diapers

The researchers used chitosan obtained from seafood waste source, and two other easily available sustainable chemicals

The use of disposable diapers is commonplace for baby care in urban areas. Diapers are also used for the elderly persons experiencing uncontrolled urination due to certain geriatric health problems.

Diapers contain super absorbing polymers (SAPs) which can absorb and retain large quantity of liquid. However, they are made of synthetic materials which are non-biodegradable. Safe disposal of used diapers is thus a major environmental problem.

In order to address the problem, scientists from the Department of Chemistry at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras have developed a biodegradable super absorbent polymer using chitosan (a kind of sugar extracted from seafood waste), citric acid and urea.

This superabsorbent has capacity – it can absorb 1250 gm of water for each gram of the polymer.

The researchers used chitosan obtained from seafood waste source, and two easily available sustainable chemicals – citric acid and urea. Water absorbing material from a commercial baby diaper was used for comparison. Baby diaper Image for representational purposes only. Source: Pixabay The materials – chitosan, citric acid and urea – were mixed in weight ratio of 1:2:2. The mixture was heated in aqueous medium to 100 degree C in a closed container to form a highly viscous and porous, cross-linked gel denoted as CHCAUR. The gel was then dried to remove residual solvent and powdered for further study.

It was found that the water absorption capacity of CHCAUR was about eight times compared to super absorbing polymers used in commercial diapers. The structure of this crosslinked polymer gel was analysed using powder x-ray diffraction method.

Its properties were studied extensively by various analytical techniques like solid state nuclear magnetic resonance, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis.

The scanning electron microscopy was used to confirm presence of macro pores in the gel surrounded by a fibrous network of chitosan molecules forming an agitated surface. The team also found that higher water absorption capacity of the gel could be due to the macro porous structure.

“In the present form, our material does not absorb water as rapidly as commercially available diaper materials, but it is biodegradable unlike fully synthetic commercial superabsorbents,” explained Dr. RaghavachariDhamodharan, the lead researcher, while speaking to India Science Wire.

He described the synthesis process as eco-friendly since water has been used in experiments instead of any synthetic chemicals. “We have tested our material as additive to soil for the growth of some potted plants like chilly, at home, and find that it is enough if they are watered once every four to five days,” said Abathodharanan Narayanan, another team member, while commenting on the study.

Eco friendly diapers by IIT Madras researchers The researchers at IIT Madras. Source: India Science Wire The gel has also been tested for its suitability as a scaffolding material in tissue engineering. Researchers feel it can also find applications in agriculture, especially as controlled releasing agent of micro and macro nutrients to soil.

The study also mentions that when applied to soil, CHCAUR was found to decrease water evaporation rate significantly.

At present, the research team is working on similar biodegradable polymers as substitute for polyurethane, polystyrene packaging materials that do not degrade.

The research team included Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan, Abathodharanan Narayanan, RavishankarKartik, and ElanchezhianSangeetha (Indian Institute of Technology, Madras). The results of the study have been published in journal Carbohydrate Polymers.

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: Tech Explorist Edition: Online Professor: Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan Journalist: PranjalMehar Headline: Indian researchers developed super-absorbent diapers from Sea-food waste URL: https://www.techexplorist.com/indian-researchers-developed-super-absorbent-diapers-sea-food- waste/15859/

Indian researchers developed super-absorbent diapers from Sea-food waste

It can absorb 1250 gm of water for each gram of the polymer.

Disposable diapers are a mom’s best friend and one of the Earth’s worst enemies. Diapers contain super-absorbing polymers (SAPs) which can absorb and retain a large quantity of liquid. However, they are made of synthetic materials which are non-biodegradable. Safe disposal of used diapers is thus a major environmental problem.

In addition, diapers are one of the largest contributors to landfills. And we don’t really know how long it takes for them to decompose.

To address, this problem, scientists at the IIT Madras have developed a biodegradable superabsorbent polymer using chitosan obtained from seafood waste, citric acid, and urea. The polymer holds the potential to absorb maximum 1250 gm of water for each gram of the polymer.

The researchers at IIT Madras

The researchers at IIT Madras

The combined all the materials in the ratio of 1:2:2 and heated in the container at 100 degrees C to form a highly viscous and porous, cross-linked gel denoted as CHCAUR.

Comparing with the existing commercial diapers, scientists found that CHCAUR is about eight times super absorbing. It has a crosslinked polymer structure with the polymer gel.

Scientists used various techniques including solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis to understand the properties of the diaper. Using scanning electron microscopy, they confirmed that macropores in the gel surrounded by a fibrous network of chitosan molecules forming an agitated surface.

Abathodharanan Narayanan, another team member said, “We have tested our material as an additive to soil for the growth of some potted plants like chilly, at home, and find that it is enough if they are watered once every four to five days.” The research team included Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan, Abathodharanan Narayanan, RavishankarKartik, and ElanchezhianSangeetha (Indian Institute of Technology, Madras). The results of the study have been published in journal Carbohydrate Polymers.

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: Daily Hunt Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan Headline: IIT Madras Develops Super Absorbent, Eco-Friendly Diapers From Seafood Waste! URL: https://m.dailyhunt.in/news/india/english/the+better+india-epaper- bettind/iit+madras+develops+super+absorbent+eco+friendly+diapers+from+seafood+waste-newsid- 93584118

IIT Madras Develops Super Absorbent, Eco-Friendly Diapers From Seafood Waste!

The use of disposable diapers is commonplace for baby care in urban areas. Diapers are also used for the elderly persons experiencing uncontrolled urination due to certain geriatric health problems.

Diapers contain super absorbing polymers (SAPs) which can absorb and retain large quantity of liquid. However, they are made of synthetic materials which are non-biodegradable. Safe disposal of used diapers is thus a major environmental problem.

In order to address the problem, scientists from the Department of Chemistry at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras have developed a biodegradable super absorbent polymer using chitosan (a kind of sugar extracted from seafood waste), citric acid and urea. This superabsorbent has capacity - it can absorb 1250 gm of water for each gram of the polymer.

The researchers used chitosan obtained from seafood waste source, and two easily available sustainable chemicals - citric acid and urea. Water absorbing material from a commercial baby diaper was used for comparison.

The materials - chitosan, citric acid and urea - were mixed in weight ratio of 1:2:2. The mixture was heated in aqueous medium to 100 degree C in a closed container to form a highly viscous and porous, cross-linked gel denoted as CHCAUR. The gel was then dried to remove residual solvent and powdered for further study.

It was found that the water absorption capacity of CHCAUR was about eight times compared to super absorbing polymers used in commercial diapers. The structure of this crosslinked polymer gel was analysed using powder x-ray diffraction method.

Its properties were studied extensively by various analytical techniques like solid state nuclear magnetic resonance, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis.

The scanning electron microscopy was used to confirm presence of macro pores in the gel surrounded by a fibrous network of chitosan molecules forming an agitated surface. The team also found that higher water absorption capacity of the gel could be due to the macro porous structure.

"In the present form, our material does not absorb water as rapidly as commercially available diaper materials, but it is biodegradable unlike fully synthetic commercial superabsorbents," explained Dr. RaghavachariDhamodharan, the lead researcher, while speaking to India Science Wire.

He described the synthesis process as eco-friendly since water has been used in experiments instead of any synthetic chemicals.

"We have tested our material as additive to soil for the growth of some potted plants like chilly, at home, and find that it is enough if they are watered once every four to five days," said Abathodharanan Narayanan, another team member, while commenting on the study.

The gel has also been tested for its suitability as a scaffolding material in tissue engineering. Researchers feel it can also find applications in agriculture, especially as controlled releasing agent of micro and macro nutrients to soil.

The study also mentions that when applied to soil, CHCAUR was found to decrease water evaporation rate significantly.

At present, the research team is working on similar biodegradable polymers as substitute for polyurethane, polystyrene packaging materials that do not degrade.

The research team included Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan, Abathodharanan Narayanan, RavishankarKartik, and ElanchezhianSangeetha (Indian Institute of Technology, Madras). The results of the study have been published in journal Carbohydrate Polymers.

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business line Edition: Online Journalist: SanghanmitraDeobhanj Professor: Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan Headline: New absorbent may make diapers eco-friendly URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/science/new-absorbent-may-make-diapers-eco- friendly/article24565085.ece

Super Absorbent, Eco-Friendly

The use of disposable diapers is commonplace for baby care in urban areas. Diapers are also used for the elderly persons experiencing uncontrolled urination due to certain geriatric health problems.

Diapers contain super absorbing polymers (SAPs) which can absorb and retain large quantity of liquid. However, they are made of synthetic materials which are non-biodegradable. Safe disposal of used diapers is thus a major environmental problem.

In order to address the problem, scientists from the Department of Chemistry at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras have developed a biodegradable super absorbent polymer using chitosan (a kind of sugar extracted from seafood waste), citric acid and urea. This superabsorbent has capacity - it can absorb 1250 gm of water for each gram of the polymer.

The researchers used chitosan obtained from seafood waste source, and two easily available sustainable chemicals - citric acid and urea. Water absorbing material from a commercial baby diaper was used for comparison.

The materials - chitosan, citric acid and urea - were mixed in weight ratio of 1:2:2. The mixture was heated in aqueous medium to 100 degree C in a closed container to form a highly viscous and porous, cross-linked gel denoted as CHCAUR. The gel was then dried to remove residual solvent and powdered for further study.

It was found that the water absorption capacity of CHCAUR was about eight times compared to super absorbing polymers used in commercial diapers. The structure of this crosslinked polymer gel was analysed using powder x-ray diffraction method.

Its properties were studied extensively by various analytical techniques like solid state nuclear magnetic resonance, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis.

The scanning electron microscopy was used to confirm presence of macro pores in the gel surrounded by a fibrous network of chitosan molecules forming an agitated surface. The team also found that higher water absorption capacity of the gel could be due to the macro porous structure.

"In the present form, our material does not absorb water as rapidly as commercially available diaper materials, but it is biodegradable unlike fully synthetic commercial superabsorbents," explained Dr. RaghavachariDhamodharan, the lead researcher, while speaking to India Science Wire.

He described the synthesis process as eco-friendly since water has been used in experiments instead of any synthetic chemicals.

"We have tested our material as additive to soil for the growth of some potted plants like chilly, at home, and find that it is enough if they are watered once every four to five days," said Abathodharanan Narayanan, another team member, while commenting on the study.

The gel has also been tested for its suitability as a scaffolding material in tissue engineering. Researchers feel it can also find applications in agriculture, especially as controlled releasing agent of micro and macro nutrients to soil.

The study also mentions that when applied to soil, CHCAUR was found to decrease water evaporation rate significantly.

At present, the research team is working on similar biodegradable polymers as substitute for polyurethane, polystyrene packaging materials that do not degrade.

The research team included Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan, Abathodharanan Narayanan, RavishankarKartik, and ElanchezhianSangeetha (Indian Institute of Technology, Madras). The results of the study have been published in journal Carbohydrate Polymers.

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: Andhra Jyothi Edition: Hyderabad Page No:13 Journalist: NA Headline: (Super diaper) సూపరై్డప쁍

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: Telangana Today Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 16 Journalist: NA Headline: Making diapers eco-friendly

Date: 4th August 2018 Publication: Edition: Delhi / Pune Page No: 1 Journalist: AnonnaDutt Professor: Prof. AmalKantiBera Headline: A plant pigment that lowers brain damage after stroke

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Delhi / Mumbai / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Chennai / Kolkata / Kochi / Chandigarh Page No: 15 Journalist: SanghamitraDeobhanj Professor: Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan Headline: A game-changing diaper? URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-opinion/a-game-changing- diaper/article24606176.ece

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: Life 365 Edition: Pune Page No: 1 Journalist: SanghamitraDeobhanj Professor: Prof RaghavachariDhamodharan Headline: Now, eco-friendly diapers will be made from seafood waste

Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: Hindustan Times Edition: Online Professor: Prof Amal Kanti Bera Journalist: Anonna Dutt Headline: IIT Madras begins trial of plant pigment that lowers brain damage after stroke URL: https://www.hindustantimes.com/health/iit-madras-begins-trial-of-plant-pigment-that-lowers- brain-damage-after-stroke/story-PndgH17srk7UuLkfzqB9qI.html IIT Madras begins trial of plant pigment that lowers brain damage after stroke

IIT Madras researchers have demonstrated the effectiveness of the plant pigment in cell models in the laboratory and are currently doing efficacy studies on mouse models. Plant pigment,Quercetin,quercetin-based medication A stroke can cause temporary or permanent disabilities including permanent paralysis, difficulty talking or swallowing, memory loss and thinking difficulties.(Shutterstock)

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: Hindustan Times Edition: Delhi Page No: 11 Professor: Prof Amal Kanti Bera Journalist: Anonna Dutt Headline: Leafy greens can help save brain cell after stroke Study

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: P Oppili Headline: IIT-M team creates low-cost exhaust emission controller URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/iit-m-team-creates-low-cost-exhaust-emission- controller/articleshow/65456425.cms

Date: 24th August 2018 Publication: Firstpost Edition: Online Journalist: Sanghamitra Deobhanj Professor: Prof S Mathava Kumar Headline: IIT engineers convert invasive weed to activated carbon to treat toxic waste URL: https://www.firstpost.com/tech/science/iit-engineers-convert-invasive-weed-to-activated-carbon- to-treat-toxic-waste-5029551.html

IIT ENGINEERS CONVERT INVASIVE WEED TO ACTIVATED CARBON TO TREAT TOXIC WASTE Activated carbon prevents pollutants from entering groundwater tables or aquifers nearby

Prosopis Juliflora is an invasive weed with abundant spread in India. It is called Seemai Karuvelam in Tamil, Vilayati Babul in Hindi, and has the outstanding capability to survive and grow on dry arid and saline lands.Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras have developed a method to make a low-cost adsorbent using the weed, and apply it to treat toxic effluents.The technology converts the weed into activated carbon, which, in turn, removes organic compounds, phosphate and nitrate from polluted water.“Synthesis of activated carbon using Prosopis Juliflora biomass is economical, and can be used to reduce the overall cost of the treatment process. This can improve management of the invasive plant and simultaneously protect the environment,” explained Dr S Mathava Kumar, Associate Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at IIT Madras, while speaking to India Science Wire.The team collected the weed from within the institute campus, where it is available in abundance.They cleaned it, and shredded the twigs to one centimetre size and allowed it to dry. They then processed this raw material and converted it into carbon at 500°C temperature, and further activated it with sulphuric acid.The researchers studied surface characteristics of the prepared activated carbon using scanning electron microscopy with electron diffraction analysis. They also analysed its carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and sulphur composition using CHNS analyser. They confirmed the presence of functional groups using fourier transformation-infrared radiation (FTIR) analysis, and the structure of the product by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis.Prosopis Juliflora is a shrub or small tree with the capability to survive and grow in dry, arid and saline lands. It is considered an invasive weed in many countries, including India. Flickr Prosopis Juliflora is a shrub or small tree with the capability to survive and grow in dry, arid and saline lands. It is considered an invasive weed in many countries, including India. Flickr

It was found that the Prosopis Juliflora activated carbon was effective in removing traces of organic substance like metronidazole, nutrients like phosphates and nitrates in both single-component and multi-component adsorption systems.In addition, septic tank effluents containing trace organics such as antibiotics and essential soil nutrients are trapped onto the surface of the activated carbon, thereby preventing pollutants from entering into the groundwater or surrounding aquifers.The adsorbent can be used in tertiary treatment of wastewater at the sewage treatment plants and in soak-pits connected to septic tanks of residential houses, apartments, schools and hospitals, said the scientists.“After the adsorption process for nutrient removal, the recovered Prosopis juliflora activated carbon, which is rich in nutrients, can be applied to the agricultural fields, which in turn will improve the soil nutrients, thereby increase the crop production and reduce the usage of chemical fertilizers,” commented co- researcher S V Manjunath.According to the United Nations World Water Development Report 2017, over 80 percent of wastewater is discharged without treatment globally.The conventional treatment systems designed are observed to be under-performing in the removal of these trace organics. The new research assumes importance in this context.The team is carrying out further investigations for the surface modification of the new activated carbon material to see if its adsorption capacity could be further improved. The results of the research have been published in the journal Chemical Engineering.

Date: 24th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Online Journalist: Sanghamitra Deobhanj Professor: Prof S Mathava Kumar Headline: Biomass of invasive weed can help treat toxic waste URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/science/biomass-of-invasive-weed-can-help-treat- toxic-waste/article24761311.ece

Biomass of invasive weed can help treat toxic waste

Prosopis Juliflora is an invasive weed with abundant spread in India. Called Seemai Karuvelam in Tamil and Vilayati Babul in Hindi, it has outstanding capability to survive and grow on dry arid and saline lands.

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras have developed a method to make a low-cost adsorbent using the weed and apply that to treat toxic effluents. The technology converts the weed into activated carbon, which, in turn, removes organic compounds, phosphate and nitrate from polluted water.

“Synthesis of activated carbon using Prosopis Juliflora biomass is economical, and can be used to reduce the overall cost of the treatment process. This can improve management of the invasive plant and simultaneously protect the environment,” explained S. Mathava Kumar, Associate Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at IIT Madras, while speaking to India Science Wire.

The team collected the weed from within the institute campus, where it is available in plenty. They cleaned, shredded the twigs to one centimeter size and allowed it to dry. They then processed this feedstock and converted it into carbon at 500 degree temperature, and further activated it with sulfuric acid.

The researchers studied surface characteristics of the prepared activated carbon using scanning electron microscopy with electron diffraction analysis. They also analysed its carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and sulphur composition using CHNS analyser. They confirmed the presence of functional groups using Fourier transformation-infrared radiation (FTIR) analysis, and the structure of the product by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis.

It was found that the Prosopis Juliflora activated carbon was effective in removing traces of organic substance like metronidazole, nutrients like phosphates and nitrates in both single-component and multi-component adsorption systems. In addition, septic tank effluents containing trace organics such as antibiotics and essential soil nutrients are trapped onto the surface of the activated carbon, thereby preventing pollutants from entering into the groundwater or surrounding aquifers.

The adsorbent can be used in tertiary treatment of wastewater at the sewage treatment plants and in soak-pits connected to septic tanks of residential houses, apartments, schools and hospitals, said the scientists.

“After the adsorption process for nutrient removal, the recovered Prosopis juliflora activated carbon, which is rich in nutrients, can be applied to the agricultural fields, which in turn will improve the soil nutrients, thereby increase the crop production and reduce the usage of chemical fertilizers”, commented co-researcher S.V. Manjunath.

According to the United Nations World Water Development Report 2017, over 80 percent of wastewater is discharged without treatment globally. The conventional treatment systems designed are observed to be under-performing in the removal of these trace organics. The new research assumes importance in this context.

The team is carrying out further investigations for the surface modification of the new activated carbon material to see if its adsorption capacity could be further improved. The results of the research have been published in the journal Chemical Engineering.

Date: 25th August 2018 Publication: APN Edition: Online Journalist: SanghamitraDeobhanj Professor: Prof Mathava Kumar Headline: Biomass of invasive weed can help treat toxic waste URL: http://www.apnlive.com/technology-news/biomass-invasive-weed-can-help-treat-toxic-waste- 48648

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Prosopis Juliflora is an invasive weed with abundant spread in India. Called Seemai Karuvelam in Tamil and Vilayati Babul in Hindi, it has outstanding capability to survive and grow on dry arid and saline lands.

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras have developed a method to make a low-cost adsorbent using the weed and apply that to treat toxic effluents.The technology converts the weed into activated carbon, which, in turn, removes organic compounds, phosphate and nitrate from polluted water.

“Synthesis of activated carbon using Prosopis Juliflora biomass is economical, and can be used to reduce the overall cost of the treatment process. This can improve management of the invasive plant and simultaneously protect the environment,” explained DrS. Mathava Kumar, Associate Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at IIT Madras, while speaking to India Science Wire.

The team collected the weed from within the institute campus, where it is available in plenty. They cleaned, shredded the twigs to one centimeter size and allowed it to dry. They then processed this feedstock and converted it into carbon at 500 degree temperature, and further activated it with sulfuric acid.

The researchers studied surface characteristics of the prepared activated carbon using scanning electron microscopy with electron diffraction analysis. They also analysed itscarbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and sulphur composition using CHNS analyser. They confirmed the presence of functional groups using Fourier transformation-infrared radiation (FTIR) analysis, and the structure of the productby X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis.

It was found that the Prosopis Juliflora activated carbon was effective in removing traces of organic substance like metronidazole, nutrients like phosphates and nitrates in both single-component and multi-component adsorption systems. In addition, septic tank effluents containing trace organics such as antibiotics and essential soil nutrients are trapped onto the surface of the activated carbon, thereby preventing pollutants from entering into the groundwater or surrounding aquifers.

The adsorbentcan be used in tertiary treatment of wastewater at the sewage treatment plants and in soak-pits connected to septic tanks of residential houses, apartments, schools and hospitals, said the scientists.

“After the adsorption process for nutrient removal, the recovered Prosopis juliflora activated carbon, which is rich in nutrients, can be applied to the agricultural fields, which in turn will improve the soil nutrients, thereby increase the crop production and reduce the usage of chemical fertilizers”, commented co-researcher S.V. Manjunath.

Researchers at IIT Madras Researchers at IIT Madras According to the United Nations World Water Development Report 2017, over 80 percent of wastewater is discharged without treatment globally. The conventional treatment systems designed are observed to be under-performing in the removal of these trace organics.The new research assumes importance in this context.

The team is carrying out further investigations for the surface modification of the new activated carbon material to see if its adsorption capacity could be further improved.The results of the research have been published in the journal Chemical Engineering. Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras set to enhance its research activities URL: https://www.dtnext.in/News/City/2018/08/28030848/1086100/IIT-Madras-set-to-enhance-its- research-activities.vpf

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Print Edition: Online Journalist: Sandhya Ramesh Professor: Prof. Ramkrishna Pasumarthy Headline: This IIT-Madras breakthrough may soon bring talking cars and real-time disease diagnoses URL: https://theprint.in/science/this-iit-madras-breakthrough-may-soon-bring-talking-cars-and-real- time-disease-diagnoses/107080/

This IIT-Madras breakthrough may soon bring talking cars and real-time disease diagnoses

IIT Madras's Himalaya building | Facebook Text Size: A- A+ Automation isn’t cost-effective or fast enough because of how algorithms are designed or network failures. This is where IIT-Madras team’s algorithms come in.

Bengaluru: Cheaper cab rides. An overall economical online experience. Real-time health results from your wearables beamed straight to your doctor and stored for a diagnosis on your next visit. Cars that talk to each other.

Researchers at IIT-Madras have designed novel algorithms that promise to make automation, that zeitgeist of our times, simpler and cheaper, and thus help industries across the board optimise their operations.

Automation is all around us. Not only are thousands of factories equipped with robotic machines and arms, we interact with layers of computer automation in our daily lives.

Our GPS calculates the intensity of traffic around us and how to navigate it; our phone calls are routed without any operators; and computers onboard spacecraft operate them independently of humans.

In any system, making decisions after processing data is done by a set of algorithms called the control algorithms, which look for patterns in data and figure out what is to be done next.

However, automation at times isn’t cost-effective or fast enough because of the way algorithms are designed or network failures. Executing control algorithms can be very resource- and time- intensive. And as more and more systems come onboard the cloud daily, any network latency issues are bound to slow things down even leave several businesses with unhappy customers.

Here’s where the Cyber-physical Cloud Computing Lab at IIT-Madras comes into the picture.

Also read: Using new AI algorithm, IIT-Bombay to reduce damage caused by natural disasters in India

Cheaper, faster The algorithms they’ve designed run on a cloud-based server, which can be used by businesses worldwide. The concept isn’t new; it’s what is commonly called Software as a Service (SaaS). But the speed is what is different: The IIT-Madras team’s algorithms run faster, consuming less memory and time, and, thus, costing less.

“Designers of a system ensure a buffer of extra resources is always available for a task,” said Ramkrishna Pasumarthy, an associate professor of electrical engineering at IIT-Madras who designed the algorithms with a former student, Dr Saikrishna P.S., who is currently an assistant professor at IIT-Tirupati.

“This over-allocation almost always tends to be expensive. Our algorithms analyse demands much (more) effectively, allocating just what is needed,” he added.

To test how well their studies work, Pasumarthy’s lab has built a platform prototype that runs these algorithms, and is using it on three different applications. The biggest testbed for this is Internet of Medical Things.

Both tech and data are seeing a growth spurt today. The smartwatches we wear monitor our heart rates and locations all day, menstruation apps track the cycles of millions of women, and fitness apps track our daily lifestyles. These devices generate unprecedented amounts of data; so much, that doctors often struggle to know how to process it or what to do with it.

“When a patient needs to be tested for something, say motion disability, they are called into a lab, made to perform actions for five minutes or so, then judged. This doesn’t always reflect their true problems,” said Pasumarthy.

Instead, a better way to do this in a more natural environment is through wearable devices. A person can simply strap on a device and go about their day. A modem can transmit the data collected daily to a secure server, from which it can be accessed by doctors to run diagnostics.

Also read: Scientists get glimpse of life 3.4 billion years ago. It’s likely the oldest we have yet

This, Pasumarthy believes, will play a big part in extending medical care to remote areas that aren’t equipped with the best of facilities. His collaborators in the project include Dr Viswanath Talasila of Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bengaluru, an expert in sensing technologies, and Vinay Sridhar, a former student of his.

He is currently testing the algorithms on medical applications through a startup, iMov, he co-founded with Talasila and Sridhar, which was incubated at IIT-Madras Research Park. Patients wear the devices and the data transmitted is processed by the team’s algorithms.

“Through the company we are also developing wearable devices to treat movement disorders,” said Talasila.

Vehicles that talk The lab also hopes to test a connected vehicle framework. “In the future, cars will be talking to each other and optimising routes they should take,” said Pasumarthy. He doesn’t mean just self-driving cars, but regular vehicular traffic, all connected to a grid, relaying their location and speed data along with information about the health of their components.

To test their algorithms on industrial automation products, the lab has partnered with as-yet-unnamed companies. The problem they aim to tackle is scalability of automation in industrial Internet of Things.

“Brands like Flipkart and Ola were cheaper and faster when new, but couldn’t sustain their model when the demand went up,” said Dr Nirav Bhatt of IIT-Madras, a collaborator of Pasumarthy on the project. “This has to do with the effective optimisation of resources,” Pasumarthy added, saying he hoped to fix such scalability problems for home-grown businesses.

The government today is encouraging a lot of small enterprises through the Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME), and Pasumarthy said he wanted his services to help such startups with customised solutions.

The possibilities are endless, as automation is the way of the future. “Scalability and interoperability are key,” said Saikrishna, a veteran of the automation industry. “Our algorithms aren’t restricted to just one- use case. We hope for them to be used across industries for automation.”

IIT Madras is an innovation and entrepreneurship hub Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: India Today Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras's startup 'geniSIGHTS' launches voice-enabled artificial intelligence URL: https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/news/story/iit-madras-startup-voice-enabled- artificial-inteligence-1301397-2018-07-31

IIT Madras's startup 'geniSIGHTS' launches voice-enabled artificial intelligence geniSIGHTS, a startup founded by an Indian Institute of Technology Madras alum, has launched 'FLASH' - - a first-of-its-kind artificial intelligence-powered dashboard with voice support to enable businesses process big data.

It understands user's voice commands and provides intelligence from analyzing data Lakshmi Narayanan, former chairman of NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Service Companies) and Emeritus Vice Chairman, Cognizant, launched the technology on July 27, 2018, at Chennai in the presence of geniSight's founders Rajesh Kumar and Parvathy Sarath.

IMPORTANCE OF FLASH IN THE CURRENT BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT "Data Analytics and Business Insight solutions have become mainstream now, with extensive use even in mid-sized organisations," said Narayanan. He also added that "the next stage of evolution is to drive AI from 'topic of interest' to mainstream application."

Narayanan also called Flash the first of such an attempt that provides the path for AI integration into Analytics and Business Insights.

Read:3 reasons you should opt for an internship with an NGO

Further, Lakshmi Narayanan added: "By providing a flexible and open architecture platform, Genisights has taken the pole position in an integrated AI/BI Analytics platform that is easy to deploy." geniSIGHTS is targeting enterprise customers, who would get insights just by speaking The focus segment is decision makers -- both strategic and tactical The market segment would primarily be mid-size and large companies in retail, e-commerce, travel and high-growth segments in North America and Europe.

"Today's BI reports provide good reports but do not go beyond the basic insights," according to Narayanan.

He asserts that "FLASH is a AI driven product that empowers the business users to quickly experience advanced analytical insights thereby significantly bringing down the development time."

THE UNIQUE DIFFERENTIATOR OF FLASH WAS AI Users can get recommendations and relevant insights based on the past behavior/patterns A very powerful AI program is designed to always run in the background to learn from the user's past query/search results The self-learning AI program helps the user to derive powerful insights from the data The visualization layer and data insights get automatically generated by the AI program which is possible only because of its learnings.

What FLASH can do A user can simply say "Flash, get me the trend of 3 years" and further add "Flash, zoom in time period week wise," and it will produce the requested results.

There is continual learning and model-refining and it leverages geniSIGHTS's domain-specific expertise on retail, ecommerce, finance and travel. Users can further upgrade/downgrade these AI learnings for the program to tune into the user's choice The AI also decides the type of charts and what level of detail is required for the business user MORE ABOUT FLASH ENGINE AND GENISIGHTS The FLASH engine is built on top of genisights's platform. geniSIGHTS enables organizations to build big data analytics projects much faster with its innovative foreSee(4C) approach. Connect to any data source (including BigData, Cloud, IoT etc) Compute analytical insights from simple metrics to predictive analytics Customize/define/restrict/control the insights specific to the user's roles/responsibilities Consume insights through APIs, Dashboards, Mobile devices, etc geniSIGHTS aids organizations to adopt scalable big data advanced analytics with pre-canned advanced analytics solutions that fit common business needs and provisions to build and integrate specific analytical solutions for a firm.

The vision of geniSIGHTS is to become "your analytical centre of excellence" for our customers.

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: Hindustan Times Edition: Delhi / Chandigarh / Faridabad / Gurgaon / Noida Page No: 21 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras develops smart air purifier URL: http://htsyndication.com/htsportal/ht-education/article/iit-madras-develops-smart-air- purifier/28982103

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: The Better India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: India’s First Indigenously Built Smart Air Purifier Unveiled, Courtesy IIT Madras! URL: https://www.thebetterindia.com/154214/indias-first-smart-air-purifier-iit-madras/

India’s First Indigenously Built Smart Air Purifier Unveiled, Courtesy IIT Madras!

The state of the art purifiers have many futuristic features from Wi-Fi to touch interface to remote monitoring via mobile phone.

When we think about air pollution, we often imagine vehicles chugging out smoke or factories throwing up toxins, but we fail to realise that most of these also take place right inside our homes.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found that indoor air can be anywhere from two to five times as polluted as outdoor air. According to the World Health Organisation, household air pollution poses one of the world’s greatest environmental health risks.

This is because pollutants are trapped indoors, where they are concentrated and multiplied to harmful levels. This indoor pollution contributes to a wide variety of health issues, from allergies to asthma.

Addressing this situation is the startup AirOK with its indigenously developed ‘Vistar’, which is claimed to be India’s first smart air purifier.

Incubated at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, the startup was in works for three years to develop a smart air purifier that can not only work in homes but also in hospitals, commercial real estate and food processing.

AirOk Team

The AirOk Team. From left: Vijaya Savanth, Pavan Reddy, Deekshith Vara Prasad, Sravan Krishna and Bhanu Prasanna Varma. Source: Facebook

Speaking to The Better India, Bhanu Prasanna Varma an IIT Madras alumni, AirOK’s Head of Business Development and market research told us about the conception of the product. “We started in April of 2015. We were working in the air quality monitoring technology; it was only later that we shifted into air control technology. Thereafter, our journey began.”

The state of the art purifiers have many futuristic features from Wi-Fi to touch interface to remote monitoring via mobile phone. The tech can estimate the percentage of pollutants in the air at any given oint. A statement from IIT Madras described the product, “Vistar 550 has coverage area of 550 square feet. The filter will have a life of about one year, which is twice that of the air purifiers currently available in the market.”

Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Faculty-in-charge, IIT Madras Research Park, launched the product at the premier institution and addressed the gathering. According to the report on NDTV, he said, “Ever increasing air-pollution in Indian cities is having severe impact on health of its people. We need a war on pollution-causing elements. But in the meanwhile, we need to minimise its impact, by cleaning air, wherever it is possible. AirOK has come up with something which will make great an immediate di

“The existing filters in the market weren’t upto the mark– lifetime-wise,” says Prasanna. He explains, “There hasn’t been much improvement in the filter technology so we wanted to improve that and at the same time, make it more economical. That’s when we came upon EGAPA.”

EGAPA is the patented filter technology from AirOK. It stands for Effective Granular Absorption Particulate Arrester and works on the absorption process. With a dual stratified filter technology, it has the capability of filtering particulates up to 0.3 microns.

These particulates include volatile organic compounds, acidic and basic pollutants, to airborne bacteria and pet dander.

The smart air purifier can be placed in any corner of the room where it can sense the pollution level and automate the fan speed, based on the concentrations of the pollutants.

The purifier is priced at Rs 20,000, and the filter has a life-span of one year. This, the team claims, is double of what existing purifiers in the market offer.

Prasanna told us about the use of the purifier, saying, “The purifier is meant for commercial purposes like hospitals and restaurants because it is very low maintenance, but any normal household can also have it in their homes. This way, the consumer can also be aware of the pollution in their surroundings.”

He adds, “There is only one main air filter that will need replacement, which will only cost Rs 1,200. In that way, it is very viable.”

SAR group, the makers of water purifiers under Livpure brand invested about Rs 12 Crore in AirOK and will be the distribution partners once the product goes on retail.

With the technology of the air purifiers tested in laboratories and on the field, the air purifier plays but a small role for our right to clean air. The purifier can show us the amount of pollutants we live in and possibly inspire us take steps to act in this regard.

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Connect with us on Facebook and Twitter. Rajasthan First Indian State to Implement Biofuel Policy: 5 Facts You Should Know!

Besides cutting energy imports and carbon emissions, this step can also double farmer incomes by 2022! by Rinchen Norbu Wangchuk

August 2, 2018, 1:27 pm

In a significant development, Rajasthan is now the first state in India to move ahead with the production and use of biofuels on a major scale, implementing the Centre’s national policy on the same. Reports indicate that the Rajasthan government will publish its own version of rules governing biofuels.

So, what are biofuels?

“Biofuel is any fuel that is derived from biomass—that is, plant or algae material or animal waste. Since such feedstock material can be replenished readily, biofuel is considered to be a source of renewable energy, unlike fossil fuels such as petroleum and coal,” according to Britannica.

In other words, this is yet another alternative and eco-friendly fuel option.

Here five things you should know about the Rajasthan government’s latest endeavour:

1. There will be a greater focus on raising the production of oilseeds.

2. It is promoting research and development in this arena, besides marketing on the same, through advertisements spreading awareness.

3. The state government will establish women-driven self-help groups through the State Rural Livelihood Council, encouraging the use of biofuels.

4. This endeavour would also attempt to help farmers get rid of their surplus inventory in an eco-friendly and efficient manner, besides reducing dependence on oil imports.

5. The Rajasthan government has already set up a biodiesel (manufactured from vegetable oils, un- edible oilseeds, used cooking oil, crop waste, recycled grease, algae, and animal fat) plant possessing a capacity of eight tonnes a day. This new policy seeks to help establish a steady supply chain for the production of biodiesel, replacing fossil fuels.

To the uninitiated, here are some of the benefits of biodiesel:

1) For starters, it is a renewable source of energy. Production of the same can happen locally through the process of transesterification, which involves separating glycerine from vegetable oil or animal fat. Additionally, the chemical process of transesterification leaves a residue of methyl esters and glycerine residue, which can then be used for the production of soap and other such products.

2) Certain experts argue that diesel engines require little modification while running on biodiesels and the energy produced is 90% of what the conventional version can offer. Carbon dioxide emissions from the production of biodiesel results are 60% less than conventional diesel.

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Your Story Edition: Online Journalist: Shruthi Kedia Alumni: Divanshu Kumar Headline: This 21-year-old IIT Madras student is creating leaders out of learners with a novel peer- teaching method URL: https://yourstory.com/2018/08/iit-madras-peer-teaching-method-involve/

This 21-year-old IIT Madras student is creating leaders out of learners with a novel peer-teaching method

Shruti Kedia posted on 6th August 2018

Divanshu Kumar’s Involve engages students in higher classes to teach younger ones in schools with children from low-income families.

Divanshu Kumar

At a time when rote learning and academic-based examination continue to dominate the Indian school system, a 21-year-old student from IIT Madras is on a mission to change the way knowledge is imparted.

Using the peer-teaching model, which has the Harvard University’s stamp of approval, Divanshu Kumar hopes to improve the learning ability of students through his startup, Involve.

“Most of the world believes that by putting more qualified teachers in the classrooms, we can improve the quality of learning and have better results. And while this is true, it fails to address one very important need. The capability building of students! And this will not be possible until the students themselves realise the importance of learning and are motivated from within,” he says.

Involve’s peer teaching method involves a nine-month fellowship where students from higher grades, like from Class VIII, can teach and mentor their juniors. By getting the learned students and the learners together in a classroom, Involve aims to create a school ecosystem that defines a student’s potential not merely in terms of examinations, but through their overall academic and personal excellence.

The beginning As a young student raised in Gaya in Bihar, Divanshu knew the value of quality education. Due to financial constraints, he studied in a low-budget private school till Class VIII. “Sometimes, for almost three months we didn’t have a subject teacher,” he recalls

Team-building exercise for students.

Hence even after joining IIT Madras, where he pursues Mechanical Engineering and Robotics, the cause of education was something Divanshu always aspired to work towards. This drove him to join the Avanti programme, a fellowship programme where IIT and NIIT students come together broadening access to top-quality tertiary education to meritorious students from low-income families.

In his second year, Divanshu was promoted to mentor manager, where he was tasked to handle a team of 25 college students who mentored Class-XI students for competitive exams. To help the students mitigate challenges and gain a better understanding of the curriculum, he advocated Class XII help the eleventh-graders.

“I realised that if this concept could be taken to schools where we could help junior students learn better from seniors, we can make the learners academically strong while empowering the seniors with better understanding,” he adds.

The peer-teaching model in school.

Hence, in 2016, he along with his friends and co-founders Awnish Raj and Samyak Jain, pitched their model to Sonia Luthra, the principal of ASN Senior Secondary School, Delhi, where Divanshu studied earlier. This marked the first pilot project for Involve, where during summer vacations select senior students were trained and coached to teach their juniors, and help them understand the chapters through activities and games.

Divanshu and his team were in their late teens at that time.

“In the pilot we had a 20 percent improvement in academic scores of learners in just six weeks. After this project was over I knew I wanted to become an entrepreneur— help solve a complex problem that not everyone would want to solve and build a team of people who work with the same vision to solve that challenge,” Divanshu says.

Get Involved

Involve aims to create a revolution in the school education system through after-school ‘peer teaching’ programme in the form of Young Student Leadership fellowship.

Interacting with students Involve trains and mentors senior school students in their formative years of age 12 to 16 to teach their juniors by partnering with low-income private schools to provide after-school academic help to the students at a low cost.

“More than 47 percent of youth today are unemployable in India today. That’s more than 150 million people. And if we dig deeper into the reasons, one of the things that stand out is the lack of life skills. Today, education is only about scoring marks, while the real purpose of education is not that,” Divanshu points out.

Involve actively works with senior school students and helps them build confidence through a three-step model— communication, problem-solving and planning, and executi

Students study the 'Patterns' chapter through activity-based learning.

The students are encouraged to move beyond Involve’s set curriculum and training module and come up with their own methods to help younger students understand math problems better. For instance, to teach Class-IV students the chapter ‘Patterns' in Mathematics, a Class VIII student leader made the young children stand in various spots to help them visualise the patterns, like the Fibonacci series, physically. Another student leader from a Kendriya Vidyalaya in Chennai developed a snakes and ladder game to help students learn addition and subtraction.

The learners - students from Class IV to VIII - that Involve engages with are slow learners or any student who wants to improve academically. The team firmly believes that one of the major reasons behind that is a lack of motivation.

“Hence we developed the ‘Motivation’ tool at the beginning of each chapter where we inform the students why they are learning this topic and why the subject is important,” Divanshu explains.

Involve brings digital and e-learning to classrooms.

On the impact the Involve team and the student teachers have brought about, Mrs Vedapati, a coordinator with Kendriya Vidyalaya in Chennai says, “They bring a methodological approach to and fierce passion for learning. I have seen a transformation within 20 days itself where the peer educators have been transformed into leaders in the classrooms; the unwilling learners have become joyful learners.”

Overcoming challenges The biggest challenge for Divanshu and his team is overcoming the scepticism surrounding the youngsters’ capability to bring about change. People initially failed to take them seriously.

By by mid-2017, a year after their first pilot project, Involve started to work with budget-friendly schools in Chennai. The seed money used was the amount won by Divanshu, Awnish and Samyak in various college festivals, or their earnings from taking private tuition for school students. However, the team ran out of money by December.

“I knew that we may be over within a month and being in a position where you don't have enough to pay salaries was a bad thing. I was just 20 and I had my share of sleepless nights,” Divanshu recalls.

Team Involve

However, he refused to give up. He applied for funding and mentorship from Mantra4Change where the co-founder, Khusboo Awasti, gave Involve support for three months. Nirmaan, a pre-incubation cell set up by IIT Madras, helped Involve with product-related expenses.

Later, Divanshu managed to raise Rs 6 lakh in a month through a campaign. In May, the team was selected for non-profit incubator N/Core’s ‘Cohort of Top 8 non-profits in India’, which earned them a seed grant of Rs 10 lakh. Involve is one of the 16 global social entrepreneurs as part of the ‘Young Social Entrepreneurs Program 2018’, headed by the Singapore International Foundation.

Plans ahead

Currently, the student leader-to-learner ratio at Involve is 1:4. Further, one team member of Involve is engaged on a full-time basis with the school to ensure that the learning module is followed efficiently and to check cases of conflict, bullying and aggressive behaviour among students.

Students participate in activity based learning

Till date, the team has worked with over 400 students across four schools, in Chennai and Bengaluru, which include over 100 student leaders. The team hopes to scale upto six schools, impacting about 600 students by the end of this year, and to 150 schools, impacting 5000 student leaders within the next five years.

The team has partnered with Svatantra Trust, which runs Vidyadaan schools to explore possible teaching programmes for teachers as well.

While other organisations like WarHorse, Entercon.in, Apni Shala Foundation, Dream A Dream, Cuemath, and Ignitor Learning also work in the similar space to help students from low-income schools gain access to education and learning, Divanshu says that no one has designed a peer-teaching model.

“One thing that I have come to realise is that a challenge as big as education can’t be solved through competition, rather only by collaboration. We need to collaborate, thereby creating a synergy of people present in different cities and villages of India. If I talk in business terms, there has been no organisation in my knowledge that has the education market share of more than five percent. So, very clearly, we have just started scratching the surface, may be not even that,” he says.

Team Involve with the student leaders and learners.

Involve is open to partnership and the team has hopes to put up their lesson plans and curriculums online to help other organisations replicate their model. Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Trinity Mirror Edition: Chennai Page No: 1 Journalist: NA Headline: Chennai IIT launches Al powered Analytics

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Hindustan Times Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala Headline: IIT Madras-incubated startup develops smart air purifier; to be priced at almost half of those in market now URL: https://www.hindustantimes.com/education/iit-madras-develops-smart-air-purifier/story- J1prt0f8a99l8RPk5EuDFO.html

IIT Madras-incubated startup develops smart air purifier; to be priced at almost half of those in market now

Indian Institute of Technology Madras-incubated startup AirOK launched India’s first indigenously developed Smart Air purifier ‘Vistar’ at Chennai last month. IIT Madras,smart air purifier,AirOK The purifiers have Wi-Fi and touch interface and the functioning of the purifier, in terms of the quantum of pollutants in the air, can be ascertained in real-time. (AP File Photo) Indian Institute of Technology Madras-incubated startup AirOK launched India’s first indigenously developed Smart Air purifier ‘Vistar’ at Chennai last month. Powered by an EGAPA (Efficient Granular Adsorbent Particulate Arrester), Vistar can filter a variety of pollutants such as particulate matter, microbes, fungus and gaseous substances.

The purifiers have Wi-Fi and touch interface and the functioning of the purifier, in terms of the quantum of pollutants in the air, can be ascertained in real-time. The company will target institutional segment which includes hospitals, hospitality, commercial real estate, food processing and manufacturing in the initial phase.

Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Faculty in charge, IIT Madras Research park, launched the product at a function held in New Delhi. Vistar 550 has coverage area of 550 square feet. The filter will have a life of about one year, which is twice that of the air purifiers currently available in the market. Addressing the launch function, Jhunjhunwala said, “Ever increasing air-pollution in Indian cities is having severe impact on health of its people. We need a war on pollution causing elements. But in the meanwhile, we need to minimise its impact, by cleaning air, wherever it is possible. AirOK has come up with something which will make great an immediate difference to our lives.”

The air purifier will be priced at around Rs 20,000, almost half that of those in the market now as affordability is a key area for AirOK. The Startup can manufacture up to 30 units per day currently and can increase the production capacity to 1,000 without any major additional investment. The positive results of the laboratory tests were conducted by Shriram Institute for Industrial Research, Bengaluru and field trials by a leading Children specialty hospital in Chennai. Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: Careers 360 Edition: Magazine Page No: 6 Journalist: NA Alumni: Rajesh Kumar Headline: Voice-Enabled Al launched by IIT Madras alumnus

Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: News Bytes Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala Headline: IIT-Madras gives India its first home-grown, remote-controlled 'affordable' air-purifier URL: https://www.newsbytesapp.com/timeline/India/29137/130490/iit-madras-startup-develops- affordable-air-purifier

IIT-Madras gives India its first home-grown, remote-controlled 'affordable' air-purifier

IIT Madras' startup develops 'affordable' air purifier

To tackle indoor air pollution, AirOK Technologies, a startup incubated by IIT Madras, has developed 'Vistar', a 'smart' air-purifier, which can be remotely monitored through a mobile phone.

Vistar will have futuristic features like Wi-Fi and touch interface.

It would cost Rs. 20,000 and last for a year, which is twice the longevity of the air purifiers currently available in the market, said researchers.

IIT-Madras gives India its first home-grown, remote-controlled 'affordable' air-purifier

Cylindrical-shaped device comes in two models, depending on coverage area

The device having metallic silver body and cylindrical shape comes in two models: Vistar 450 and Vistar 550, depending on the coverage area measured in square feet.

While the smaller model weighs 8kgs, the other one will be of 9.5kgs.

Both the air purifiers will measure 300mm in diameter and 520mm in height, said Deekshith Vara Prasad, Founder and CEO, AirOK.

Has the ability to filter particulates up to 0.3 microns

Function

Has the ability to filter particulates up to 0.3 microns

Vistar has the ability to filter particulates up to 0.3 microns, including volatile organic compounds (which contributes to ozone formation), acidic and basic pollutants (such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides), airborne bacteria and pet dander (very tiny particles of skin that are shed by animals with fur or feathers). It would run on AirOK's patented filter technology, Efficient Granular Absorbent Particulate Arrester (EGAPA).

Working

Vistar can be monitored through AirOk Home app

Commenting on the monitoring part, Prasad said it can be done through the AirOk Home app.

It would also send notification and reminders to your smartphone when replacement is needed, he added.

The air purifier can be placed anywhere in a room, and it would be able to regulate its fan speed depending on the pollution level and concentration of pollutants.

SAR group to market Vistar; residential, industrial segments are targets

This machine, India's first indigenously made air purifier, was developed after a rigorous three-year R&D, by a team comprising Vijaya Savanth, Pavan Reddy, Prasad, Sravan Krishna and Bhanu Prasanna Vama.

They have talked to Delhi-based SAR group, for marketing and residential segment will be their target.

However, it was designed keeping institutional segment in mind, including hospitality, real estate, food processing and manufacturing sectors.

Future plans

Aim: Making Vistar a Rs. 100cr-brand in five years

Prasad said the device has also passed the trial tests.

"The positive results of the laboratory tests conducted by Shriram Institute for Industrial Research, Bengaluru and field trials by a leading specialty hospital in Chennai stand testimony" to the device's efficiency, he said.

Encouraged by positive feedback, they are now planning "to make this a Rs. 100cr-brand in the next five years." Date: 18th August 2018

Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Chennai / Delhi / Mumbai / Pune / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Kolkata / Kochi / Ahmedabad / Chandigarh Page No: 14 Journalist: NA Student: Sagar Rathee and K Venkat Teja Professor: Prof Abhijit P Deshpande Headline: How IIT-M is making students agripreneurs URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/agri-business/how-iit-m-is-making-students- agripreneurs/article24719133.ece

Other miscellaneous news

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: Vishwa Mohan Headline: Unprepared, Mamata's nephew fumbles in URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/tmc-mp-looks-for-his-own-question-in-lok- sabha/articleshow/65218772.cms

Unprepared, Mamata’s nephew fumbles in Lok Sabha

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: Business Standard Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Centre approves 8 centre of excellence for competitiveness URL: https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/centre-approves-8-centre-of-excellence- for-competitiveness-118073100622_1.html

Centre approves 8 centre of excellence for competitiveness

Projects worth Rs 1.85 lakh cr awarded under Sagarmala by March 2018 Dreams of vibrant infra taking shape; unmatched work in 4 yrs: Gadkari FM unveils a slew of measures for MSMEs, cuts corp tax to 25% Rs 6,000 crore approved for disaster-hit states Guj MLAs to get Rs 50 lakh more per year for area development

The Centre has approved setting up of eight centres of excellence for enhancement of competitiveness in the Indian capital goods sector at a cost of Rs 169 crore.

Union Minister of State for Heavy Industries Babul Supriyo said in Lok Sabha that Rs 86.5 crore has already been released by the central government to these eight centres of excellence.

Supriyo said under the scheme, the IIT Madras will develop 11 advanced technologies for machine tools and production technology, the Central Manufacturing Technology Institute, Bangalore will develop high speed shuttle-less rapier looms and PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore will develop three welding technologies.

The minister said during Question Hour that the IIT Kharagpur will develop seven manufacturing technologies, Heavy Engineering Corporation, Ranchi will develop five cubic metre hydraulic excavator and SiTare, Coimbatore will develop smart submersible pumps.

The Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore will develop additive manufacturing for high performance metallic alloys and the IIT Delhi will develop textile machinery under the scheme, he said.

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: Jagran Josh Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Number of girls in IITs increase this year following MHRD's intervention URL: https://www.jagranjosh.com/news/girls-get-more-admission-in-iits-this-year-146217

Number of girls in IITs increase this year following MHRD's intervention

Number of female students getting enrolled in prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) in various undergraduate programmes has increased this year. This has happened following a directive from the ministry of human resource development (MHRD) to IITs asking them to rework on their gender diversity numbers. The directive had asked these institutes to enroll at least 14 per cent female students from the 2018 academic session. The MHRD suggested that IITs should created supernumerary seats to increase the number of girl students getting enrolled in the institutes. The idea behind the directive was to restore a gender balance among premier colleges.

According to a report in TOI, most of the IITs have fulfilled the criterion and many have enrolled around 17 per cent female students in 2018.

Number of girl students getting enrolled in IIT Delhi has increased to 143 in 2018 as compared to just 93 last year. Similarly, IIT-Bombaby marks 15.4 per cent girl enrolment this year as compared to 10.7 per cent in 2017.

IIT-Madras enrolled 144 girls, IIT-BHU got 146 and IIT-Roorkee got 148 enrolments this year. The number of students taking admissions in these institutes in 2017 were 119, 75 and 80 respectively.

The MHRD had asked IITS to create an additional 779 supernumerary seats for female students.

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: Canton Caller Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: UGC denied IIT-M, Anna univ IoE status URL: https://cantoncaller.com/ugc-denied-iit-m-anna-univ-ioe-status/112530/\

UGC denied IIT-M, Anna univ IoE status

CHENNAI: Two premier institutes from Tamil Nadu — the state-run and IIT-Madras — that figured in the list of eight public institutions chosen as Institutions of Eminence (IoE) by an University Grants Commission-appointed panel, were denied the status of IoE by the UGC in its final list of six, which included three private institutions, to ensure “equal weightage for private and public institutions”.

A 21-page ‘report of empowered expert committee’ released by the UGC on Wednesday listed eight public institutions — IISC-Bangalore, IIT-Madras, IIT-Kharagpur, IIT-Bombay, IIT-Delhi, Delhi University, Jadavpur University and Anna University. However, the UGC picked only three institutions — IIT-Delhi, IITBombay and IISc-Bangalore — as they had the highest rank in the QS world university rankings (2018).

Experts: Unfair to compare IIT-M with pvt colleges

UGC chairman D P Singh said, “It was a decision taken keeping in mind the principle of equity. These other five public institutions will be considered by the commission at a later stage. We don’t know when it will happen.”

Tamil Nadu and Delhi had two institutions each making it to the list, but Tamil Nadu became theonly statetohavebothof them rejected,kicking off a debate in political and academic circles. “The policy is conceived in an extraordinarily casual manner. Comparing IITs and IISc with Manipal University or BITS- Pilani is ridiculous. Across the globe, such status is accorded only to institutes that have high research outputs. The research output of is far superior to that of private universities,” said Anna University former vice-chancellor M Anandakrishnan, who was also the director of Kanpur.

“The UGC has concluded that one yet-to-be established university has a potential to become autonomous, scuttling chances of institutions that have been proving themselves for decades just because they did not figure in international rankings,” he said.

While higher education minster K P Anbalagan did not respond to calls, higher education secretary Sunil Paliwal said the state was happy that Anna University figured in the list of premier institutions. “We always knew it was a good institution but now we know it is among the top eight public institutions across the country. It is only a matter of time before we get the IoE status,” he said.

Opposition parties like the DMK were not convinced. “It is unfair to drop two of our institutions because they did not figure in international rankings. It denies these institutions and its students the grant and allowancesthey rightfully own,” said former education minister Thangam Thenarasu. The state, he said, should take it up with the Centre. “It will be unfortunate if we don’t fight,” he said.

Earlier, chairman of the empowered committee N Gopalaswami also admitted that large share of weightage was given to perceptions in international rankings. “Number of foreign faculty and students does play a part. Many don’t choose Chennai because it is very hot, and instead prefer a more salubrious climate. So although research and per person output at IIT-M may be good, they were behind others in the international ranking,” he said.

IIT Madras director Bhaskar Ramamurthi said he was happy to know his institute made it to thefinaleight,but addedthattheonly option for the institute now was to wait. “We believe we can be IoE. In our presentation, we gave a clear pathway,” he said. “But frankly, I don’t know how we can improve people’s perceptions to get higher world rankings,” he said.

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: Golem De Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: India's RISC V-CPU Shakti boots Linux URL: https://www.golem.de/news/freier-befehlssatz-indiens-risc-v-cpu-shakti-bootet-linux-1807- 135766.html

India's RISC V-CPU Shakti boots Linux

The technical university of Madras in India works on open-source CPUs based on the free instruction set RISC-V . The project now reports a first success: The first tape-out starts a Linux distribution. The first production of the Shakti CPUs succeeded. The first production of the Shakti CPUs succeeded. (Image: Shakti Processors )

As part of a larger-scale project designed to make India's IT more independent, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) is creating Madras CPU designs based on the RISC-V free instruction set. The team now announces a success of the CPUs called Shakti during the initial tape-out, ie the first test production: The CPUs are running as desired and a Linux distribution can be started on them.

Job market Damovo Germany GmbH & Co. KG, Munich ABB AG, Ladenburg

The test series is manufactured in Intel's 22 nm FinFET low-power technology (FFL), in the first experiments the CPU cores clocked at 400 MHz. The now available CPUs are the smallest version of the planned Shakti CPUs. A lecture at the RISC-V workshop ( PDF ) said they should be able to compete with ARM's Cortex-A35 and A55 in the long term, even if the team is not ready yet. The presentation also provides further details on the planned microarchitecture and the pipeline used.

The Red Hat employee and the Linux distribution Fedora, among others, for the initial support of the RISC-V architecture developer Richard WM Jones writes in a comment on the Linux support of the Shakti CPU cores that this is the command extension RVC not supported for compressed commands. The previously created Linux distributions for RISC-V therefore could not start directly on the Shakti CPUs.

Rather, the Linux distributions would have to be completely recompiled for use on the Shakti cores. These versions are then not directly compatible with each other. This could lead to a similar fragmentation, as is already the case for the ARM CPU architecture, Jones fears. The fact that the Shakti CPUs do not use RVC is simply because RVC was not standardized at the time of the design phase of the Shakti cores and was treated as an optional extension to RISC-V.

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication:HwSw Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: The first Indian processor is ready URL: https://www.hwsw.hu/hirek/59167/shakti-processzor-india-intel-22nm-finfet-risc-v.html

The first Indian processor is ready

The development of the "home" Indian processor has been under way for years, and the process has now come to an important milestone. Let's get acquainted with Shaktival! The Indian processor is booting - the development team announced on Twitter. The development project under the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT Madras) in Madras has reached an important milestone, and the prototype of the developed chip is already operational. According to online information, the IIT project was launched in 2014 and aims at developing and manufacturing a freely usable, more and more popular RISC-V instructional architecture. The Shakti project chips are fully open source and patent-free, with Berkeley's ISA being chosen.

The other goal of the project is to establish the Indian CPU-building ecosystem, which means that there are more experienced engineers in the country who have been involved in the development and preparation of microcontrollers, processors and processors. "We do not know how much we will be successful, and honestly, I do not care. What we want to achieve (and what we have already achieved) is to have the critical mass of CPU architectures in India, to create a local fab [semiconductor] ecosystem , which can handle any type of CPU planning and provide a good data for practical CPU design knowledge, so we can become the world's top 5 CPU design laboratory. " "says GS Madhusudan, a project leader.

The first family member

As we said, the Shakti project is not a single chip, designers have just dreamed of a whole family that can cover the market from the simplest IoT devices to powerful servers. The big plans have made modest results for the time being, while the "C-class" processor is working, which is rather a microcontroller, but it can launch the Linux kernel. The prototype operates at 400 MHz clock, and the size and consumption optimized chip size is only 4x4 millimeters. shakti1

The @ShaktiProcessors official Twitter user has dropped more details on the operating chips, according to which the chip is not being manufactured at one of Taiwan's wage barges, but on the Intel (!) 22 nanometer FinFET process. It does not matter ultramodern, but we can not talk about an ancestor, the process is better than what small research projects can afford to do in general.

The Shakti C-class is scheduled for production and use, according to Hacker News commentators , will soon be in charge of a pilot nuclear reactor control unit - the rest being the music of the future.

The comprehensive diaspora of the developers gives a good picture of the microarchitecture, that is, the actual physical implementation . According to this, it is a very simple, in-order core using only 6-stage conveyor belts that are roughly aligned with the Cortex-A35 and Cortex-A55. The chip also includes a powerful industry estimator (this is the secret weapon for big processor manufacturers), which is, in any case, relatively straightforward. In the spirit of open source implementation, creators have also overwritten IP from other free projects, for example, the DRAM controller comes from OpenCores. shakti2

Electronics imports

India and China are facing a very similar problem: although both countries have become increasingly strong in IT, IT-based services and manufacturing have been able to really root. R & D and manufacturing of the most important components continue to avoid these countries, they have been retained by US- Japanese-Korean-Taiwan companies - whether they are processors, NAND or DRAM memories. And like China, India feels its economic pressure: both countries import more components than oil, which makes the country's economy very vulnerable.

How excellent an illustration is ZTE's example: the company employs tens of thousands of employees in China, one of the giants of the global telecommunications market, but when it placed the United States export blacklist, it had to shut down its economic activity immediately: without the necessary components, the company was unpatriotic .

Of course, it is not the defense sector either: India is a military force with nuclear weapons, intercontinental ballistic missiles. Tens of billions of dollars in projects also need their own semiconductors, and it's no coincidence that the Indian government is very active in financing the Shakti project. What is surprising, however, is the size of the private sector, the international large corporations - both in the financing of the project and on the other hand as a potential outlet market. For this reason, the makers plan to put the tiles in a very sharp way, not as a research chips, but on real, competitive solutions on the market.

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline:Parliament updates live | Lok Sabha passes Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Bill URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/parliament-updates-live-day-9/article24560085.ece

Parliament updates live | Lok Sabha passes Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Bill

The Hindu Net Desk JULY 31, 2018 10:47 IST

UPDATED: JULY 31, 2018 22:12 IST

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War of words between ruling and opposition members in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

War of words between ruling and opposition members in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. | Photo Credit: RSTV

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Parliament proceedings

Before I start my speech, I would like to ask a question. Is Piyush Goyal a caretaker Finance Minister or a full-fledged Finance Minister: Trinamool Congress leader

On Tuesday, the government hoped to discuss and pass four Bills each in both Houses of Parliament. The Assam National Register of Citizens (NRC) issue, which led to the adjournment of the Rajya Sabha on Monday echoed in the House on Tuesday also.

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned till noon. When it reconvened, the Chair allowed a discussion on the issue of non-inclusion of over 40 lakh names in the draft NRC and was adjourned for the day at 1.10 p.m. Lok Sabha passed Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Bill.

Here are the live updates:

LOK SABHA | 6.50 P.M.

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018 is passed.

House is adjourned for the day.

LOK SABHA | 6.40 P.M.

The Congress walks out of the Lok Sabha.

LOK SABHA | 6.30 P.M.

N.K. Premachandran, RSP, Kollam, : "What has happened from June 6 till the day this monsoon session started? We can see that promulgation of ordinance was a necessity. At the time of passing and consideration of the bill, I had moved the amendment in case of creditors. But I don't see the amendment. What is the significance of the 66%? We are challenging the credibility of the government. We oppose the amendment."

LOK SABHA | 6.10 P.M.

Deputy Speaker M. Thambi Durai extends the house to continue the discussion.

Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal replies to the many concerns raised by members: "All the proposed amendments were accepted. We tightened our own powers. Committee had given a suggestion for a big power but we said Centre shouldn't get the power. Bringing an ordinance became necessary."

"We won't know whether the law is secured or not. NCLT will determine that. Qualitative and quantitative criteria is taken into consideration. Committee of creditors take decision based on many factors. Evaluation matrix will also be determined and decided in the COC file."

"When it comes to loans, restructuring keeps happening over the years. After this law came to force, people came forth to pay off their Rs. 1380 crores of money. We have changed the situation and now bank loans are being paid off by the people."

"Bankers have made an inter-bank agreement for recovering loans, cooperation and more. Now banks will work together in an organised fashion. We take an oath to make banks work better."

"For common man, underprivileged, youth and women, Mujra loans and Pradhan Mantri Yojanas has helped and given strength to the lower and middle class to own a house."

Read more

LOK SABHA | 5.55 P.M.

Rajesh Ranjan (Pappu Yadav), RJD, Bihar: "What is the way for 120 crores of middle class youth, farmers? This IBC bill should be helpful for common man. Law should be for common man."

Sharad Tripathi, BJP, Uttar Pradesh: "It is good that due to this Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Bill, companies run behind banks instead of vice versa. NCLT has got many applications and our govt has solved many issues."

LOK SABHA | 5.35 P.M.

Prem Singh Chandumajra, SAD, Punjab: "Is there any bill for farmers like this IBC bill? To avoid their bankruptcy and suicides. It would be great if measures are being taken for farmers."

Jay Prakash Narayan Yadav, RJD, Banka, Bihar: "A goat doesn't make friendship with grass." Members oppose his remark. Mr. Jay Prakash says, "Please listen to my words. Nirav Modi, Vijay Mallya, Lalit Modi are all gone. But Dalits are not spared. Farmers are not spared. Demonetisation, GST, spoiled the common man's jobs and lives. An association should be made and justice should be given to all."

Dushyant Chautala, INLD, Hisar, Haryana: "How many 1000s of cases should be put under NCLT? When we talk about ten special courts, lets think that they'll get justice in 3 years. When matters go to NCLT, no one would be able to become the owner of their house even for 10 years. Under the definition of a financial creditor, would you give me the authority of my house or to the creditor? Only the flats under the BJP majority states have been looted."

LOK SABHA | 5.15 P.M. Renuka Butta, YSRCP, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh: "Recycling activity in economy will lead to employment creation which leads to growth in economy. Insolvency and bankruptcy laws make recovery of debt a cumbersome process. But these amendments provide relief to home buyers. Reduction of voting threshold is aimed at quick dispersal. I support the amendment."

LOK SABHA | 5.10 P.M.

P. Karunakaran, CPI-M, Kasaragod, Kerala: "What is the objective of this ordinance? Here we can see that it is not a social or administrative demand? But only one committee is moving this, so I strongly oppose this. Insolvency is a situation where individuals or companies are unable to pay their debt. Here, the govt has to clarify for whom the amendment has been made. As stated by other members, it is clear. It is not for social or economical purpose. It is only for one committee."

LOK SABHA | 5.00 P.M.

Konda Vishweshwar Reddy, TRS, Telangana: "We've accumulated bad karma in the form of insolvency. Ease of doing business is important, but equally important is ease of resolution. The nature of the frauds triggering insolvency has increased. Why is there such a stark difference. We are by and large honest people. This Bill is also used to protecting the honest people. Should the law be tight, should it be liberal. I agree with Mr. Goyal because in some cases, 76% threshold is very harmful. The ordinance route definitely raises eyebrows and voices in the Parliament."

LOK SABHA | 4.55 P.M.

Jaidev Galla, TDP, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh: "The bill is silent on whether the allottees are secured or unsecured. I request the Finance Minister to clarify this. Whether the amendment in relation to home buyers is prospective or retrospective. I'd like to know the recommendations that were not accepted in this bill. I'd like to know what the Ministry is doing in this regard. Since we are talking about bankruptcy, due to the undemocratic way in which AP was bifurcated, we demand the Special Category Status should be accorded to Andhra Pradesh."

LOK SABHA | 4.45 P.M.

Vinayak Bhaurao Raut, of Shiv Sena, Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, Maharashtra: "What is there for common man? There is a possibility of the NPA of cooperative credit societies. But it doesn't happen. Be it Mumbai, Kolkata or Pune, advertisements are being put up and people tend to believe them and buy houses. But even after booking in housing society or apartment complexes, they don't get the houses." LOK SABHA | 4.35 P.M.

Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal: "Since many ministers have raised this issue, I'd like to talk about it. Because of a small minority, because the threshold was kept high, it may lead to liquidation. Since many members are under a wrong impression, let me clarify. There is no resolution which is complete as yet. The other option was resolution. I think the members are giving a wrong idea."

LOK SABHA | 4.20 P.M.

"This is the second amendment to The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2018. I would say it is a big amendment, number of clauses are there. This amendment runs into 40 clauses. I'm not opposed to all "What prompted you for an amendment in the month of June? What specific steps have been taken through this ordinance that has helped to do away with bad debt? We are just trying to amend the act in just an afterthought. This government is a thinking government. In this specific process of the law, number of sections are being amended."

"Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code provides a forum for businesses. If a company has defaulted, surely, admitting such a case should be an administrative matter. Similarly, if a checklist approach is adopted, surely the process of admission would be quicker. What if there in an error in the calculation. For all this, the apex court has said, judicial bench should hear out parties. A template approach is made to reduce the time drastically."

"The questions that beg answers are, 'How can misconduct be established without adjudication'? 'Why should stakeholders who are victims be excluded from the process'?"

"When haircut is done, all are happy. Bad loan resolution does nothing. Banks face no punishment for writing off the loan. This is not something one should relish. Who is going to protect the public money. But adequate measures need to be taken. If IBC is able to do that, then let the Minister share his wisdom."

LOK SABHA | 4 P.M.

West Bengal MP of AITC, Prof Saugata Roy says, "We are in the worst crisis. There are so many defaulters who owe banks. Now RBI has introduced a prompt correction action. It has told a bank like Dena Bank, not to lend at all. Bank's income is by lending money. In this crisis under Mr. Moily's committee, they see some hope in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). IBC is leading to what Mr. Venugopal mentioned it as it is leading to crony capitalism."

"Before I start my speech, I would like to ask a question. Is Piyush Goyal a caretaker Finance Minister or a full-fledged Finance Minister. Banks have lost Rs. 21,000 crores. The dues to the banks are Rs. 13,600 crores. Banks sacrifice Rs. 25,000 crores. IBC is a good law. But IBC is not a panacia. We've led this country into a blind ally. IBC bill is limited in individual bankruptcy. As an Indian I cannot see our banking industry collapse. The haircut advantages do not go to the pockets of the banks." “Minister Piyush Goyal has written to the Chairman of the Committee saying that the government has decided to withdraw the bill... This is a victory of the opposition.”

LOK SABHA | 3.30 P.M.

K. Venugopal of the AIADMK says it would be better if the government provides a debt threshold. He says he welcomes the amendment.

LOK SABHA | 3 P.M.

Deputy Speaker M. Thambidurai is in the Chair.

Congress member M. Veerappa Moily is asked to speak next. But party leader Mallikarjuna Kharge says that the Opposition has the right to initiate a debate on a Bill.

Mr. Moily says that there should be checks and balances for any business.

He says the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has become an easy instrument now.

H says the Ordinance is tainted. Point at the BJP, he says, “Your stock answer is that NPA is a problem passed down to you, but what have you done about this problem other than just raise your hands?”

LOK SABHA | 2.30 P.M.

Mr. Premachandran claims that the Ordinance was passed to benefit certain corporates. He says the Ordinance was promulgated just in time for Reliance to benefit from it for the purchase of another company.

Kirit Somaiya of the BJP rises to speak. He says if the previous government had taken NPAs seriously, this wouldn’t have happened.

He says the BIFR exercise was a miserable failure. He says nothing was done for 10 years.

He says the government gives open, transparent loans.

LOK SABHA | 2.20 P.M.

Piyush Goyal introduces The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill, 2018 for consideration and passing.

The Bill amends the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 to clarify that allottees under a real estate project should be treated as financial creditors.

The voting threshold for routine decisions taken by the committee of creditors has been reduced from 75% to 51%. For certain key decisions, this threshold has been reduced to 66%. The Bill allows the withdrawal of a resolution application submitted to the NCLT under the Code. This decision can be taken with the approval of 90% of the committee of creditors. - PRS India

N.K. Premachandran rises to oppose the Bill. He wants to know the urgency involved in promulgation of an Ordinance.

RAJYA SABHA | 1:10 PM

Rajya Sabha adjourned for the day.

LOK SABHA | 12:55 PM

Lok Sabha, in the mean time took up Zero Hour. Members raise the NRC issue. Speaker allows them to speak but reminds that it was raised yesterday as well.

George Baker, nominated member, claims local elections in were conducted in undemocratic manner.

KC Venugopal raises the issue of TRAI Chairman's "dare" on Twitter.

Joice George,Idukki member, was the Central government to issue advisory to neighbouring Tamil Nadu on possible spate of Periyar river since the Idukki dam will be opened.

Ewly-elected Phulpur member Nagendra Pratap Singh says local people are not given preference in factories functioning in his area.

Santosh Ahlawat (BJP) wants Philani to be connected through UDAAN.

Jitendra Chaudhury (CPI-M) talks about Bru refugees living in Tripura.

Shrikant Shinde talks about railway fractures. He wants the vacancy of gang men and safety posts must be filled up as a priority.

House adjourned till 2:20 pm Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: Rubber News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Continental partners with UC Berkeley for AI research URL: http://www.rubbernews.com/article/20180731/NEWS/180739984/continental-partners-with-uc- berkeley-for-ai-research

Continental partners with UC Berkeley for AI research Comments Email Print

International Tire Non Tire Automotive Manufacturing More +

BERKELEY, Calif.—Continental A.G. signed a membership agreement with an artificial intelligence research group at the University of California, Berkeley.

The company's five-year membership in the UC Berkeley DeepDrive center is part of a drive to expand Continental's international research network for AI, according to a company release.The research partnership focuses on optimizing the speed of neural networks, as well as protecting AI systems in safety-critical applications.

The partnership builds on the momentum of Continental's strategic partnerships with the University of Oxford, German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence and other AI thought leaders, said Demetrio Aiello, head of Continental's corporate AI and robotics lab.BDD, managed by the Institute of Transportation Studies at UC Berkeley, works on technologies for machine seeing and learning in automotive technologies. Trevor Darrell, professor and director of the Partners for Advanced Transportation Technology program, leads the group.

In the first year of the program membership, Continental and BDD will start with work in the testability of AI algorithms in safety-relevant systems. The research group also is looking into operating AI applications in a memory-efficient method to optimize neural networks, for easier implementation of AI methods in vehicles.

UC Berkeley's research in the field of Explainable AI, which focuses on how an AI system makes decisions, was what inspired Continental most to team up with the group, said Aiello. The partnership also helps Continental identify the talent needed for its AI strategies.

Continental's corporate AI and robotics lab, set up in 2015, has led to collaborations with Nvidia and Baidu, as well as research institutes such as the University of Oxford, the Technische Universitat Darmstadt and the Indian Institute of Technology Madras. By the end of 2018, Continental will employ about 400 engineers with specific AI expertise, and is looking to add AI experts in product and process development.

In 2018, the Continental Advanced Driver Assistance Systems business unit opened a center of excellence for deep machine learning in Budapest, Hungary. Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: DNA Edition: Delhi / Ahmedabad Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Headline: Centre nod to set up 8 new centres of excellence: Min

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: Ongoing works a spillover from first phase: NTECL URL: https://www.dtnext.in/News/City/2018/08/01010646/1082311/Ongoing-works-a-spillover-from- first-phase-NTECL.vpf

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: Telangana Today Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 13 Journalist: NA Headline: Centre approves eight centres for competitiveness

Date: 1st August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: AI dashboard to process big data URL: https://www.dtnext.in/News/City/2018/08/01004112/1082306/Artificial-Intelligence-dashboard- to-process-big-data.vpf?TId=112132

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Power consumption must increase, says scientist URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/power-consumption-must-increase-says- scientist/article24576605.ece

Power consumption must increase, says scientist

R. Chidambaram, DAE-Homi Bhabha Chair Professor, BARC, presenting the graduation certificate to a student on Wednesday. R. Chidambaram, DAE-Homi Bhabha Chair Professor, BARC, presenting the graduation certificate to a student on Wednesday. | Photo Credit: K_Pichumani

R. Chidambaram addresses students at Anna University A country’s development can be measured by the per capita electricity consumption and female literacy.

For India to become a developed country, its per capita electricity consumption must increase by six times, said DAE-Homi Bhabha Chair professor at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre R. Chidambaram.

All energy options, including nuclear, renewable and ultra supercritical thermal plants, are important for India to become a developed country, he said.

He was speaking at the graduation day ceremony of Anna University, including College of Engineering, Guindy, Madras Institute of Technology, AC College of Technology and School of Architecture and Planning, on Wednesday. He called for higher interaction between academia and industry. “In developed countries, the industry awaits new knowledge coming out of the academic system. In India, this happens only in some fields such as nuclear, space, missiles and knowledge chemicals,” he said.

Mr. Chidambaram urged the university to prepare for such knowledge demand from the Indian industry in the near future and suggested that the institution revive its collaborative research association with the Society for Electronics Transactions and Security, funded by the office of the Principal Scientific Advisor of India.

The focus of SETS was on emerging technologies such as IoTs, cloud computing and quantum computing. The University had signed an agreement over a decade ago for research but it had since lapsed, he said.

Anna University could collaborate with the Indian Institute of Technology - Madras in developing innovative programmes under the Rural Technology Action Group, he suggested.

“We need advanced technology superstructure but it cannot be built without the foundation of high- quality higher education and basic research. To become a knowledge-driven economy, India should have the ambition to be the first introducer of new advanced technologies,” Mr. Chidambaram said.

On the occasion, 55 students received proficiency medals and as many as 4,127 candidates graduated from various undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in the University.

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: Deccan Chronicle Edition: Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: AI system for managing and forecasting flood in Chennai soon URL: https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/020818/ai-system-for-managing-and- forecasting-flood-in-chennai-soon.html

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: The Hans India Edition: Online Journalist: Jagruthi Maddela Headline: Abhishek Banerjee comes unprepared to Lok Sabha URL: http://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/National/2018-08-01/Abhishek-Banerjee-comes- unprepared-to-Lok-Sabha/402722

Abhishek Banerjee comes unprepared to Lok Sabha

NEW DELHI: On Tuesday, nephew of , Abhishek Banerjee was found coming unprepared to the Lok Sabha. He is member of the Trinamool Congress party.

One of his question was starred along with TRS member K Kavitha. In the Lok Sabha, the answer to a starred question is given orally on the floor of the House during the Question Hour if time is available.

Speaker Sumitra Mahajan called out Abhishek’s name as Kavitha was not present in the House at that time. But he was incognizant then and the Speaker told him, “Your question has come. Leave it if you forgot.”

Members of TMC came to help him by showing him the listed question and telling him how to ask supplementary when the Union Minister of state for heavy industries Babul Supriyo told the answer. This act evoked laughter among members on the treasury bench.

“First of all, I would really want to thank our learned senior member, Saugata Roy, for doing the necessary thing to remind him about the question that has been asked,” said Supriyo.

He added that, “The government has approved setting up of eight centres of excellence enhancement of competitiveness in the capital goods sector.”

The question was related to set up of the centres of excellence for technological development and its state wise location in the country. The approved centres will be at IIT Madras, Chennai and CMTI- Bangalore; PSG college of Technology in Coimbatore, IIT Kharagpur, HEC in Ranchi, SiTrac, IISc and IIT Delhi.

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: Know Start up Edition: Online Journalist: NA Alumni: Satish Kannan and Enbasekar D Headline: This startup is your one stop solution to all the health needs DocsApp URL: http://knowstartup.com/2018/08/startup-one-stop-solution-health-needs-docsapp/

This startup is your one stop solution to all the health needs – DocsApp

In the busy humdrum of the NewGen high-stress society, where erratic schedules, commuting costs and other restrictions add to one’s inability to visit the doctor, DocsApp is a remedy. The one-of-a-kind mobile app connects doctors with patients through a chat or call on the go. Efficient and convenient, the consultation app brings you medical attention in maximum 30 minutes and medicines at your doorstep. DocsApp — A cost-effective solution for primary healthcare, second opinion in chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiac ailments, arthritis and cancer, and access to quality medical consultation across geographical locations.

Launched in July 2015, DocsApp is the brainchild of IIT Madras alumni Satish Kannan and Enbasekar D. In 2013, when the duo began working on the concept, they realized that 72% health issues can be handled by remote doctor intervention, and diagnosed and treated online. They leveraged the opportunity to bring in the WhatsApp of Healthcare’by drawing up three primary TA clusters:

Busy professionals with little time to visit the doctor.Those hesitant in visiting specialistssuch as sexologists and psychiatrists/psychologists

Those living in far-flung remote towns/cities and without access to specialists

Today, DocsApp provides specialists’ services for all age groups in several key disciplines such as dermatology, gynaecology, sexology, paediatrics, general medicine, psychiatry, weight management etc.

Founder DocsApp

Satish Kannan is the Co-founder and CEO of DocsApp, a one-of-its-kind app that connects doctors with patients on the go and provides efficient and convenient diagnostic services and medicines at their doorsteps. Holding a leadership role that entails being responsible for the company’s overall performance, Satish oversees all key aspects of business development, sales, operations, fundraising and making business strategies for the company. With his expertise and understanding in the healthcare space, he aims to make DocsApp a complete healthcare platform for the patients to get authentic and relevant consultation for all their health queries.

A B. Tech and an M. Tech in Electrical engineering from IIT Madras, Satish kick-started his career with Philips Healthcare, doing Research and Development on large machines used by cardiologist and ortho specialist doctors for conducting surgeries. Satish conceptualized the idea of DocsApp after realising that a majority health issues existing in the present day, do not require a physical examination and can be diagnosed and treated online. His innovative idea helped him raise $1.4 million for the start-up. Today, Satish works with a team of 40 members, building products that have an enormous impact on billions of people across the world and contributing towards making DocsApp a leader in the online doctor consultation space.

The DocsApp Edge

Transparent, tech-enabled,Round-the-clock and multi-language service

About 3000 Doctors and above available for consultation online

Services across India reaching out to over 200,000 patients

Over 3,000 pathlabs within patients’ reach with DocsApp

Assistance 360°: Doctors on call, medicine support and sample collection at home

Conforms toWHO’s 3As – Availability, Affordability & Accessibility

Patients across India can avail consultation from specialists via chat or call through DocsApp. Given the shortage of doctors and with around 97% specialists practicing in big/metro cities, DocsApp helps bridge gap between Indian people and specialist doctors. All DocsApp doctors are verified thoroughly with 3 step verification process and have 5+ years of experience. Bangalore-based, DocsApp began with a team of 6; it is 80+-strong today.

How does DocsApp work: Download App | Choose discipline for consultation | Upload the symptoms/ diagnosis/your medical history | Pay a nominal fee | Get consulted.

With funds worth $1.2 million (INR8+ crore) from Japanese VC Rebright partners, Anand Rajaraman, GSF Accelerator, IIT-M Incubation Center and other top angels like Vijay ShekharSharma(Paytm), Anupam Mittal (Shaadi.com), Rajesh Sawhney(GSF), Srikanth Sundararajan (Helion), the platform aims to grow its the user base to 1 million patients in 2018. The company further received additional funding of 7.2 million from Bessemer Venture Partners and Japanese investors in 2017. It eventually envisions making world-class, high-quality healthcare accessible to the masses in the country by building technological solutions that can assist doctors in providing impeccable consultation and disease diagnosis.

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: CNBC TV Edition: Online Journalist: NA Alumni: Ganesh Mani Headline: Hyundai just set itself a massive production target, here’s how it plans to get there URL: https://www.cnbctv18.com/auto/hyundai-just-set-itself-a-massive-production-target-heres-how- it-plans-to-get-there-416651.htm

Hyundai just set itself a massive production target, here’s how it plans to get there

The automaker hit the 8-million mark in sales in just 19 years and 9 months since it began production in 1998. Nearly 5.3 million of the manufactured cars were sold in India, to Indian customers.

Hyundai’s managing director YK Koo, in a recently organised press events, threw light on how Hyundai India had become the “fastest Indian auto manufacturer” to cross the 8-million mark in sales earlier this year. Note the emphasis on ‘Indian’.

The South Korean automaker hit the milestone in just 19 years and 9 months since it began production in 1998. Nearly 5.3 million of the manufactured cars were sold in India, to Indian customers. These statistics make Hyundai Motor India Limited the nation’s second-largest automobile manufacturer.

Plant expansion to drive sales

“We’re currently doing 75:25 — 75 percent for the export market and 25 percent for the domestic market,” said Koo, in an interview with CNBC-TV18. “By 2021, Hyundai Motor India’s contribution to the domestic market will be higher — may be 80 percent," he added.

Koo’s statement is immensely significant, given that the company has now announced plans to hit the 10-million production mark by the first quarter of 2021. As part of that announcement, Hyundai Motor India is increasing the capacity of its Chennai plant from 7.13 lakh to 7.5 lakh units per year, by next year.

The increase in production is also being executed to facilitate production of three new products in two years — a family-oriented small car, an electric SUV and a sub-four-meter SUV. The small car, code- named AH2 will be ready in time for a pre-Diwali launch.

AH2 sales could be the key

A small car by Diwali is all that Hyundai hopes it will need to kick-start its target of 10 million cars by 2021. “We are targeting an age-bracket of 24 to 45,” said Puneet Anand, senior general manager and group head (Marketing). Anand added, “The AH2 could double-up as a possible first-car not only for a youngster, but someone with a family.”

Interesting to note is that with the launch of the AH2, Hyundai will close the gap between the Eon and Grand i10, ensuring one product across price-brackets in its hatchback portfolio. This was the space that was occupied by the Hyundai Santro. “We are targeting sales volumes of 8,000 to 10,000 units per month, once the AH2 launches,” said Koo. “The plan is to become a full-portfolio player and give our audience a wider range to choose from,” Anand added.

Only months ago, speculation was rife that Hyundai would go so far as to christen the car, ‘Santro’, thereby striking an emotive chord with 5.4 million customers. That isn’t to be, considering the auto major will begin a naming campaign starting mid-August inviting suggestions for naming the AH2.

On track to getting there

Back at the plant, there’s a noticeable air of excitement as it gears up for the new rollouts. The plant’s senior vice president for production, Ganesh Mani, said that preparations are already well in place for the 10-million target. “It’s all about ensuring that our 20-year-old plant can run seamlessly for 24 hours a day and six days a week,” he said, “In the light of the new launches and enhanced production targets, we’ve adopted predictive maintenance as opposed to preventive maintenance when it comes to plant upkeep and readiness.”

Ganesh said that nearly 30 engineers at Hyundai India were enrolled at a data analytics course from IIT Madras. “It’s all about ensuring that we make the best use of existing data and sensors on our equipment, to ensure we derive the best of our efficiencies,” he explained.

The preparation is of immense importance since Hyundai India will have to register consistently upward- looking growth numbers, if the company is to meet the mark. In the first half of 2018, the company sold 2,75,136 units, registering a year-on-year growth of 8.6 percent. “Even though sales volumes for Diwali will be high, they will reduce by November and December. But we are still expecting an eight to ten percent year-on-year growth,” said Koo.

But there’s one obstacle ...

And that’s Indian taxation. Once the AH2 and the sub-four-metre QXi are launched and sold, Hyundai India will have to bank on sales of its electric SUV to sustain growth. Standing in its way will be a possible 12 percent GST on electric vehicles. There’s also lack of clarity over whether an electric SUV will fall under the GST bracket for EVs or SUVs. The latter would attract a GST of 28 percent, and cess of 22 percent, totaling to 50 percent in taxes.

“The government wants to focus on EV products, which are zero-emission products. So, we decided to plan the launch of an electric SUV by 2019,” said Koo, “But we will need support on the GST front. We will require a reduction on GST for EV products from 12 percent to 5 percent, and an import-duty-cut on CKD (Completely Knocked Down) kits for electric vehicles.”

Volume vs value Through these ambitious plans though, the one statistic that Hyundai is tight-lipped about, is market share. At 16 percent, that number has remained relatively stagnant for the last couple of years. Given that the plant will freeze production at 7.5 lakh and stay that way till 2020, Hyundai has stopped short of predicting where its market share is heading.

Koo’s favourite line remains- “We are not looking at market leadership in volume, but in terms of value.” That quip comes even as the company aims to be volume-heavy in the next couple of years, in its march to 10 million. A lthough Hyundai may not want to admit it, if its production targets are met, the company’s volume game too, might solidify.

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: EinnNews Edition: Online Journalist: NA Alumni: Arifa Headline: Himalaya Capital Exchange & Symphony ICOs kick off Europe Roadshow in London, Paris, Zurich, Berlin Aug 2018 URL: https://www.einnews.com/pr_news/457212232/himalaya-capital-exchange-symphony-icos-kick- off-europe-roadshow-in-london-paris-zurich-berlin-aug-2018

Himalaya Capital Exchange & Symphony ICOs kick off Europe Roadshow in London, Paris, Zurich, Berlin Himalaya Capital Exchange revolutionising the securities industry

Himalaya Capital Exchange - The Next Generation Borderless Stock Exchange that runs on Smart Contracts unstoppable Capital Europe Roadshow August 2018

HCX & Symphony ICOs Roadshow. Don't miss the free token drop!

Himalaya Capital Exchange (HCX) kicks off Token Storm Europe Roadshow - London, Paris, Zurich, Berlin August 2018 with Symphony ICO

Capital flows along the path of least resistance, like water. HCX is creating a new paradigm for capital markets, democratising and making the process frictionless, removing intermediaries and fees.”— John Puttick, CSOLONDON , LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM, August 1, 2018 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Himalaya Capital Exchange (HCX) and Symphony are revolutionary Blockchain projects that are poised to occupy pioneering positions in the crypto economy, and the ICOs are hosting meetings and presentations in Europe during 13 August to 20 August, to meet crypto enthusiasts, crypto funds, influencers, asset management and capital markets professionals across the European & MENA hubs:

London – 13 August 6-9pm - Rise London, 41 Luke Street

Paris – 16 August 12-5pm - Sofitel Arc Du Triomphe

Zurich – 17 August 12-6pm - St Gotthard Hotel, Bahnofstrasse

Berlin – 20 August 6-9pm - Impact hub, Friedrichestrasse

Dubai - 27 August 9-6pm - Ramada Plaza Jumeirah

RSVP to events here http://fintechstorm.eventbrite.com To get an invitation to private presentations, please email [email protected]

About Symphony Protocol:

Symphony Protocol is a next-generation, blockchain based protocol to empower a data-driven economy. It is an infrastructure layer project, which will form the basis of an ecosystem of decentralized applications that focus on data intelligence, and creating an asset class for personal data. Symphony token sale is in the cornerstone & private sale stage. Currently, Symphony is backed by BMG Fund and others. www.symphonyprotocol.com https://www.youtube.com/JIaO5BJGecY

About HCX (Himalaya Capital Exchange): A Security Token Issuance Platform

Himalaya Capital Exchange is a project aimed at creating a tokenised platform for Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) on a global, borderless, stock exchange. The Platform As a Service eco-system would offer an alternative to investment banks that are currently mandated to lead-manage IPOs, and give corporates, governments, and other entities raising public capital a less costly, and more democratic option with instant access to global investors. We are giving entrepreneurs everywhere the chance to create their own shares and bonds, and raise money within minutes from across the world frictionlessly. The platform would run on smart contract algorithms and at a later point make use of Machine Learning and AI in matching and creating a marketplace. This will be a first of its kind securities marketplace governed by token holders. Currently HCX is backed by John Puttick (Chairman of GBST), Arun Sharma (Vice Chancellor at Queensland University), Leanne Kemp (CEO of Everledger), Ghanshyam Dass (ex Director of NASDAQ & Board Member of KPMG), Mario Pazos (Pazos Law, USA) and others. Currently in private token sale before launching the public pre sale of tokens in Oct18.

Arifa Khan, CEO, is a crypto pioneer who authored the first ever Concept Paper on decentralising capital markets (June 2017) before security tokens were invented. She later architected a platform ecosystem for capital markets participants in her revolutionary white paper published and presented to Nick Szabo on 25 May 2018. She founded HCX in 2017- a decentralized stock exchange that runs trustlessly on smart contracts - to bring that vision to reality and travelled the world for a full year to educate non crypto savvy people in remote corners on the benefits of self-issuing security tokens. HCX is the first-of- its-kind disruption which automates the role of investment banks, and empowers entrepreneurs around the world to issue their own security tokens. Arifa Khan is India Partner of the Ethereum Foundation and leads Ethereum’s community development efforts in India & Middle East. She has an MBA from Wharton School of Business, and a B.Tech from IIT Madras. She is a sought after international public speaker and has given keynote speeches at several global forums such as Crypto Investor Show London, Bengaluru Tech Summit, D10e Davos, Ethereum India Summit, Blockchain UA Kiev, Blockchain & ICO Summit Istanbul, Hybrid Block Macau Summit, Himalaya Crypto Summit 2018. She is listed among Top 100 fintech influencers by Lattice80. Token Storm, part of Zero Field Labs - a Blockchain play - aims to create the foundations of a new token economy ecosystem which will bring together the world’s leading Blockchain startups along with key players in the crypto landscape spanning investors, innovators, developers, and crypto enthusiasts.

Token Storm provides global ICOs a platform to build community outreach in a global roadshow to create opportunities for education, on-boarding of users, and collaboration in the Blockchain ecosystem.

“Given the unprecedented growth of the Blockchain industry, Token Storm provides a ready marketing platform for ICOs, and for anyone to participate in the exciting crypto economy, earn free token airdrops, meet founders face to face, ask questions and learn about disruptions coming their way. We welcome ICOs to leverage our immense network and outreach and economies of scale in community building” said Arifa Khan, who is leading Token Storm Global Roadshow 2018. Previous ICO showcases have attracted thousands of participants and have featured the world’s most passionate crypto enthusiasts and prominent experts, and covered more than 10 countries in megapolis such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Seoul, Shanghai, London, Dubai, Istanbul, Kiev, Paris, Chennai.

The Asia Tour Sep 2018 kicks off with Bangkok 29 Aug, visits Kualalumpur, Shenzhen, HongKong 5 Sep, Shanghai 12 Sep, Seoul 14 Sep, Tokyo 16 Sep, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Singapore 20 Sep, and ends in London 26 Sep. In each city, Token Storm will facilitate ICOs engaging with Blockchain and Crypto community, and potential investors.

"We are delighted to participate in Token Storm events. With their global reach and network, Blockchain expertise and track record, Token Storm is the ideal venue for global disruptive ICOs to connect with investors and the public alike, to showcase their venture across the world, and to build a user community. Arifa Khan has been a pioneering eco system builder since blockchain’s early days. Her network and access in the crypto economy is phenomenal and one can only aspire to experience the richness of insights and the connections Token Storm have with the crypto innovators across the globe” says Mario Pazos, Blockchain Angel Investor and an early backer of HCX ICO.

Token Storm meetups at global financial hubs of the world represent a unique opportunity for tech enthusiasts, investors, developers and the local community to participate in Blockchain projects and witness first-hand the ICOs bringing a paradigm shift to various industries.

Date: 2nd August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Chennai Page No: 4 Journalist: NA Headline: FICCI, TNIE JOIN HANDS TO CURB ACCIDENTS

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Kolkata/Ahemdabad Page No: 11 Journalist: Manash Pratim Gohain Professor: Prof R Nagarajan Headline: IITs to form collective front to recruit foreign faculty URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/iits-to-form-collective-front-to-recruit- foreign-faculty/articleshow/65250989.cms

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Chennai / Delhi / Mumbai / Pune / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Kolkata / Kochi / Ahmedabad / Chandigarh Page No: 18 Journalist: NA Headline: UK-India Tech Hub will take collaboration to the next level, says UK Minister Sam Gyimah URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/uk-india-tech-hub-will-take-collaboration-to-the- next-level-says-uk-minister-sam-gyimah/article24584710.ece

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Sterlite’s claims misleading: activists URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/sterlites-claims-misleading- activists/article24586359.ece

Sterlite’s claims misleading: activists

Company refutes allegations The Chennai Solidarity Group on Thursday hit out at Vedanta Group’s Sterlite for undertaking a “multi- crore rupee propaganda” about the Thoothukudi Copper Smelter factory by making false claims.

Addressing a press conference here, environmentalist Nithyanand Jayaraman said Sterlite did not have the requisite land, was violating greenbelt requirements, had short chimneys and its sulphur dioxide (SO2) pollution was above the prescribed limits.

Based on data publicly available on the Sterlite plant, T. Swaminathan, retired professor of Chemical Engineering, IIT-Madras, said the chimney stacks attached to the copper smelter and acid plants were shorter than the legally prescribed size. “The chimney attached to the smelter is only 60 metres against a legally required minimum of 102.8 metres. The acid plant stack is a mere 60 metres against a legal minimum of 83.5 metres,” he said. Dr. Swaminathan further said the SO2 levels were unsafe at the ground level even when operated exactly as per design parameters. Based on the calculations made by the team and verified by the professor, “emissions from the acid plant will result in maximum SO2 ground level concentration (GLC) of 125 micrograms/m3 at a distance of 1.6 km. Emissions from the smelter will result in maximum SO2 GLC of 104 micrograms/m3 at a distance of 811 metres from the plant”.

Mr. Jayaraman, when asked why the issue of pollution was being raised by the group when the plant had been closed, alleged that the company was indulging in false propaganda and the data available proved that. “In 2017, the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board gave a show-cause notice to Sterlite for its high pollution levels. Why are they not telling the people about it?,” he asked.

Responding to the claims made by the Chennai Solidarity Group, Sterlite said: “The entire allegation on the short chimney is based on the wrong assumption of SO2 emission norm of 4 kg/tonne of sulphuric acid, whereas with superior technology like high efficiency catalyst and the ‘tail gas scrubbing’ unit, Sterlite is able to achieve a SO2 emission of much less than 1 kg/tonne of sulphuric acid.”

The company also provided a chart of production capacity for two units for which the chimney stack height prescribed by the TNPCB was 60.38 metres. Sterlite further said the company had clarified to TNPCB on the show cause notice issued to it, based on which the consent to operate was renewed and was valid till March 2018. It also said the greenbelt was complied for 25% of 172 hectares that was jointly inspeccted by CPCB and TNPCB, as appointed by the Supreme Court.

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Kochi/Bangalore Page No: 13 Journalist: J Deepthi Nandan Reddy Headline: Interspeech new focus area for Internet firms URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/business/2018/aug/03/interspeech-new-focus-area-for- internet-firms-1852461.html

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Delhi / Mumbai / Pune / Bangalore / Chennai / Kolkata / Kochi / Ahmedabad Page No: 15 Journalist: NA Headline: 16 innovations top IIGP 2.0 URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/16-innovations-top-iigp-20/article24584943.ece

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: News Bytes Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Ajinkya Deshmukh was one of 100 percentile scorers in CAT-2011 URL: https://www.newsbytesapp.com/timeline/India/28715/128716/all-about-the-cat-toppers-of-2011- 15

Where are the toppers of CAT (IIM) 2011-15 now?

All about the CAT toppers of 2011-15

Share your emotions

The Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) are the most sought-after B-schools that provide quality management education in the country.

Admission to IIMs is based on national-level management entrance examination, Common Admission Test (CAT), conducted annually by one of the IIMs.

Cracking CAT isn't easy and topping the exam is no small feat. Take a look some CAT (2011-15) toppers and what they're doing now.

In context: All about the CAT toppers of 2011-15

03 Aug 2018

Where are the toppers of CAT (IIM) 2011-15 now?

❮CAT 2011

Ajinkya Deshmukh was one of 100 percentile scorers in CAT-2011

Ajinkya Deshmukh of Maharashtra's Ambarnath was among the nine toppers of CAT 2011 who scored 100 percentile.

He did BTEch+MTech dual degree in Computer Science from IIT-Madras and worked as Senior Software Engineer for Credit Suisse before joining PGDM (Finance) at IIM, Bangalore.

He later worked for Ace Creative Learning and Uber and Co-Founded D4A Education Foundation; he now works with FinoZen in Bengaluru.

About Siddharth Sharma, one of the CAT 2012 toppers

CAT 2012 About Siddharth Sharma, one of the CAT 2012 toppers

Siddharth Sharma scored 100 percentile in CAT 2012 in maiden attempt to become one of the 10 toppers that year.

He was in fourth-year of BTech in Electrical Engineering at IIT, Kanpur when he appeared for CAT.

He later went on to do his MBA in Finance and Marketing from IIM, Bangalore. He currently works as an Associate for McKinsey & Company in Mumbai.

CAT 2013

Karthik Kumar scored 100 percentile in his second attempt

Karthik Kumar Immaneni was one of the four toppers from Andhra Pradesh in CAT 2013 out of a total of eight 100 percentilers.

The Vijayawada native did BTech in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from IIT, Kharagpur and was working with Oracle before he did MBA from IIM, Calcutta.

He is now an Investment Banking Associate at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Mumbai.

CAT 2014

Neha Manglik was the only female topper of CAT 2014

Neha Manglik was one of the 16 toppers of CAT 2014 with a 100 percentile. The Delhi-based student was the only girl to top the exam that year.

She did her BE in Chemical Engineering (2011-15) from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani.

She went on to do her MBA from IIM Ahmedabad (2015-17) and is currently working with Cello Writing in Mumbai.

CAT 2015

Prateek Bajpai was among 17 candidates who scored 100 percentile

Prateek Bajpai emerged as one of the 17 toppers - 100 percentilers - of the 2015 CAT in his very first attempt.

He did his BTech in Civil Engineering from NIT, Trichy and was working for Shapoorji Pallonji Group in Algeria while preparing for CAT simultaneously.

He did his MBA (2016-18) from IIM Ahmedabad and is now a Management Trainee at Wipro in Bengaluru.

Related Timelines

Where are all the JEE toppers (2009-13) now? INDIA 31 Jul 2018

Where are all the JEE toppers (2009-13) now?

Registration for CAT 2018 opens August 8: All details here INDIA 29 Jul 2018

Registration for CAT 2018 opens August 8: All details here

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Can I get 96 percentile in CAT?

Asked on 03-08-2018 by Umang Dwivedi

Answered by NewsBytes

Yes, you can score 96 percentile in CAT if you study well and in-depth about all the topics. Improve your GK and English language and try to complete as many mocks as possible on time.

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Asked on 03-08-2018 by Aarthi

Answered by NewsBytes

The syllabus for CAT is divided into three parts i.e. Quantitative Aptitude, Logical Reasoning, Data Interpretation, Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension.

Be the first one to like. Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: Bio Spectrum Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: J.Mitra, IIT-M launch iQuant analyzer URL: https://www.biospectrumindia.com/news/60/11409/j-mitra-iit-m-launch-iquant-analyzer.html J.Mitra, IIT-M launch iQuant analyzer

The device is designed to read multiple test kits, and reads the calibration information directly from the test kit without the need for a separate calibration chip.

J. Mitra & Co., in collaboration with IIT Madras’ HTIC (Healthcare Technology Innovation Centre), has launched India’s first portable diagnostic solution – the iQuant immunoassay analyzer in the Indian market.

The device is designed to read multiple test kits, and reads the calibration information directly from the test kit without the need for a separate calibration chip. The product is meant for small to medium labs, and is hence designed in an aesthetic desktop form factor, with an intuitive touch screen display, battery back-up and capabilities for advanced data storage, syncing and transmission capabilities. iQuant provides 8 separate diagnostic tests for TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone), T3 (Tri-iodo thyronine), T4 (Thyroxin), Vitamin D, Dengue NS1 Antigen, Dengue IgM, Dengue IgG and HbA1c test.

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: Business World Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: DST, Lockheed Martin and Tata Trusts Award IIGP 2.0 Winners With an Amount of Rs 25 Lakh Each URL: http://bwdisrupt.businessworld.in/article/DST-Lockheed-Martin-and-Tata-Trusts-Award-IIGP-2-0- Winners-With-an-Amount-of-Rs-25-Lakh-Each/02-08-2018-156622/ eVaidya: Improvising Rural Healthcare Delivery Views: 529

Srinivasa Rao Paturi, Chairman & Managing Director, eVaidya

With eUPHCs like projects, eVaidya is leaving no stone unturned to provide affordable healthcare to rural population. The digital PHCs have ensured full time coverage of out-patient (OP) consultation, basic Lab tests and relevant medicines to be available at the vicinity, says Srinivasa Rao Paturi, Chairman and Managing Director, eVaidya, in conversation with Gopi Krishna Arora of Elets News Network (ENN).

Q eVaidya has taken a slew of initiatives to strengthen rural healthcare to the unreachables. Kindly share some of them. eVaidya aims at providing healthcare to all and thereby reduces distance and time to healthcare delivery. It began with setting up a virtual clinic in Kannagi Nagar, Chennai, which was widely affected by tsunami in 2014. The clinic used to be operated digitally by healthcare professionals stationed in Hyderabad. The initiative gathered a loud appreciation by IIT Chennai and municipal authorities of Chennai.

The feather in the cap was the pilot project in collaboration with the Andhra Pradesh Government. Named as eUPHC, it was implemented in Vijaywada and Visakhapatnam. The project received lots of appreciation within the country and across the world as one of the best telemedicine models to be implemented so far. The Andhra Government further took a step ahead and converted all the UPHCs into eUPHCs and currently it runs these with the name of Mukhyamantri Arogya Kendramulu.

We have bagged two similar projects in the State of Telangana too and it has been successfully running.

NUHM (National Urban Health Mission) is looking forward for the similar clinics to be established in the State of Karnataka by us.

Q How have you harnessed technology to create best innovative healthcare solutions?

The organisation is led by enthusiastic entrepreneurs with huge work experience in IT and technology. Moreover, our group of directors and advisors have engineers, doctors and administrators. With such diverse minds at work, we could visualise the healthcare necessity in 360 degrees. The IT solutions developed were validated with repeated testing in the field. The whip of medical validations helped to develop current medical advances in the Electronic Medical Records (EMRs). A user friendly software has ensured paperless environment. The data recordings are HIPAA compliant secure architecture.

Q How electronic primary healthcare center and urban healthcare center have improved patient care?

Telemedicine has overcome the unavailability of qualified medical professional in rural setup.

The digital PHCs under our governance have ensured full time coverage of Out-Patient (OP) consultation, Basic Lab tests and relevant medicines to be available at the vicinity.

Q Despite technological advancements and various schemes, the healthcare facilities in rural areas have not improved much. How do you analyse this?

Medical practices involve abundance of empathy. A healing touch to a patient by the healthcare providers results better outcome in diseases. To add to it, the preventive healthcare initiatives have latent period during their execution which takes considerably long time to reflect results.

At certain extent, these factors have worked adversely in showing the improvement on healthcare front in rural sector.

With Governments like Andhra Pradesh and Telangana extending hands in developing technologically advanced healthcare facilities under PPP models which have added a brick to the technological wall of healthcare delivery. We require more Government partnerships to popularise the digital health. It will make healthcare accessible and acceptable to the population.

Q Shed some light over your association with the Government of Andhra Pradesh in healthcare domain. What kind of projects are you working on?

We are working very closely with the Government of Andhra Pradesh for a long time. One of our large initiatives is the Mukhyamantri Arogya Kendramulu in the districts of Visakhapatnam and Srikakulam.

We also work with the department of health and NUHM very closely to advise and support on better healthcare practices for the rural population.

Q How do you rate Indian healthcare industry in terms of technology, innovations, accessibility and affordability?

Definitely Indian healthcare sector is fast progressing, with both Central and State Governments putting lots of emphasis on quality and accessible healthcare facilities. Several schemes on the front of preventive health practices, easy to use facilities, digitisation of health records reflect true intent of the Government.

India, by far, is rated best in terms of adopting new technologies. The usage of mobile phones, apps and internet are maximum in India and hence can be perceived as best used tool in healthcare as well.

However, India is a vast country with huge population, high illiteracy and age-old beliefs in quacks and local practitioners. So it takes more time to bring awareness and confidence in the system.

Also, there are many rural and backward areas which are not even reachable with proper transport and power. The Government must put more emphasis again through a PPP approach to equipped those areas with better healthcare facilities.

Q Tell us your plans about expansion. What kind of innovative solutions are you contemplating to launch?

We are planning to develop effective programmes in terms of preventive measures of NCDs (noncommunicable diseases). Q Tell us about your association with other State Governments. We look forward to partner with other states like UP and Karnataka in providing primary healthcare services. Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: Daji World Edition: Oniline Journalist: NA Headline: Mangaluru: Mathematics fest held at St Aloysius College URL: http://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsDisplay.aspx?newsID=521976

Mangaluru: Mathematics fest held at St Aloysius CollegeMedia Release

Mangaluru, Aug 2: The department of Mathematics (UG and PG), St Aloysius College (autonomous) here organized a one-day Mathematics fest to commemorate the 105th birth memorial celebrations of Prof K A Krishnamurthy on August 1 at the Fr L F Rasquinha auditorium, LCRI Block.

Dr Reena Alva, managing director, MARS Learning Centre was the chief guest. Praveen Kumar S, an alumnus, IIT Madras and member, Vision 2025-Education, Navakarnataka was present. Fr Dr Praveen Martis SJ, principal, St Aloysius College (autonomous) presided over the programme

Chief guest, Reena Alva at her address narrated the story of Nikhil Ravishankar, an alumnus of the college explaining how he achieved success in his life without formal education. She advised the students not to stick on to classroom teaching, but to go beyond it. All that students need is passion and focus in their subjects. She also briefed about Prof K A Krishnamurthy, a passionate teacher and role model. She urged the students to achieve more in mathematics and use that knowledge for society. She urged them to become entrepreneurs than work under someone else.

Fr Dr Praveen Martis SJ, in his presidential remarks said that Prof K A Krishnamurthy is a great professor who inspired many young minds. Mathematics is a very important subject and more alive than other subjects. He also quoted the scientific knowledge of Albert Einstein and how he achieved success. He advised the students to think beyond and to be passionate about their ideas.

The department has also arranged a guest lecture on the topic 'Mathematics as a Career' by Praveen Kumar S.

Programme convenor, Denzil Jason Saldanha, briefed about the fest and introduced the guests.

Anupriya Shetty, HOD of PG Mathematics, welcomed the gathering. Lecturer, Teena Jathanna proposed the vote of thanks.

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: E Health Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: eVaidya: Improvising Rural Healthcare Delivery URL: http://ehealth.eletsonline.com/2018/08/evaidya-improvising-rural-healthcare-delivery/

With eUPHCs like projects, eVaidya is leaving no stone unturned to provide affordable healthcare to rural population. The digital PHCs have ensured full time coverage of out-patient (OP) consultation, basic Lab tests and relevant medicines to be available at the vicinity, says Srinivasa Rao Paturi, Chairman and Managing Director, eVaidya, in conversation with Gopi Krishna Arora of Elets News Network (ENN).

Q eVaidya has taken a slew of initiatives to strengthen rural healthcare to the unreachables. Kindly share some of them. eVaidya aims at providing healthcare to all and thereby reduces distance and time to healthcare delivery. It began with setting up a virtual clinic in Kannagi Nagar, Chennai, which was widely affected by tsunami in 2014. The clinic used to be operated digitally by healthcare professionals stationed in Hyderabad. The initiative gathered a loud appreciation by IIT Chennai and municipal authorities of Chennai.

The feather in the cap was the pilot project in collaboration with the Andhra Pradesh Government. Named as eUPHC, it was implemented in Vijaywada and Visakhapatnam. The project received lots of appreciation within the country and across the world as one of the best telemedicine models to be implemented so far. The Andhra Government further took a step ahead and converted all the UPHCs into eUPHCs and currently it runs these with the name of Mukhyamantri Arogya Kendramulu.

We have bagged two similar projects in the State of Telangana too and it has been successfully running.

NUHM (National Urban Health Mission) is looking forward for the similar clinics to be established in the State of Karnataka by us.

Q How have you harnessed technology to create best innovative healthcare solutions?

The organisation is led by enthusiastic entrepreneurs with huge work experience in IT and technology. Moreover, our group of directors and advisors have engineers, doctors and administrators. With such diverse minds at work, we could visualise the healthcare necessity in 360 degrees. The IT solutions developed were validated with repeated testing in the field. The whip of medical validations helped to develop current medical advances in the Electronic Medical Records (EMRs). A user friendly software has ensured paperless environment. The data recordings are HIPAA compliant secure architecture.

Q How electronic primary healthcare center and urban healthcare center have improved patient care?

Telemedicine has overcome the unavailability of qualified medical professional in rural setup.

The digital PHCs under our governance have ensured full time coverage of Out-Patient (OP) consultation, Basic Lab tests and relevant medicines to be available at the vicinity.

Q Despite technological advancements and various schemes, the healthcare facilities in rural areas have not improved much. How do you analyse this?

Medical practices involve abundance of empathy. A healing touch to a patient by the healthcare providers results better outcome in diseases. To add to it, the preventive healthcare initiatives have latent period during their execution which takes considerably long time to reflect results.

At certain extent, these factors have worked adversely in showing the improvement on healthcare front in rural sector.

With Governments like Andhra Pradesh and Telangana extending hands in developing technologically advanced healthcare facilities under PPP models which have added a brick to the technological wall of healthcare delivery. We require more Government partnerships to popularise the digital health. It will make healthcare accessible and acceptable to the population.

Q Shed some light over your association with the Government of Andhra Pradesh in healthcare domain. What kind of projects are you working on?

We are working very closely with the Government of Andhra Pradesh for a long time. One of our large initiatives is the Mukhyamantri Arogya Kendramulu in the districts of Visakhapatnam and Srikakulam.

We also work with the department of health and NUHM very closely to advise and support on better healthcare practices for the rural population.

Q How do you rate Indian healthcare industry in terms of technology, innovations, accessibility and affordability?

Definitely Indian healthcare sector is fast progressing, with both Central and State Governments putting lots of emphasis on quality and accessible healthcare facilities. Several schemes on the front of preventive health practices, easy to use facilities, digitisation of health records reflect true intent of the Government.

India, by far, is rated best in terms of adopting new technologies. The usage of mobile phones, apps and internet are maximum in India and hence can be perceived as best used tool in healthcare as well.

However, India is a vast country with huge population, high illiteracy and age-old beliefs in quacks and local practitioners. So it takes more time to bring awareness and confidence in the system.

Also, there are many rural and backward areas which are not even reachable with proper transport and power. The Government must put more emphasis again through a PPP approach to equipped those areas with better healthcare facilities.

Q Tell us your plans about expansion. What kind of innovative solutions are you contemplating to launch?

We are planning to develop effective programmes in terms of preventive measures of NCDs (noncommunicable diseases). Q Tell us about your association with other State Governments. We look forward to partner with other states like UP and Karnataka in providing primary healthcare services.

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: Deccan Herald Edition: Bangalore/Hyderabad Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Headline: Poorti among innovation award winners

Date: 3rd August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Chennai Page No: 5 Journalist: NA Headline: Sterlites defensive campaign has no iota of truth URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2018/aug/03/sterlites-defensive-campaign- has-no-iota-of-truth-1852574.html

Date: 4th August 2018 Publication: NDTV Edition: Online Journalist: NA Alumni: Nitin Pai Headline: Lawyer, Chess Player, Pilot, Golfer, Musician And More. Here Is A Diverse List Of IIMA Entrants This Year URL: https://www.ndtv.com/education/iim-ahmedabad-admission-lawyer-chess-player-pilot-golfer- here-is-a-diverse-list-of-iima-entrants-thi-1894842

Lawyer, Chess Player, Pilot, Golfer, Musician And More. Here Is A Diverse List Of IIMA Entrants This Year

For the academic year 2018-2020, the incoming batch invited by IIM Ahmedabad is the most diverse batch in recent years

Education | NDTV Education Team | Updated: August 03, 2018 18:47 IST by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored

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Lawyer, Chess Player, Pilot, Golfer, Musician And More. Here Is A Diverse List Of IIMA Entrants This Year

AHMEDABAD: Over the past few years, the classrooms of IIM Ahmedabad have been seeing a change. The institute has consciously been welcoming students with different experiences and worldviews. For the academic year 2018-2020, the incoming batch invited by IIM Ahmedabad is the most diverse batch in recent years, both in terms of gender diversity, work experience and educational background, said a statement from the pioneer B-School. Besides that, the batch includes students who have achieved significant accolades in areas as uncommon as golf, scientific research and philanthropy.

"The diverse composition of the batch is an effect of sustained and conscious efforts part on the part of the Director and the Leadership of the institute. It is a testament to the increasing relevance and acceptability of management education," Raghuram Valluri, Media Secretary, Students' Affairs Council of IIMA said while commenting on the diversity of the batch of 2018-20.

Here is a short introduction to some of the students from the 2018-2020 batch:Anuj Bansal - Lawyer and Public Policy A law graduate from RMNLU, Lucknow, Anuj is a Securities Law and Public Policy enthusiast. He has been part of numerous events on the National Level, also following his love for public speaking. He has also won the NLIU Juris Corp National Moot, as well as, winning multiple Parliamentary Debates on National Level. He has also written articles, critiques and essays on issues related to Public Policy. Anuj was also the coach of a team representing India in ALSA International Competition, Kuala Lumpur, eventually emerging as the runners' up in the competition. His interests also extend to investigative journalism, mostly on the past realities of the Mumbai Underworld.

"Pursuing Management studies was a natural step for him to further his understanding and thereby contribute to public policy making," he says.

Met Agrawal - Featured in the Limca Book of Records, Multi-Instrumentalist

Hailing from Surat, Meet completed his B.Com and the IPCC exam for Chartered Accountancy ranking 5th in India. At the age of 10, he was featured in the Limca Book of Records for having played 47 instruments in eleven minutes. Meet is also a champion in the field of sports. He is a National Level roller-skater and an international-level Chess player. He also captained the Gujarat state Table Tennis team. He is one of three non-engineers to have scored 100 percentile in CAT 2017 as well. Apart from all the above achievements, he also topped the CBSE 12th board examination in Gujarat. At IIMA, he wants to hone his business acumen by learning from some of the best professors in the country and network with other accomplished folks. A big fan of Elon Musk, Meet wants to become an entrepreneur after gaining some industry experience post his MBA.

Pranay Tyle -Pilot, Published Researcher & Philanthropist

An alumnus of the United World College SEA and a gold medallist from the Delhi Public School, Noida, Pranay studied Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering at the Johns Hopkins University. At Hopkins, he conducted extensive oncology research for 3 years under Dr. Denis Wirtz and Dr. Hasini Jayatilaka, the results of which were published last year in Nature Communications and gained widespread attention from the global media, including leading Indian dailies. He has worked with Hilliard Lyons Investment Banking in the United States under Andy McKay, one of the most prominent investment bankers in the US Midwest, and was instrumental in expanding their healthcare M&A practice. Pranay is also an extensive traveler and has been to nearly 40 countries so far. Pranay also holds a pilot's license from the United States and has logged almost 100 hours in the cockpit. He also founded an NGO at the age of 18 to provide scholarships and assist other NGOs in education with fundraising and managing financial resources.

Mehak Sharma - Professional Golfer

Born in Agra, Mehak spent her life in various places in India, majorly in Madhya Pradesh and Pune. She graduated in commerce from Delhi University and thereafter worked in Deloitte as an Audit Assistant. She was introduced to golf at the age of 10 after accompanying her father to the army golf courses. She was instantly interested in the game and played amateur golf for the first few years. She started competing in tournaments since she was 14 and turned professional in 2016. Her first major win was the Captain's Cup at Army Golf Course, Delhi in the open category in 2012. She played her first professional tournament in Ahmedabad where she finished 8th and her first professional win was coming 6th in Leg V at the Bombay Presidency Golf Club. She is ranked 8th by the Indian Golf Union (IGU) in Southern Indian Junior and Ladies Championship, Bangalore.

Aaditya Agarwal - YIF Fellow

Aaditya graduated as a Civil Engineer from IIT Delhi with an Institute Rank 2. Post IIT, he took an unconventional decision to go for a PG Diploma in Liberal Studies, the Young India Fellowship at Ashoka University. Over the last 3 years, he has worked with students at Ashoka University and has mentored them to find their calling, helping them opt for their ideal career. He has a YouTube channel with sessions on how to prepare and present case studies for consulting job interviews. He has also taken classes on International History and Contemporary International Relations. Passionate about learning and with a unique mix of engineering and liberal arts knowledge, he wants to understand the depth of business decision making.

Nitin Pai - International Chess Player

An accomplished chess player, Nitin Pai represented India in the Commonwealth Chess Championship. He is the winner of several national-level chess competitions. He is also a chess writer for the prestigious Chessbase India and has organized three All India level FIDE-rated tournaments at IIT Madras. Apart from his extraordinary sports achievements, Nitin also holds academic laurels. He is a B.Tech. graduate from IIT Madras, he ranked 13th in the KVPY scholarship program and 4th in the Kerala Engineering Entrance Examinations.

Purvi Edara - Psychology And International Relations

Purvi majored in Psychology with a double minor in International Relations and Economics from Symbiosis School of Liberal Arts, Pune. Awarded the Best Academic Performer award in college, Purvi was also ranked 4th in the MaRRS International Spelling Bee. Her previous endevours have seen her interning with a child psychology centre, treating children with neurodevelopmental disorders. She loves reading fiction and enjoys performing slam poetry. She also loves learning languages, and is capable of reading and writing Korean while currently learning Mandarin. "I wanted to figure out how compatible psychology would be with the various branches of management studies, and what career prospects I would have by combining the two fields," she says.

After her MBA, she wishes to work in a field that will help her achieve her goal of travelling every country in the world, starting from Asia.

Parikshit Khanna - Development Sector

Parikshit is a 2016 Mathematics graduate from IIT Kanpur. After graduation, he joined Credit Suisse, a place he left within 4 months to pursue his interest in development consulting. Shortly after, Parikshit joined the Chairman's Office, Quality Council of India where he worked closely under the Chairmanship of Adil Zainulbhai. Here, his work involved strategy, policy, and operations decisions while coordinating with various central ministries including the Union Finance minstry. His efforts were instrumental in the passage of a SEBI circular regarding curtailing of unauthorized trading by brokers.

Date: 4th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Chennai Page No: 1 Journalist: Ms. Sushmitha Headline: Two-day festival to help students think, innovate URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2018/aug/04/two-day-festival-to-help- students--think-innovate-1852849.html

Date: 4th August 2018 Publication: The Logical Indian Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Fact Check: From A Fake Picture Of Rahul Gandhi To Comparison Between Modi And Hitler URL: https://thelogicalindian.com/fact-check/rahul-gandhi-fake-picture/

This picture will break the hearts of the Bravehearts Tamilians who made the most protected guy in India too scared to drive.He had 2 fly on a chopper, break the wall of Madras IIT,when TN trended #gobackmodi .Then this happened. Tamilians & South Indians will be shocked #TNGovt Date: 4th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Chennai Page No: 3 Journalist: Roshne Balasubramanian Headline: Untold Stories of velachery URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2018/aug/04/untold-stories-of-velachery- 1852843.html

Date: 4th August 2018 Publication: Domain-b Edition: Online Journalist: Swetha Amit Alumni: Ambi Parameswaran Headline: Sponging off your clients URL: https://www.domain-b.com/people/interviews/20180803_ambi_parameswaran.html

Sponging off your clients

Ambi Parameswaran is a brand strategist and founder of the brand advisory brand-building.co. A large part of his illustrious 40-year career was spent in advertising, first at Rediffusion and then a 25-year stint at FCB Ulka. He has worked on iconic brands and companies such as Tata, Wipro, Zee, TCS, Thermax, Indica, GSK, Tropicana, Abbott, ITC, etc.

Parameswaran now reads, writes, teaches and coaches leaders across multiple domains. He is a guest faculty at IIM-Calcutta and IIM-Ahmedabad and an adjunct professor of marketing at SPJIMR. His columns appear regularly in the Business Standard and the Mint, in addition to other business magazines and dailies. He is a distinguished alumnus awardee of IIT-Madras, an alumnus of IIM-Calcutta (where he served for 10 years on its board of governors), an AMP graduate from Harvard business School and a PhD in management from Mumbai university.

In this interview with Swetha Amit, Parameswaran talks about the idea behind his book Sponge, the importance of active listening and openness to learning.

What inspired the book and how did you come up with the interesting title Sponge?

I have been toying with the idea of a book about clients from whom I have learnt a lot, over the last four decades. The trigger was a conversation I had with a friend who is a respected professor in the US who was lamenting the fall of CEOs of the US. I thought I was lucky to have worked closely with so many wise clients, many in CEO positions. So, the idea was a book called What I Learnt From My Clients. Discussing this with my friend Anish Chandy, it dawned on me that the book needed a catchier title. And the concept of a sponge came up. Then we embellished it a bit to make the book broader bases; make it 'SPONGE - Leadership Lessons I Learnt from My Clients. The editor from Westland, Karthik agreed that this was a better title than what we had gone to the publisher with.

The crux of this book is that we could become better individuals by just listening and learning. Considering how people are constantly fiddling with their smart phones and technology, how do you suggest we revive the habit of listening and observing?

The concept of ‘active listening’ is one of the first steps I learnt when I got myself certified as a CEO Coach. Flipping sides, I realised that something that I had been practicing when I was with clients. Listening to what they are saying intensely. The current generation is suffering from a serious dose of ‘attention-deficit disorder’; inability to get off the smart phone is just one big problem. Not the only one.

If you can listen deeply, or as I call it 'S' — 'super active listening', you can learn a lot.

One of your chapters talks about the peculiar challenges faced by those working in the area of customer service. Considering today’s age where customers are highly demanding and there is a lot of churn, how do you suggest companies deal with customer service?

Not only advertising, but in most B2B sectors, clients or customers are both revered and cursed in equal measure. This leads to great attrition and fall in morale. Business leaders tend to spread this kind of image about clients and customers. We need to reframe this equation to "what if we can approach each client interaction as a learning exercise." We may be able to build better relationships. And end up in a win-win situation.

You have also stated that hiring ex-servicemen in operational roles can provide Indian corporates a great window on getting work done. Considering we don’t see too many such people in corporate roles today, why do you think organisations today haven’t explored this possibility?

I am not sure why this has not happened and I have suggested some ideas in my book. It is an area where leading B Schools and the Indian Army, Navy, Air Force can collaborate to create viable alternative careers for officers who are on short service commissions. I have come across ex-army folks in HR and admin jobs. But I think they can be great assets in other positions as well.

In your chapter "Flying Without A Net", you have referred to the ‘high-achievers trap’ where high achievers suffer from fear of being wrong which causes frustration and blame games within them. Since your book emphasises the openness to learning, how do you purpose these high achievers come out of this trap?

I think high achievers have to be ready to admit that they can be wrong. And they can fail. The trap they often fall into is that they have to be successful at all costs. So, they tend to surround themselves with people who are ready to agree with them at every turn. What if you cultivate a team that is ready to argue and disagree. Then you will be able to take informed decisions, looking at all sides of the problem.

In your "Chaiwala" chapter, you have pointed out an interesting instance of how the team failed to display an aesthetic design, falling prey to certain stereotypes about classes and masses. How do you think brands and creative agencies can avoid falling into this trap?

The Chaiwala test that was used by one of my clients is a simple test to see if we are on the same page as our customer in aesthetic terms. I think we tend to underestimate the intelligence of our customers. We think they will not understand, they will not appreciate the nuances, they will not get it. So, we dumb things down. Instead we should be ready to go out and actually figure out what our customers are capable of appreciating. Don’t second guess. Set up a simple way of testing your hypotheses.

Publisher:Westland Books / Price: Rs 350 Interestingly, you have brought to light the concept of ‘The Halo Effect Trap’ where some clients and businesses prey on when dealing with celebrities, which affects the element of professionalism. How do you suggest that celebrity management companies try and bride this gap?

Indian clients are caught in a celebrity trap. So, they pay a celebrity a ton of money, while bargaining with the ad agency who is creating the communication. Instead they should reverse the situation. Do the work on the brand positioning and the advertising creative. Bring in the celebrity only after that, not as a ‘star’ but as an ‘actor’. Then you will be able to reuse the disturbing influence of the star ‘halo’.

In the chapter ‘The self-driven driver’ you have mentioned an interesting character ‘Ghousebhai’ who put the company’s needs and success ahead of his own personal goals. Considering the rise in levels of competition and selfishness these days, how do you think we can create more such self-driven Ghousebhais?

Creating more Ghousebhais should be the objective of every organisation. People who are self- motivated to do more, so that their company can succeed [and they can succeed]. Ghousebhai was the driver of the company car. But when the car was parked in the parking lot, Ghosebhai doubled up as the office peon and more. No-one asked him to do this double duty. He felt he should do it. Fortunately for him, the rest of the office appreciated him for it. So, the idea is if you have a Ghousebhai in your company what are you doing to him. Are you sending him to sleep in the car in the parking lot, or are you encouraging him to develop other skills.

‘Sponge’ has been an absorbing read. How was the experience of reliving some of your adman days? Any more books in the pipeline?

I think the book was an interesting exercise of digging up incidents that I had almost forgotten. Some of the stories are from the 1980s, those clients are no more. Many of the stories are from the mid '90s and 2000s. The challenge was to line up the stories, from across India, across different time zones, across different sets of clients. Once this was done I had to filter out the key lesson from each such interaction and liking it to a managerial concept. This took a lot of time. Fortunately, it has worked out well, as you are saying.

SPONGE - Leadership Lessons I Learnt from my Clients is my ninth book; the first six were more academic in nature and dealt with consumers, brands, advertising cases, etc. The next three [For God’s Sake; Nawabs Nudes Noodles; and SPONGE] are more professional books meant for working executives.

I may want to go back to writing about brands once again. When my first book came out in 2000 I thought that was it. Now 18 years Date: August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Delhi Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Headline: HAL tests rotary drone co-developed with IIT-K URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/hal-tests-rotary-drone-co-developed-with-iit- k/article24595855.ece

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: All India RoundUp Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: (gate.iitm.ac.in) IIT Madras To Conduct GATE 2019, Official Site Launched URL: http://allindiaroundup.com/education/gate-iitm-ac-in-iit-madras-to-conduct-gate-2019-official- site-launched/ (gate.iitm.ac.in) IIT Madras To Conduct GATE 2019, Official Site Launched

GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering), an examination conducted to providing admissions in IITs (Indian Institute of Technology), NITs (National Institute of Technology), CFTIs (Centrally Funded Technical Institute) and IISc (Indian Institute of Science) under M.Tech/M.E./M.Arch/M.Plan/MCA etc. courses. This time, IIT Madras has given responsibilities to conduct the GATE exam successfully following which, official website – gate.iitm.ac.in has been launched. gate.iitm.ac.in – GATE 2019 Official Website Earlier, the Institute made the website accessible but, after some time, it stopped working (it was the testing period as we are expecting). Now, the Institution has launched the website again along with that, a brochure as well for the examination.

As per the schedule published by the administration, registration process for the examination would begin from 1st September. All the applicants need to submit their applications before 21st September. The extended closing date for submission of online application is 1st October.

One of the major changes made in the GATE 2019 is, the examination would be organised for 24 subjects instead of 23 subjects. The subject included is Statistics.

Applicants must submit their forms before the closing date through GOAPS website – appsgate.iitm.ac.in. Applicants also need to upload the photograph, signature, certificate of qualifying degree, caste certificate (if applicable) etc. ID number of Passport/ PAN card/ Voter ID/ Aadhaar-UID/ College ID/ Employee and Driving License. Application Fee: Candidates need to pay the prescribed fee through net banking or debit card or credit card. Online transaction charges must be borne by candidates. Exam duration for all the papers is three hours. Each paper consists of 65 questions for a total of 100 marks. As the GATE 2019 would be the computer based test, and thus, the computer will automatically close the screen once the duration is over.

All the aspirants have to occupy their allotted seats 40 minutes earlier of the scheduled start of the exam. They would be able to log in and read instructions 20 minutes before the examination. In the exam, there would be multiple choice questions carrying one or two marks. Negative marking: 1/3 mark would be deducted for the incorrect answer of the question of one mark while 2/3 mark for 2 marks MCQ.

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: Sify .Com Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Startups urged to develop tech for 'Made in India' defence arms URL: http://www.sify.com/finance/startups-urged-to-develop-tech-for-made-in-india-defence-arms- news-defence-siexUPfdijdgd.html

Startups urged to develop tech for 'Made in India' defence arms Source : Last Updated: Mon, Aug 06, 2018 10:59 hrs Bengaluru: Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday called upon startups to develop technologies and weapons for the Indian armed forces. "We (Ministry of Defence) want you to provide Indian solutions to problems faced by the armed forces. By indigenisation, India doesn't need to import many of the products that we do," Sitharaman told startups in this tech hub. "India wants its sectors disrupted through technological advancements," she said at the launch of "Defence India Startup Challenge", a national contest for startups to develop arms and technologies for the defence sector. "Indigenisation has been a priority for India, however, we did not indigenise sufficiently enough," the Minister added, addressing a gathering of 200 startups, incubators and defence officials at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Convention Centre in the city centre. Through the contest, startups, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and individual researchers and academic institutions can take part in 11 different categories of creating technologies and products that can be used by the armed forces. The 11 categories in which the startups and researchers can develop products or solutions include building see-through armour for the army, development of 4G-based tactical Local Area Network for the Navy, and laser weaponry and unmanned surface and underwater vehicles development for the Air Force, among others. Select few startups will also receive a funding of up to Rs 1.5 crore through the Ministry for developing their ideas, and given access to test their products. As part of the event, a Bengaluru-based firm Tonbo Imaging has been given an order to make night fire control system for Russian-made grenade launcher AGS-30. "The Ministry will ensure the startups working on their ideas get the orders," Sitharaman said. Noting that unmanned drones with missiles are the envy of many countries, the Minister added it is not beyond India's capacity to develop them. The Defence Ministry, on the occasion, also tied up with five business incubators to promote and support the startups, including Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship with Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad; Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay; T-hub startup incubator in Hyderabad; 'Forge' incubator in Coimbatore; and IIT Madras. "The contest is in line with the Innovations for Defence Excellence (IDEX) scheme announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier in April during Defence Expo in Chennai, to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in defence sector," an official statement said. The competition will also give a fillip to the country's innovation potential and create networks for collaboration between defence sector and startups, it added. Over 200 startups, 50 SMEs and 12 business incubators took part in the defence- business gathering.

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Centre’s projects exceed original cost: Experts URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2018/aug/05/centres-projects-exceed- original-cost-experts-1853530.html

Centre’s projects exceed original cost: Experts

Some projects are impacted due to external factors which are beyond the control of the implementing agencies such as land acquisition, regulatory approvals.

CHENNAI:There are 1,332 Union government projects which cost above Rs 150 crore and the cost over- run is Rs 2.23 lakh crore which is 14 per cent more than the original cost, according to an expert from American Association of Cost Engineering.

Quoting statistics from data published by Ministry of Statistics and Program, S Sankar, Chair-India Task Force for American Association of Cost Engineering (AACE), and COO of Karle Infra Private Limited said 253 projects are delayed and data does not include projects less than Rs 150 crore, state government projects, corporations, municipalities and private sector.

“While some projects are impacted due to external factors which are beyond the control of the implementing agencies such as land acquisition, regulatory approvals, etc., a majority of projects are delayed by factors which can be controlled at the project level through proper planning and project management,” he said while speaking at a national-level conference organised by IIT- Madras and AACE International’s South India Section.

He said studies conducted by KPMG also highlights severe skill shortage and growing demand and supply gap of qualified construction professionals in India. This also results in a high competency shortfall and a wide gap in the project management maturity between West and India, he said.The conference threw light on the complex nature of mega projects which make them inherently risky due to long planning horizons and complex interfaces.

253 projects are delayed and data does not include projects less than D150 crore. While some projects are impacted due to external factors which are beyond the control of implementing agencies, a majority of projects are delayed by factors that can be controlled at the project level through proper planning

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: Algasem Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: GATE 2019 ORGANISING INSTITUTE LAUNCHES OFFICIAL WEBSITE; KNOW NEW CHANGES URL: https://news.aglasem.com/gate-2019-organising-institute-launches-official-website/

GATE 2019 ORGANISING INSTITUTE LAUNCHES OFFICIAL WEBSITE; KNOW NEW CHANGES

IIT Madras is the organising institute of GATE 2019 which has now launched the official website gate.iitm.ac.in.

Recently, the official website of the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) 2019, has been made public, around 1:30 PM on August 4. As the year 2019 has been “the year of changes” for some of the national level entrances, candidates were eagerly waiting for more elaborate notification regarding the GATE entrance examination, as well.

IIT Madras, the organising institute of GATE 2019, has released the website gate.iitm.ac.in. with the information brochure, the official advertisement, instructions for international candidates, and all the other necessary pre-exam details for the entrance. Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: BloomBerg Edition: Online Journalist: Azman Usmani Headline: Startup Street: WeWork Wants To Double Locations As It Completes One Year In India URL: https://www.bloombergquint.com/technology/2018/08/05/startup-street-wework-wants-to- double-locations-as-it-completes-one-year-in-india#gs.qJFeOtY

Startup Street: WeWork Wants To Double Locations As It Completes One Year In India

This week on Startup Street, co-working space startup WeWork plans further expansion in India. Sixteen Indian startups are set to receive a seed funding of up to Rs 25 lakh and the world’s largest beer maker is offering up to $100,000 to startups who can complete their challenge. Here’s what went on:

WeWork’s Second Year In India

Co-working space startup WeWork had a good first year in India. From 2,300 desks in Bengaluru last year, it expanded to over 12,000 seats across nine locations. Now, it wants to double that.

The company plans to expand the desks to 35,000 as it opens up more locations. “By the end of 2018, WeWork aims to open four more locations in Delhi, four in Bengaluru and six in Mumbai,” the Indian arm of the New York-based startup said in an emailed statement. “WeWork India plans to further expand to Pune, Chennai, and Hyderabad and hire 150 people across sales, community and design and development by next year.”

The seven-year-old company, which rents out desks and offices to small businesses, freelancers, large enterprises and startups, entered India in a tie-up with the Embassy Group. Following this, it partnered Blackstone Group, Enam Securities Group and Mumbai-based Vinod Govani for more leased space.

The aim of the company is to provide clients access to the “comforts of beautifully designed spaces,” said Karun Virwani, chief executive officer at WeWork India.

The startup raised $30 million in 2017, including $5 million from its parent and $25 million from the Embassy Group. It was also in talks to raise another $15 million from the Embassy Group as of January 2018 to meet its working capital requirement.

The demand for co-working space in India is rising. Co-working offices took up two-million-square-feet space in the first three months of 2018, surpassing the tally for last year, according to a report by real- estate consultancy Knight Frank. This is set to rise threefold by 2020, the report said.

“We have received a positive response as all our locations, which are operational for six months or more, have an occupancy of over 90 percent,” said Ryan Bennett, chief executive officer of WeWork. Meet The Winners Of The India Innovation Growth Programme 2.0

Sixteen Indian startups are set to receive a seed funding of Rs 25 lakh each after they won the second edition of the India Innovation Growth Programme—a tripartite initiative of the country’s Department of Science and Technology, Tata Trusts and aerospace maker Lockheed Martin.

There were total 3,000 applicants from across areas such as assistive technology, healthcare, clean energy, cybersecurity, data analytics, space technology, education, sanitation, internet of things and fintech, according to an emailed statement. The participants were judged based on innovation, sustainability, unique value of proposition, social impact, development status and the funding required.

The winners were divided into two categories—social innovations and industrial innovations.

Social Innovations Winners

Aarna Biomedical Products Ltd.: The firm has made Poorti—an affordable, light-weight post-mastectomy kit designed to cater to the needs of breast cancer survivors.

Green Farming Forever Innovations: Its product Moksh traverses farmlands after the harvest of rice— from picking rice straw to converting them to powder.

Torchit Electornics Pvt. Ltd.: It developed an affordable handheld device for the visually-impaired to manoeuvre around obstacles.

22bate7 Software Pvt. Ltd.: The firm made piCards—a low-cost continuous feedback, audience polling and formative assessment solution for teachers.

TouchVision Tech: A multi-sensory inclusive education platform for visually impaired people.

CareNX Innovations Pvt. Ltd., IIT Bombay: Developed a device for real-time self-screening of cervical cancer.

Shira MedTech Pvt. Ltd.: Its product Shira Clamps are aimed at making microsurgery possible for all surgeons.

Genrobotics Innovations: Its Bandicoot robot is a semiautomatic robotic system for manhole and sewer line cleaning aimed at eliminating manual scavenging.

Industrial Innovations Winners

IIT Madras: They developed AQUA-FI—an adaptive underwater wireless acoustic modem.

Delectrik Systems Pvt. Ltd.: Developed a redox flow batter for decentralised electricity.

DRIVAMP LLP: Developed a smart electric vehicle charging station and system controller. Etrix Technologies Pvt. Ltd.: Developed an augmented reality and artificial intelligence-based visual communication tool for tech support and training.

Irov Technologies Pvt. Ltd.: The product does underwater inspections for critical infrastructure.

MakerInMe Technologies Pvt. Ltd.: Developed an educational kit of plug-n-play robotic, automation, internet of things and electronic modular building blocks.

Manastu Space Technologies Pvt. Ltd.: Developed a green propulsion technology for low-thrust applications.

Sastra Robotics India Pvt. Ltd.: Developed an intelligent robot to automate real device human machine interface testing.

The winners will also receive training from leading academia for commercialisation of their products, readiness for market, business model and intellectual property rights.

World’s Largest Beer Maker Challenges Startups To Solve Sustainability Issues

Anheuser-Busch InBev NV, the maker of Budweiser beer, has launched its ‘100+ Accelerator’ programme which is offering an initial $100,000 to startups which can solve its 10 sustainability challenges.

It had invited academics, entrepreneurs, scientists and technologists to solve “some of the most pressing global sustainability issues,” according to its statement. “Startups can apply with their solutions to 10 key challenges that we have developed with input from internal stakeholders and third-party experts around the world,” it said. “Successful applicants will receive a mentorship, funding and access to new networks.”

The challenges range across areas like water conservation, smart agriculture, circular economy, innovations in brewing, renewable energy solutions, reducing emissions from the logistics sector, responsible sourcing and empowering small businesses.

“We want to empower driven and committed entrepreneurs who are solving problems in their own communities,” said Maisie Devine, global director for the ‘100+ Accelerator’.

The selected winners will be announced in September 2018 and will be invited to join the 100+ Accelerator programme that kicks off in October and will run through March 2019. The startups will then get an opportunity to pitch for further funding from the accelerator as well as external investors.

The 100+ Accelerator will begin with a pilot sprint for each chosen startup to validate market fit, followed by a structured curriculum focused on integrating with a large corporate partner and best practices for scaling.

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: From laser weapons to 4G LAN, Centre throws 11 defence challenges at startups URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/from-laser-weapons-to-4g-lan-centre-throws-11- defence-challenges-at-startups/articleshow/65272776.cms

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: Sisat Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: HAL step closer to develop rotary UAVs for military ops URL: https://www.siasat.com/news/hal-step-closer-develop-rotary-uavs-military-ops-1388608/

Bengaluru: Defence aviation PSU Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd got a step closer to developing large rotary UAVs capable of carrying weapons when it successfully test flew here a two-stroke petrol engine, light weight helicopter that can fly 10 km with a 2.5-kg payload capability.

According to a statement, the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd recently demonstrated the flight of the rotary wing unmanned aerial vehicle (RUAV) here in the presence of its board of directors.

It is a two-stroke petrol engine, twin blade main rotor and tail rotor, has payload capability of 2.5 kg including live stream video camera with a 8-10 km range of the vehicle and an endurance of one hour.

The flight lasted about 10 minutes and cleared all aviation tests including on the attitude control, attitude hold (ACAH) mode, position control, position hold mode (autonomous hover), low speed flight in forward, backward and sideward directions.

The video feed from onboard the helicopter was streamed live and shown on the dedicated video receiver. The status of the helicopter, its parameters and its real-time position on the map were also shown, the statement said.

The vehicle was developed in association with IIT-Kanpur and is the first “outcome of HAL’s tie-ups with academia”.

To achieve self reliance in the aviation field and to enhance its R&D efforts, HAL is working closely with premier educational institutes and has established chairs at IITs in Madras, Roorkee, Kharagpur, Bombay and Kanpur and IISc Bengaluru.

“With this demo, HAL’s Rotary Wing R&D Centre (RWR&DC) is well poised to employ its skills and capabilities to undertake development of rotary UAVs of higher weight classes and weapons as payloads. The success is the testimony of the industry-academia collaboration,” said HAL chief T. Suvarna Raju.

The centre at HAL is involved in design and development of rotary wing platforms for military and civil operations.

Advance Light Helicopter in its different variants (ALH-Dhruv, ALH-Rudra, ALH Wheeled version) is one of its star products and in service with the Indian defence forces.

The Light Combat Helicopter is also designed and developed by this centre and is under production for the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force. The centre has now partnered with IIT-Kanpur to embark upon design and development of a rotary unmanned air vehicle for defence and para-military forces and homeland security.

“These efforts led to successful development of control laws, a full authority flight controller, also known as fly by wire system for helicopters and other associated technologies like autonomous navigation system, ground control system,” the statement said.

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: Manorama Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: ശാസ്ത്രം: ഉപരിപഠനസാധ്യരകൾ(Science: The possibilities of higher learning) URL: https://www.manoramaonline.com/education/campus-updates/2018/08/04/scope-of- science.html

ശാസ്ത്രം: ഉപരിപഠനസാധ്യരകൾ Saturday 04 August 2018 04:34 PM IST by ജ ാമിപി. എൽ FacebookTwitterGoogl...

Date: 6th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Delhi Page No: 1 Journalist: Shubashree Desikan Professor: Prof Kamakoti Veezhinathan Alumni: Dr. Neel Gala Headline: IIT-Madras powers up a desi chip URL: https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/technology/iit-madras-powers-up-a-desi- chip/article24609946.ece

Date: 6th August 2018 Publication: Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Student: Swapnil Bagate Headline: Work hard for better future, children of loco pilots tld URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/work-hard-for-better-future-children-of-loco- pilots-told/articleshow/65283785.cms

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: DD News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Defence Minister launches Defence India Startup Challenge URL:http://ddinews.gov.in/national/defence-minister-launches-defence-india-startup-challenge

Defence Minister launches Defence India Startup Challenge

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman calls on the start ups to come up with potential solutions for technological needs of defence establishments while launching the Defence India Startup Challenge in Bengaluru; Urges them to play an active role in achieving self-reliance in defence production.

With a vision to build an ecosystem of innovation and entrepreneurship in defence sector and make India self reliant for meeting defence requirements, Raksha Mantri Nirmala Sitharaman launched defence India start up challenge in Bengaluru.

The highlight of the event was launch of 11 challenges by MoD now thrown open to provide solutions by the start up ecosystem.

Taking forward the IDEX scheme ( Innovation for defence excellence ) launched earlier by the Prime Minister in April this year the ministry of defence launched package of policy and framework for the incubators and partners to empower India and give a thrust to indigenisation in defence sector.

The 11 challenges thrown open to the prospective startups include individual protection system with built-in sensors, see-through armour, carbon fibre winding, active protection system, secure hardware based offline encrypt or device for graded security and development of 4G/LTE based tactical local area network, among others.

Recognising the first set of incubators for these challenges the ministry has also signed an MoU with 5 incubators. IIM Ahmedabad, IIT Mumbai, Forge IIT Madras, and T hub who will work in tandem to provide solutions for defence requirements in Airforce, Navy and for Army.

Raksha Mantri launched SPARK - support for prototype and research Kickstart in defence , framework for Idex partners, and promotion of start ups under Make II procedure.

The launch of challenges will provide filip to the innovation potential in the country, partnering with the best minds nationally and internationally.

Under the SPARK the ministry has invited applications from start up, individual innovators, who fulfill the criteria listed on the website. They will be provided grants upto 1.5 crores under the framework. Date: 6th August 2018 Publication: Financial Chronicle Edition: Delhi / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Chennai Page No: 10 Journalist: Sangeetha G. Headline: Soon your washing machine will follow orders, give ideas URL:http://www.mydigitalfc.com/plan-and-policy/soon-your-washing-machine-will-follow-orders-give- ideas

Date: 6th August 2018 Publication: Morning India Edition: Kolkata Page No: 11 Journalist: NA Headline: Startups urged to develop tech for Made in India defence arms

Date: 6th August 2018 Publication: Times of India-Education Times Edition: Delhi Page No: 1 Journalist: C. Sheetal.Banchariya Professor: S.A. Sannasiraj Headline: Unexplored Blue Economy of India

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: Deccan Chronicle Edition: Bangalore Page No: 4 Journalist: NA Headline: Defense Minister bats for focus on cyber, space domains URL: https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/050818/defense-minister-bats-for-focus- on-cyber-space-domains.html

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Bangalore Page No: 5 Journalist: NA Headline: Defence Ministry throws 11 challenges at startups URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/defence-ministry-throws-11-challenges-at- startups/article24604905.ece

Date: 5th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 11 Journalist: NA Headline: Central megaprojects have major cost overruns Data URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/central-megaprojects-have-major-cost-overruns- data/articleshow/65275224.cms

Date: 6th August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 7 Journalist: J. Praveen Paul Joseph Headline: Historic Meenakshi temple in Madurai undergoes renovation

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: Sheetall Banchariya Professor: Prof SA Sannasiraj Headline: Unexplored Blue Economy in India URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/unexplored-blue-economy-in- india/articleshow/65292887.cms

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Future scientists converge for INSPIRE internship URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Tiruchirapalli/future-scientists-converge-for-inspire- internship/article24617573.ece

Future scientists converge for INSPIRE internship

School students gaining practical exposure on the first day of DST-INSPIRE camp at National College in Tiruchi on Monday. School students gaining practical exposure on the first day of DST-INSPIRE camp at National College in

Students get an opportunity to interact with experts The DST-INSPIRE (Department of Science and Technology - Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspire Research) residential camp got off to a start at the National College on Monday with a mandate to draw 150 participating school students towards a research career in science by creating an environment to think out of the box.

The 90 boys and the rest girls were chosen based on their high score in their X Board examinations.

Under the innovative programme, the five-day INSPIRE internship till Friday is a component of 'Scheme for Early Attraction of Talents for Science' (SEATS) under which students are provided opportunity to interact with experts in science and experience the joy of innovations.

On Tuesday, the students will interact with N. Ramanujam and M. Palaniandavar, both Emeritus Fellows (UGC). As mentors, they will interact with the students through lectures related to scientific success stories and joys of innovation in order to nourish their curiosity.

The students will be spending the afternoon hours on all five days in the science laboratories, carrying out hands-on experiments.

Subbiah Pandian, former Professor and Head, Department of Physics, Presidency College, Chennai, will engage the students in simple experiments.

And, an expert trained at IIT Madras will be teaching the students the methodology of making rockets during the course of the camp.

The students will also take part in essay competitions on the second green revolution, renewable and non renewable energy, clean energy, natural resources utilization for sustainability, Make in India, Swachh Bharat and Ganga rejuvenation, energy conservation efficiency and sustainability, harnessing modern technology for second green revolution, dairy and livestock sector, solid and liquid waste management, recycling and processing of waste to conserve resources, co-ordinator of the DST-INSPIRE Camp A.T. Ravichandran said.

On the first day of the camp, the participants were oriented on the fundamentals of all science subjects by eminent experts. At the inaugural session, V. Murugesan, Vice-Chancellor, Annamalai University, dwelt on the fundamental concepts of Chemistry.

A. Paneerselvam, Professor of Botany, Poondi Pushpam College, also interacted with the students and familiarised them with mushroom culture.

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Kolkata / Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist:N Ramakrishanan Alumni: Anant Raheja, Headline:Bringing the effect of 5 kg of fertiliser into a 5-gm membrane URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/specials/emerging-entrepreneurs/bringing-the-effect-of- 5-kg-of-fertiliser-into-a-5-gm-membrane/article24617144.ece

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Money Control Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: NGT restrains HUL from upscaling mercury remediation at Kodaikanal plant URL: https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/ngt-restrains-hul-from-upscaling-mercury- remediation-at-kodaikanal-plant-2811981.html

NGT restrains HUL from upscaling mercury remediation at Kodaikanal plant

The tribunal was hearing a plea against the remediation levels that have been set at 20-25 mg per kg on the ground that it was not scientifically tenable and that the right standard was 6.6 mg per kg.

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has restrained FMCG major Hindustan Unilever Ltd. (HUL) from upscaling mercury remediation process at its Kodaikanal plant in Tamil Nadu and asked the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to obtain an expert opinion in the matter.

A bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel was informed that experts in this field were available with IIT Delhi and IIT Madras in the chemical engineering department who deal with the subject of mercury contamination and bio-magnification.

"Accordingly, with a view to proceed further in the matter, we consider it appropriate to direct the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to obtain an expert opinion in the matter from any institute having expertise in mercury contamination. The CPCB may also examine the trial results undertaken by NEERI in the present case...

"The experts will be at liberty to visit the site, if it is so considered necessary. Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) may not upscale the remediation process till the next date," the bench said.

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The green panel said the parties would also be at liberty to furnish relevant documents to CPCB so that it could secure an opinion in the matter within six weeks.

The tribunal was hearing a plea filed by Kodaikanal resident Navroz Mody against the remediation levels that have been set at 20-25 mg per kg on the ground that it was not scientifically tenable and that the right standard was 6.6 mg per kg.

The NGT said the issue was raised before the Madras High Court, which allowed Mody to approach the Ministry of Environment and Forests which has justified the standard that was being followed at the Kodaikanal site. "According to the applicant, the stand does not have any sound technical basis. The same cannot be mechanically accepted without expert opinion," the bench said.

The matter was posted for next hearing on October 4.

The mercury contamination in Kodaikanal originated at a thermometer factory owned by Hindustan Unilever. Unilever had acquired the thermometer factory from cosmetics maker Pond's India Ltd. The radiation incident had led to the closure of the factory in 2001.

According to the applicant, HUL imported 136.5 tonnes of mercury in its factory at Kodaikanal to manufacture thermometers. Several tonnes of broken thermometers and mercury waste were found by the residents after which the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board ordered closure of the unit on March 23, 2001. Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Firstpost Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: NIRMALA SITHARAMAN URGES STARTUPS TO DEVELOP TECH FOR 'MADE IN INDIA' DEFENCE ARMS; PROVIDE 'SOLUTIONS' TO INDIAN PROBLEMS URL: https://www.firstpost.com/tech/startup/nirmala-sitharaman-urges-startups-to-develop-tech-for- made-in-india-defence-arms-provide-solutions-to-indian-problems-4900151.html

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday called upon startups to develop technologies and weapons for the Indian armed forces."We (Ministry of Defence) want you to provide Indian solutions to problems faced by the armed forces. By indigenisation, India doesn't need to import many of the products that we do," Sitharaman told startups in this tech hub. "India wants its sectors disrupted through technological advancements," she said at the launch of "Defence India Startup Challenge", a national contest for startups to develop arms and technologies for the defence sector."

"Indigenisation has been a priority for India, however, we did not indigenise sufficiently enough," the Minister added, addressing a gathering of 200 startups, incubators and defence officials at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Convention Centre in the city centre.Through the contest, startups, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and individual researchers and academic institutions can take part in 11 different categories of creating technologies and products that can be used by the armed forces.The 11 categories in which the startups and researchers can develop products or solutions include building see-through armour for the army, development of 4G-based tactical Local Area Network for the Navy, and laser weaponry and unmanned surface and underwater vehicles development for the Air Force, among others.File image of defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman. PTI File image of defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman. PTI

Select few startups will also receive a funding of up to Rs 1.5 crore through the Ministry for developing their ideas, and given access to test their products.As part of the event, a Bengaluru-based firm Tonbo Imaging has been given an order to make night fire control system for Russian-made grenade launcher AGS-30."The Ministry will ensure the startups working on their ideas get the orders," Sitharaman said.Noting that unmanned drones with missiles are the envy of many countries, the Minister added it is not beyond India's capacity to develop them.The Defence Ministry, on the occasion, also tied up with five business incubators to promote and support the startups, including Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship with Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad; Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay; T-hub startup incubator in Hyderabad; 'Forge' incubator in Coimbatore; and IIT Madras."The contest is in line with the Innovations for Defence Excellence (IDEX) scheme announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier in April during Defence Expo in Chennai, to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in defence sector," an official statement said.The competition will also give a fillip to the country's innovation potential and create networks for collaboration between defence sector and startups, it added.Over 200 startups, 50 SMEs and 12 business incubators took part in the defence-business gathering.

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Silicon India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: A complete A-Z Guide for GATE 2019 URL: https://www.siliconindia.com/news/general/A-complete-AZ-Guide-for-GATE-2019-nid-205152-cid- 1.html A complete A-Z Guide for GATE 2019

A complete A-Z Guide for GATE 2019 appearing student

IIT Madras will be conducting graduate aptitude test in engineering (GATE) 2019 exam. The exam is conducted by the 8 IITs in rotational manner. GATE exam is conducted for admission to M.E/M.Tech and PhD programs at IITs, IISc, NITs, GFTIs and university in India. GATE score is also used by public sector undertakings (PSUs) such as BHEL, ONGC, IOCL, GAIL, HAL etc. for recruitment process.

GATE 2019 exam will be conducted in online mode. A new paper ?Statistics? has been added from this year. Candidates will have to select any one of the GATE paper for examination. The score card of GATE 2019 will be valid for 3 years from the date of announcement of the GATE result. According to Jan Bharat Times The application form of GATE 2019 will be available from 1 st week of September 2019. GATE 2019 exam will be conducted in 200 cities across India and six cities abroad. Last date to fill application form without late fee will be 4 th week of September 2019. Last date to fill application form with late fee will be 1 st week of October 2019. Following below is the application fee for various candidates:

Examination center in Indi

For all other candidates Rs 1500.

For SC/ST/PWD/female candidates Rs 750

Late fee for filling application form will be Rs 500.

Examination center in abroad (All candidates

Addis Ababa, Colombo, Dhaka & Kathmandu US$50

Dubai, Singapore US$100

Late fee for filling application form US$20

The admit card of GATE 2019 will be published by authority in first week of January 2019. GATE 2019 exam will be conducted on February 2, 3, 9 and 10 for 24 papers. The GATE 2019 response sheet will be released on second week of February 2019. GATE 2019 answer key will be published on third week of February 2019. The result of GATE 2019 will be declared on third week of March 2019. Score card of GATE 2019 will be available from 4 th week of March to last week of May 2019. As the students are studying hard for GATE 2019 you can also read this discussion on quora. Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Open PR Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Department of Science and Technology, Lockheed Martin and Tata Trusts announce the winners of India Innovation Growth Programme (IIGP 2.0) – 2018 URL: https://www.openpr.com/news/1162471/Department-of-Science-and-Technology-Lockheed- Martin-and-Tata-Trusts-announce-the-winners-of-India-Innovation-Growth-Programme-IIGP-2-0- 2018.html

Department of Science and Technology, Lockheed Martin and Tata Trusts announce the winners of India Innovation Growth Programme (IIGP 2.0) – 2018

Press release from: Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FICCI)

~ Winners have been awarded Rs. 25 lakhs each. Innovations are in the fields of health, assistive tech, agriculture, energy, robotics, water, space technology etc.

New Delhi,: The India Innovation Growth Programme (IIGP) 2.0, a tripartite initiative of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, Lockheed Martin and Tata Trusts announced the winners of the 2018 edition today in New Delhi. The winners were chosen from among 3,000 applicants who proposed innovations to create large scale social impact and bring industrial transformation in India.

IIGP 2.0 is implemented by several supporting partners; Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Indo-US Science and Technology Forum, Center for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship at IIM Ahmedabad, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and Tata Center for Technology and Design at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

After the second consecutive year of IIGP 2.0 at the Festival of Innovation at Rashtrapati Bhavan earlier this year, this renewed programme aims to support Government of India’s ‘Start-up India’ and ‘Make in India’ initiatives.

The winners have been awarded an amount of Rs. 25 lakhs each.

Winners from social innovations category:

• Aarna Biomedical Products Ltd (Product: Poorti): Poorti is an affordable, light weight post mastectomy kit designed to cater the needs of breast cancer survivors who have undergone mastectomy to restore their confidence, dignity and femininity. • Green Farming Forever Innovations (Product: Moksh): Moksh traverses the agriculture farm post-harvest of rice crop. It picks the rice straw from ground on a real time basis and converts the rice- straw into a powder form. It is backed by a unique radiation based dryer which takes 110 times lesser time in comparison to conventional dryers, saving 5-7 days for farmers. It offers farmers to earn as much as INR 40,000/month/machine.

• Torchit Electornics Pvt Ltd (Product: Saarthi): A highly affordable handheld device for the visually impaired to manoeuvre around obstacles they encounter on daily basis. The device is attached with highly accurate sensors and provide feedback in the form of buzzing sounds and vibrating sensations.

• 22bate7 Software Pvt Ltd (Product: piCards): piCards is a low cost continuous feedback, audience polling and formative assessment solution that lets teachers assess comprehension levels in classrooms in order to improve learning outcomes.

• TouchVision Tech (Product: TouchVision): A multisensory inclusive education platform for visually impaired people to learn and thrive by fostering an inclusive world.

• CareNX Innovations Pvt. Ltd IIT Bombay (Product: SelfCervi): A device for real-time self- screening of cervical cancer

• Shira MedTech Pvt Ltd (Product: Shira Clamp): Shira Clamps are aimed to make microsurgery possible for all surgeons in all domains. It aims to prevent disability in order to protect human lives and skilled labour and prevent families from getting pushed into poverty due to salvaging limbs.

• Genrobotics Innovations (Product: Bandicoot): Bandicoot robot is a Semiautomatic robotic system for manhole and sewer line cleaning aimed at eliminating manual scavenging and positioning the pressurized water jet for cleaning sewer lines.

Winners from industrial innovations category:

• IIT Madras (Product: AQUA-FI): Adaptive underwater wireless acoustic modem, with a vision to become the world leader in underwater acoustic communication systems.

• Delectrik Systems Private Limited (Product: Redox Flow Battery): Decentralized electricity to provide Affordable and Sustainable Energy Access for everyone.

• DRIVAMP LLP (Product: Drivamp): DrivAmp Level 2 smart electric vehicle charging stations and system controllers developed with a vision to reduce the impact of pollution and create an ecosystem for sustainable transport in India and around the globe.

• Etrix Technologies Private Limited (Product: BlinkIN): An augmented reality and artificial intelligence based visual communication and assistive tool for tech support and training anytime, anywhere. A smart and intelligent system powered by AI and AR that acts as the ‘Google‘ of tech support, by delivering problem specific intelligence at the point of service as and when required.

• Irov Technologies Private Limited (Product: EyeROV): Making underwater inspections for critical infrastructure efficient and smarter. With an aim to be the leader in critical infrastructure inspection like dams, bridges, offshore structures etc. through user-friendly reports of inspected critical infrastructure and to design, manufacture and assemble in India.

• MakerInMe Technologies Private Limited (Product: Cretile): A kit of plug-n-play robotic, automation, IoT & electronic modular building blocks, making it an excellent STEM education tool. With the aim to empower creators with innovative tools to bring their dream creations into being

• Manastu Space Technologies Private Limited: Green propulsion technology for low thrust applications using premixed hydrogen peroxide and alcohols for replacement of current hydrazine based toxic mono propellant systems. Aiming to reduce the cost of access to space, to solve problems concerning humanity.

• Sastra Robotics India Private Limited (Product: SR-Dimenzio): An intelligent robot to automate real device human machine interface testing. The product aims to facilitate precise, risky and accurate jobs through realistic human arm capabilities.

The winning innovations were evaluated by an esteemed set of jury members on select parameters. Technological innovation, sustainability of the proposed solution, unique value/proposition, development status, social impact and funding required for technology development amongst others were some of the parameters.

A total of 3000 applications were received and evaluated across areas such as assistive technology, healthcare, clean energy, cyber security, data analytics, space technology, education, sanitation, internet of things, fintech etc.

In the last month, the shortlisted top 50 Open Innovation Challenge teams were invited for an intensive 1 week Boot Camp at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

Prof. Ashutosh Sharma, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology said, “DST is key partner of the IIGP 2.0, a unique collaborative program to harness transformative ideas and solutions. IIGP offers an enabling platform to nurture and scale up these ideas through its national and international partners. The program enriches the innovation to commercialization value chain and strikes a balance in tapping innovations of excellence as well as relevance required for the socio-economic development of the country’’ Speaking at the event, Phil Shaw, Chief Executive, Lockheed Martin India, said, “Through the India Innovation Growth Programme, Lockheed Martin has been supporting the Indian start-up ecosystem for more than a decade and it’s never been stronger. We think this partnership is the flagship initiative for encouraging new ideas and entrepreneurship and it has helped changed the fabric of India’s start-up scene. Since the launch of the programme in 2007 more than 7,000 innovative technologies have been evaluated and we have provided 400 Indian innovators with in-depth technology, commercial training and business development support. We congratulate today’s winners and want to encourage the next wave of innovators and entrepreneurs to come forward.”

Mr. Manoj Kumar, Head, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Tata Trusts & CEO, Social Alpha said, “As we continue to build on Tata Trusts’ legacy of promoting science and technology research in India, we believe that initiatives like IIGP can open up multiple opportunities for entrepreneurs to translate their innovations into high impact solutions, that benefit the poor and underserved at scale. We are happy to announce the winners of IIGP 2.0 who have demonstrated that their high quality technology innovations have the potential to solve some of the most complex challenges that the country faces today and hope that this platform will continue to foster the spirit of entrepreneurship, improving the quality of life for millions"

Mr. Dilip Chenoy, Secretary General, FICCI said, ”FICCI is proud to be associated with the India Innovation Growth Programme since its inception in 2007. I am also happy to share that FICCI is an active player in the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem and we have established close to twenty PPPs to support Indian innovators and start-ups. We support Indian entrepreneurs scale their solutions within India and globally.”

Mr. Nirankar Saxena, Deputy Secretary General, FICCI said, "We have witnessed some path breaking innovations being recognized and scaled under the IIGP over the past ten years. With the capacity building and business development support being provided under the programme, Indian entrepreneurs have been able to take their businesses to the next level in turn generating employment in the country.”

The winners will receive advanced training from leading academia for product commercialization, readiness for market, business models, Intellectual Property rights, competitive positioning and mechanisms for revenue. Additionally, training will be provided in technology commercialization strategies and entrepreneurship; analysis of commercial potential of their technology; professional business development assistance, and access to US and global investor markets.

Established in 1927, FICCI is the largest and oldest apex business organisation in India. Its history is closely interwoven with India's struggle for independence, its industrialization, and its emergence as one of the most rapidly growing global economies.

A non-government, not-for-profit organisation, FICCI is the voice of India's business and industry. From influencing policy to encouraging debate, engaging with policy makers and civil society, FICCI articulates the views and concerns of industry. It serves its members from the Indian private and public corporate sectors and multinational companies, drawing its strength from diverse regional chambers of commerce and industry across states, reaching out to over 2,50,000 companies. Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Chronicle India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Household Water Purifier Filter Market Status, Top Players, Trends and Forecast to 2025 URL: https://thechronicleindia.com/household-water-purifier-filter-market-status-top-players-trends- and-forecast-to-2025/

Household Water Purifier Filter Market Status, Top Players, Trends and Forecast to 2025

Household Water Purifier Filter Market

[email protected] August 6, 2018 0 4 2 minutes read

This study researches the size of Household Water Purifier Filter Market, presents the global Household Water Purifier Filter sales and revenue by companies, regions, type and application, history breakdown data from 2013 to 2018, and forecast to 2025. This report focuses on the key data information of Household Water Purifier Filter in key regions like North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Central & South America, and Middle East & Africa, presents sales, revenue, market share, growth rate of Household Water Purifier Filter for each region and countries in each region.

For top companies, this report investigates and analyzes the sales, revenue, market share and growth rate for the top players, key data from 2013 to 2018. This report also studies the global market status, competition landscape, market share, growth rate, future trends, market drivers, opportunities and challenges, sales channels, distributors and Porter’s Five Forces Analysis. Reverse Osmosis filters help in removing dissolved impurities from contaminated water. This is done by water pressure pushing the tap water through a semipermeable membrane. Impurities such as fluoride, lead, pesticides, chlorine, chloramine, and other heavy metals can be removed easily.

The growing focus of vendors to differentiate their products as one of the major factors fueling the market’s growth prospects. The vendors in the market are offering a wide range of products with advanced technologies such as nanotechnology and ceramic water filters. Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras have discovered a water purification system using nanotechnology.

APAC accounts for the largest revenue share due to the increasing demand from developing countries in this region. With the rise in water borne diseases, there is a growing awareness regarding water sanitation in this region. The rising marketing and promotional activities by the vendors coupled with the consumers’ increasing spending capacity will provide opportunities for vendors to increase their sales. In 2018, the global Household Water Purifier Filter market size was xx million US$ and is forecast to xx million US in 2025, growing at a CAGR of xx% from 2018. In this study, 2017 has been considered as the base year and 2018 to 2025 as the forecast period to estimate the market size for Household Water Purifier Filter.

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: Statesman Edition: Delhi Page No: 11 Journalist: NA Headline: DU top educational institution, LPU at No. 5

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: The Economic Times Edition: Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: HUL Cannot Upscale Mercury Remediation at Kodaikanal for now

Date: 8th August 2018 Publication: One India Edition: Online Journalist: Vicky Nanjappa Headline: Politics of burial in TN: Is Marina burial only for sitting CMs? URL: https://www.oneindia.com/india/politics-of-burial-in-tn-is-marina-burial-only-for-sitting-cms- 2751699.html

Politics of burial in TN: Is Marina burial only for sitting CMs?

Chennai, Aug 8: Unfortunate politics broke out following the death of DMK leader, M Karunanidhi. The DMK has been demanding a burial at the Marina Beach where stalwarts of the state of Tamil Nadu such as C N Annadurai, M G Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa were laid to rest. M Karunanidhi Interestingly, prior to the death of Karunanidhi, a petition was filed in the Madras High Court, seeking a directive to prevent burials at the Marina Beach. However a day prior to the death of the former Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister, the petition had been withdrawn. Short News JioPhone to finally receive YouTube app Kerala floods: Life slowly eases back to normal in Idukki Hina Khan Trolled Brutally For Her Gym Pictures! The PIL filed in the Madras High Court seeking to restrain the Corporation of Greater Chennai from permitting any burial of bodies on the famous Marina Beach here was dismissed as withdrawn. When the first bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Huluvadi G Ramesh and Justice S S Sundar began the day's hearings, petitioner V Gandhimathi made an urgent mention and requested permission to withdraw her plea. Recording her submission, the bench dismissed the petition as withdrawn. The petitioner had submitted that the coastal area of Marina was being turned into a burial ground, which not only spoiled the aesthetics but also endangered the ecosystem in and around the beach. She had sought a direction to the corporation not to permit burials in the area. Despite such consequences, permission was given by the authorities for the burial of former chief ministers like C N Annadurai, M G Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa on the Marina, the petitioner said. If any further burials and resultant construction were allowed at the Marina, it would damage the environment, she had claimed. Several other PILs against the proposed memorial for Jayalalithaa at the Marina are pending before the court. Senior advocate Duraisamy told journalists, "The Anna Memorial does not fall under the Coastal Regulatory Zone since it was facing landward. Therefore there should not be any problem in allowing Kalaignar to be buried there." Short News ONGC pays back one third of loan for acquiring HPCL Alibaba in talks with Tata, Reliance and Future for a joint venture Drinking milk for breakfast can lower blood glucose The state government in a statement said, "Several litigations over allowing burials on the Marina were pending before the Madras HC and due to the legal difficulties, the place could not be allocated." While the DMK continued to demand that the burial takes place at Marina, the argument on the other side is that it would apply only to sitting Chief Ministers. Other former chief ministers such as Rajaji and Kamraj have been buried near the IIT. Following the death of Karunanidhi, the state government has offered others sites which include the Gandhi Mandapam at Guindy. While the ruling AIADMK raised the the issue citing three petitions pending in the HC, it may be recalled when Jayalalithaa had passed away in December 2016, the rule had been circumvented by burying her in the existing memorial for her mentor, M G Ramachandran. Date: 8th August 2018 Publication: The Free Press Journal Edition: Mumbai Page No: 1 Journalist: NA Headline: RSS says no beach burial

Date: 7th August 2018 Publication: The Week Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Domesticating Technology is the Key to Simplifying Human Life Umesh Sachdev URL: https://www.theweek.in/wire-updates/business/2018/08/07/pwr5- uniphore%20software%20systems.html

Domesticating Technology is the Key to Simplifying Human Life Umesh Sachdev PTI August 07, 2018

CHENNAI, India, August 7, 2018/PRNewswire/ -- The young futurist and CEO of Uniphore spoke at TEDx Chennai on how deep tech solutions can increase the ease of living Umesh Sachdev, CEO Uniphore Software Systems, during his TEDx speech highlighted how domesticating technology can help make human life easier. He explained how Uniphore intends to use deep tech solutions to simplify daily human life. He underlined the role of artificial intelligence and machine learning in the future. While speaking at the platform where the overarching theme of this edition was - 'the next revolution won't be one where we bring out the guns but the one where we bring out our ideas', Umesh said, "We are now domesticating the computing technology to simplify our lives using the power of speech. Imagine a world where a machine talks back the way our friends and family do - in our own language, understanding our own dialect. How much easier life would be? How much simplified our business processes would be? How empowered our technically challenged folks would be? This scenario can be a reality only if machines comprehend human speech the way another human would do." Umesh Sachdev, the co-founder and CEO of Uniphore Software Systems Pvt. Ltd., is a modern-day entrepreneur with patents in Speech Recognition Technologies. His Chennai-based start-up, Uniphore is transforming the man-machine communications using the power of speech with AI and Machine Learning. Its solutions have been unleashing the power of natural speech by creating highly sophisticated service delivery platforms that promise premium consumer service for the past ten years. The innovative and intuitive solutions include Speech Analytics, Virtual Assistant and Voice Biometrics that will change the way enterprises engage their consumers, build loyalty and maintain healthy bottom-line. The March 2018 edition of TEDx Chennai was hosted at the Sri Muthu Venkat Subha Rao Concert Hall in Chennai. It had speakers from different walks of life speak about ways to bring out the best of social, creative, technological and scientific developments and drive the future forward.

TEDx Chennai talk by Umesh Sachdev

About Uniphore Uniphore Software Systems is headquartered in IIT Madras Research Park, Chennai. Uniphore was incubated in IIT Chennai, India in 2008 and currently has offices in India, Singapore and U.A.E with about 100 employees spread across all locations. Uniphore's investors include John Chambers, Kris Gopalakrishnan, IDG Ventures India, India Angel Network, YourNest Angel Fund and Ray Stata. Uniphore has worked with over 70 enterprise customers and served over 4 million end users. Uniphore was recognized by Deloitte as a Technology Fast 500 company in Asia Pacific in 2014 and was also ranked as the 10th fastest growing technology company in India by Deloitte Fast 50 in 2015. Uniphore's Co-founder & CEO, Umesh Sachdev was recognized by the TIME Magazine list of 2016 amongst '10 Millennials Changing the World', and with India's edition of MIT Technology Review's 'Innovators Under 35' for the year 2016.

About TEDx (x = independently organized event) In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TED Talks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event.

About TED TED is a non-profit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. Started as a four-day conference in California almost 30 years ago, TED has grown to support its mission with multiple initiatives. The two annual TED Conferences invite the world's leading thinkers and doers to speak for 18 minutes on a diverse mix of topics. TED speakers have included Bill Gates, Jane Goodall, Elizabeth Gilbert, Sir Richard Branson, Nandan Nilekani, Philippe Starck, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Isabel Allende and former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown. TED's media initiatives include TED.com, where new TED Talks are posted daily; the Open Translation Project, which provides subtitles and interactive transcripts as well as translations from volunteers worldwide; the educational initiative TED-Ed; and TEDBooks, short e-books on powerful ideas among others.

Date: 8th August 2018 Publication: EET India Edition: Online Journalist: Rick Merritt Headline: India's InCore Adds to RISC-V and AI URL: https://www.eetindia.co.in/news/article/18080802-indias-incore-adds-to-risc-v-and-ai

Licensing cores and design services on agenda for startup

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A startup in India announced ambitious plans to design and license RISC-V-based processor cores as well as deep-learning accelerators and SoC design tools. InCore Semiconductors will make its first cores available before the end of the year.

The effort marks a small but significant addition to the RISC-V ecosystem. It shows that the initiative is gaining global interest for its open-source instruction set architecture as an alternative to offerings from Arm and other traditional suppliers.

InCore spun out of the Shakti processor research team at IIT-Madras, leveraging research in machine learning at its Robert Bosch AI Centre. So far, it is funding itself with revenues from providing commercial support for Shakti cores, according to G. S. Madhusudan, chief executive of InCore and a principal scientist at IIT-Madras.

The startup is developing two families of in-order cores that target edge systems ranging from ultra-low- power IoT to desktops.

At the low end, its E-class cores use three-stage pipelines and come in 32- and 64-bit versions supporting a subset of the RISC-V ISA. They will run at less than 200 MHz and come with ports of FreeRTOS, targeting Arm’s M-class cores.

The high-end, 64-bit C-class cores use a five-stage pipeline and support the full RISC-V ISA and virtualization. They target speeds up to 800 MHz but can be customized to run up to 2 GHz and issue two instructions per cycle.

The C-class cores will support a level-four secure version of Linux and target Arm’s A35/A55 cores. The startup also plans a set of extensions for the C-class cores that enable fault-tolerant functions for automotive and other markets.

Versions of both E and C cores will be available before the end of the year. Superscalar and dual-issue capabilities will be available before April.

InCore AI array

A systolic array is one of the first blocks on the way to an AI accelerator core. (Image: InCore)

AI plan starts with accelerator blocks To accelerate deep learning in embedded systems, InCore will supply before the end of the year blocks to integrate with its cores. The so-called Axon series products are the start of a plan to design accelerator cores for machine learning that will include support for real-time guarantees.

One block will provide a basic systolic array using a data flow architecture and supporting frameworks such as Caffe and TensorFlow. Another offers cache optimizations to enable skipping redundant operations in sparse data sets by using a special address table and register file.

A separate Aegis series will deliver hardware-based security functions such as a tagged architecture due by next June to prevent common memory attacks. However, it requires software support and is an extension outside of the RISC-V specification.

Separately, InCore aims to release SoC design tools for its cores, preliminary versions of which are already available as open-source code. The tools aim to ease the job of integrating and testing the startup’s cores and blocks with each other using standard interfaces such as AXI and TileLink.

InCore aims to make money through a combination of licensing its intellectual property and providing design services. To date, it has worked mainly with HCL Technologies (Noida, India) to engage foundries. Intel taped out an IIT-Madras Shakti core on its 22-nm node with back-end design by HCL.

“We can go from concept to tape-out on any fab, even at 7-nm nodes,” said Madhusudan in an email exchange. “We like the Intel 22-nm process for IoT and sub-GHz-class devices.”

So far, InCore is not planning a venture investment round. “We can even go GA on one or two cores with our current revenue, but VCs are interested,” said Madhusudan. “Long term, there is enough strategic business in India for us, and we are the only CPU IP player around.”

The company’s chief technologist laid out the startup’s product plans at a RISC-V conference recently in Chennai, India, where InCore is based.

Date: 8th August 2018 Publication: Mid Day Edition: Mumbai Page No: 23 Journalist: NA Headline: Viva institute of Technology aims at empowering students

Date: 8th August 2018 Publication: The Indian Express Edition: Delhi / Faridabad / Gurgaon / Noida Journalist: NA Headline: NBCC revives Purana Qila lake, but some environment concerns URL: https://indianexpress.com/article/delhi/nbcc-revives-purana-qila-lake-but-some-environment- concerns-5296804/

Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: Chandigarh Metro Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: GATE 2019: IIT Madras Releases Important Dates for the Exam | Application to Start in September URL: https://chandigarhmetro.com/gate-2019-iit-madras-releases-important-dates-for-the-exam- application-to-start-in-september/

GATE 2019: IIT Madras Releases Important Dates for the Exam | Application to Start in September

GATE 2019: IIT Madras has released the important dates regarding the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering for the year 2019. Candidates, who have been planning to appear for GATE 2019 can check out the dates on the new website by IIT Madras. Although the detailed information regarding the GATE Exam for the year 2019 will be out with the official notification soon.

IITs use to conduct the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering for the Engineering aspirants in India once in a year. Whereas the GATE Rank has been accepted by several PG Colleges for the admission process in PG courses. Check out the details of GATE 2019 to be conducted by IIT Madras below.

GATE 2019: Here are the important dates released by IIT Madras IIT Madras as per its new website for GATE 2019 will start the online application process i.e GOAPS from 1st of September 2018. Whereas the same will close by IIT Madras on 21st September. After that, the extended application date for the GATE 2019 will be 1st October 2018. Although the last date for the change of the exam city and fee for the GATE 2019 will be 16 November 2018.

Further, the admit cards for the GATE Exam 2019 will be available for download from the official website on 4 January 2019. Although the tentative dates for the GATE 2019 Exam are- 2nd, 3rd, 9th and 10 February 2019. Lastly, the result of the 2019 GATE Exam will be announced online on 16 March 2019. For more details check out the official website of the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering i.e gate.iitm.ac.in.

More Details Regarding the GATE Exam for the year 2019 Last year Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati held the GATE exam all over India. For the year 2019, the authority to conduct the GATE Exam has been given to IIT Madras. As of now no official notification regarding the eligibility and exam details have been revealed by the Institute for GATE 2019. Although the aspirants have been waiting for the official notification for the GATE 2019.

Candidates are requested to keep a tap on the official website of GATE 2019 as anytime IIT Madras can release the official notification for the same. We wish all the best to the candidates appearing for IIT Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering for the year 2019.

Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Quiz contest on Saturday URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/quiz- contest/article24638017.ece

Quiz contest on Saturday

The Tiruchi edition of the Spark Junior Quiz (SJQ), conducted as part of Shaastra 2019, the annual tech- fest of IIT Madras, would be held at the Montfort School, Kattur, here on August 11.

SJQ is the flagship quizzing event of Shaastra, a four-day technical extravaganza to be held in IIT, Madras in January. SJQ is a science and technology based quiz conducted for school students of standards 8 to 12, at a national level. It is a quiz based on science, mathematics, technology, general knowledge and logic.

Over 4000 participants are expected to take part in the competition. Certificates of appreciation and prizes would be awarded to the top 3 teams. The top five teams from each city will qualify for the national screening round. Top 25 teams from the screening round, will get a chance to travel to IIT, Madras, for the finals.

The top 3 teams of finals will be declared as national winners. A team should consist of two members and any bonafide team from a school can take part. The team members need not be from the same school or branch. Participants are requested to carry a valid school identity cards.

Students can register online at http://spark.shaastra.tech and limited on-the-spot registrations would be allowed subject to availability, a press release said.

Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: Kalinga TV Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Meet M. Sivaguru Prabhakara: The Boy Who Slept On Railway Platforms But Cracked UPSC URL: https://kalingatv.com/features/meet-m-sivaguru-prabhakara-the-boy-who-slept-on-railway- platforms-but-cracked-upsc/

The harder you work for something, the greater you will feel when you achieve it. Hard work pays off as long as you believer in yourself. That is the only mantra to success. There are times when one feels like giving up. Life seems to be a never-ending road full of thorns and hurdles. Yet, the desire to achieve a long-cherished dream keeps one going. It is the difficulties and hurdles which one faces in life that makes him stronger.

Sivaguru Prabhakara is one such person who defied all odds in life and achieved his dreams. Hailing from Melaottankodu village in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, Sivaguru had dreams of becoming an engineer. However, his dreams were nipped in the bud because of unfavourable family conditions- an alcoholic father and a mother who toiled hard to earn bread for the family. His elder sister, along with his mother, used to sell coconut fronds for earning a livelihood and making ends meet.

All this forced Prabhakara to take up the job of an operator at a sawmill. He also did farming to increase the family earning. While working for the fulfilment of his family’s needs, he also saved money for his education.

Prabhakara used his earnings to pay the fee of his younger brother’s engineering course and also for his elder sister’s marriage. In the same year, he joined in a civil engineering course at the Thanthai Periyar Government Institute of Technology, Vellore.

After this, Prabhakara worked hard as if there is no tomorrow. He concentrated his entire focus towards cracking the IIT-Madras Entrance Examination. For coachings, he used to travel to Chennai every weekend for practical training. With no place to rest or stay in Chennai, he used to spend night sleeping on the platforms of St. Thomas Mount Railway Station. However, his dedication and hard work bore fruits when Sivaguru successfully cracked the IIT-Madras entrance and scored an overall CGPA of 9.0 in his masters. He later finished his M.Tech in 2014 and then decided to appear for the prestigious UPSC exams.All the while, he was constantly juggling between part-time jobs and studying for examinations. Alas, Prabhakara was able to crack the UPSC in his fourth attempt.

People like Prabhakara make us believe that nothing is impossible if one is focused, dedicated and firm- minded. The struggles of his life and the way he emerged triumphant over all odds has set a predecent and will continue to inspire many more in the future, who dream big.

Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: The Indian Wire Edition: Online Journalist: NA Alumni: Victor Senapaty, Bibhu Prasad Das and Brijesh Samantaray Headline: Fintech startup Propelld secures ₹1.7 crores from IAN and IAN Fund URL: https://www.theindianwire.com/startups/propelld-secures-%E2%82%B91-7-crores-ian-ian-fund- 68905/

Fintech startup Propelld secures ₹1.7 crores from IAN and IAN Fund

Bengaluru-based Bluebear Technology, that operates education focused fintech startup Propelld, has raised around ₹1.7 crores ($250,000) in seed funding from Indian Angel Network (IAN) and IAN Fund, led by IAN members Ambarish Raghuvanshi, former CEO of Naukri, Alok Sharma former CEO of Apple India, along with Satish Jajodia, former CEO of Education Dynamics.

Propelld was founded by three IIT-Madras alumni, Victor Senapaty, Bibhu Prasad Das, Brijesh Samantaray. It provides an education financing platform for students for various educational and professional courses.

It uses a proprietary employability algorithm to calculate the propensity of the student to repay the loans by considering various data points including schools, academic performance, stream and work experience.

It has partnered with various universities and institutions to help the students in providing a loan as smoothly as possible.

“Measuring employability of students based on their academic history and skills is our core strength. We are looking at leveraging the data to introduce new financing products in the markets such as CV based lending (without the need of co-guarantors) and also expand our scope of services to career path discovery, lead generation for Institutes, creating skill community etc.,” said Victor, co-founder at Propelld.

There is no dearth of fintech startups in the lending space but Propelld has carved a niche for itself as it caters to the students in need of a loan to pursue their education goals. Partnering with universities and institutes will help the students get a loan in a seamless way without much hassle.

Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: VC Circle Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IAN Fund invests in fin-tech startup Propelld URL: https://www.vccircle.com/ian-fund-invests-in-fin-tech-startup-propelld

IAN Fund invests in fin-tech startup Propelld which runs fin-tech startup Propelld, has raised $250,000 (around Rs 1.7 crore) in a seed round of funding from Indian Angel Network and its eponymous venture capital fund, a company statement said.

The funding round was led by IAN Members Ambarish Raghuvanshi, former chief financial officer of jobs portal Naukri; Alok Sharma, former chief executive of tech giant Apple India; and Satish Jajodia, former CFO of marketing and information services firm Education Dynamics.

Propelld, founded in 2017, is a student education financing platform through which financial institutions can lend to students taking professional training or vocational certification courses.

The company claims that it uses its proprietary employability outcome algorithm to include earning potential when determining the ability of a borrower to repay. This includes data points such as schools, academic performance, educational stream and work experience.

The startups plans to use the data to introduce new financing products in the markets such as CV-based lending without the need of co-guarantors and will also expand its services to career path discovery, lead generation for institutes, creating a skilled community, etc., Victor Senapaty, co-founder at Propelld said in the statement.

“Measuring employability of students based on their academic history and skills is our core strength” he added.

According to him, banks and non-banking finance companies viewed lending in this space as high risk, equating youth and lack of credit to risk. The startup models its decisions on expected income and expected expenses. Senapaty claims that his firm hasn’t had a single case of default. “We started with technology courses such as certification programs in data science, digital marketing, cybersecurity, coding etc. However, having seen a much larger demand in the non-technology space, we have now started moving in that as well,” he added.

Currently, the startup provides loans in sectors as beauty, aviation, and paramedical training to name a few, Senapaty said.

Propelld was founded by Senapaty, an MBA from Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi; Brijesh Samantaray, an MBA from Indian Institute of Technology, Madras; and Bibhu Das, an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta.

It currently works with institutes covering both technology and non-technology certification or skilling courses across Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Propelld has partnered with institutes that have an annual intake of approximately 30,000 students.

Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Kochi Page No: 11 Journalist: NA Alumni: Raju Narayana Swamy Headline: Raju Narayana Swamy is new CDB chairman

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: Ramya Kannan Headline: As CM, he picked the State song URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/as-cm-he-picked-the-state- song/article24651089.ece

As CM, he picked the State song

If you look far back enough, the DMK patriarch has in some way touched most issues of significance in Tamil Nadu. The more recently embattled State song, the Tamizh Thai Vazhthu is no exception.

It was Mr. Karunanidhi who introduced the song, or rather a portion of a poem written by P. Sundaram Pillai, noted Tamil scholar in his play Manonmaniam. The Hindu’s archives yielded a report, published in March 1970, recording that the then Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, in his presentation of the State Awards for best Tamil films, artists and technicians, said the new ‘prayer song’ for Tamil Nadu would henceforth be the poem beginning with the line Neerarum Kadaludutha. However, only the first six lines of the two-stanza poem, extolling the virtues of the Tamil Goddess, was to be used.

Fittingly, that year's best music director awardee M.S.Viswanathan who scored the music for the song, and best female playback singer P. Susheela sang the song at the awards ceremony.

In April that year, MP Samar Guha raised a question in the Lok Sabha, questioning whether the Central Government's attention had been drawn to the fact that the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister had introduced a Tamil anthem to be sung before the national anthem. He also wondered if this “new practice did not run counter to the sovereign concept of the Indian nation.” The then Deputy Home Minister K.S. Ramaswamy denied that it would be so.

In 1978, the State government ordered that the song be sung as prayer in all schools before classes began in the morning.

Interestingly, as late as in March this year, the Madras High Court dismissed a PIL that sought a direction to the State government to issue an executive order stating that only the unedited version of the Tamil Thai Vazhthu poem should be used. Earlier in the year, there was a fair bit of hornets nest stir about the junior pontiff of the Sankara Mutt not standing during a rendition of the song, and about not playing it in a function in IIT Madras. Date: 10th August 2018 Date: 9th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express - Edex Edition: Online Student: Divanshu Kumar Journalist: Damini Goel Headline: This IIT-M student's start-up is training older school kids to tutor their juniors URL: http://www.edexlive.com/beinspired/2018/aug/09/this-21-year-old-student-from-iit-madras-is- involving-students-in-teaching-3610.html

This IIT-M student's start-up is training older school kids to tutor their juniors

Divanshu Kumar, a student of IIT-M along with three of his friends started Involve, a start-up which encourages peer learning to help school children understand concepts betterDamini Goel involve_founding_team Involve is supported by Centre for Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship, IIT Madras

At a time when our education system is heavily focused on exams rather than training students for the future, this IIT-M backed start-up is on a mission to change this general perception. Involve, which was started in 2016, improves the learning ability of students using the peer teaching method. The team mentors senior school students in their formative years who in turn teach students junior to them by partnering with affordable (low-income) private schools and providing after-school academic help to these students at a low cost.

“I was working with Avanti Fellows, a non-profit organisation, where students from IIT would mentor underprivileged students for competitive exams. Initially, I was a mentor there, but then I started handling 40 IITians who would mentor 40-50 kids. The content given to these kids was sourced from an external coaching centre, but due to internet issues, the students could not access the content. It was during that time when I asked the seniors to clear the doubts of students from lower classes. It is also when I realised that this method can be taken to the school level. Hence, I started Involve to create an ecosystem that defines a school’s potential not merely in terms of examinations, but through their overall excellence,” says Divanshu Kumar, a co-founder of the start-up, who is a Mechanical Engineering and Robotics student at IIT Madras.

To help students understand concepts better and gain a good understanding of the curriculum, Divanshu along with three of his friends — Samyak Jain, Awnish Raj and Prateek Bhindwar — started Involve. So, how does it work? “We partner up with a school and students from 8th grade onwards are trained and mentored by a team from Involve to teach their juniors. It’s a structured peer teaching programme where senior students are mentored to get a better understanding of the curriculum. Then these student leaders are given primary students in groups of eight for them to teach,” he explains.

It was hard to convince the schools initially. But when our pilot project with 50 kids was a success, the authorities started believing in usDivanshu Kumar, Co-founder, Involve Involve has also curated special lesson plans for the student leaders. Maths, Science and Communicative English are based on the curriculum of the respective schools. “The idea is to make the content much more engaging and fun so that the learners are propelled to become self-motivated learners. More than 47 per cent of the youth in India are unemployable. It is due to the lack of soft skills like teamwork, communication, leadership and so on. This is where Involve comes into play. Not only do we ensure that a student scores well in their exams, but we also impart soft skills in our teaching methods,” he adds.

Involve has impacted more than 400 students so far. They want other schools to replicate their learning method and create more student leaders for the future.

Health Published: 20th August 2018

This doctor couple has been healing the tribal folk of Sittilingi in TN for over 2 decades

To boldly go where no sane doctor would go required some courage. Dr Regi George and Lalitha had all that and more as they have transformed the healthscape of the Kalrayan Hills. Akshaya Asokan tracesAkshaya Asokan

Pix14Dr Regi George and Dr Lalitha Regi set up THI 25 years ago. Though started as a small OP unit, today , THI offers modern medical facilities like any other hospital | Pics: Anand Krishnan

Nestled in the foothills of the Kalrayan and Sitteri hill ranges is Sittilingi, a tribal village with not more than two lakh people. Like any other tribal area, being cut off from modern amenities, Sittilingi was also struggling with its health indices and poverty was something that people had accepted as a way of life.

At one point, death was a common sight and the villagers resorted to natural remedies in the hope of curing their various ailments. All this changed when Dr Regi George and his wife Dr Lalitha Regi arrived at the village with one aim — to ensure that the villagers received basic healthcare that we city-dwellers tak

Nurturing change: Dr Regi Groge and Dr Lalitha Regi at Tribal Health Initiative, a hospital that provides quality healthcare at an affordable rate to the tribal population of Sittilingi village in rural Tamil Nadu

That was 25 years ago. Today, Tribal Health Initiative (THI), the hospital that they set up in Sittilingi with just one Outpatient unit (OP) is a full-fledged hospital with six doctors and 30 nurses attending to close to one lakh patients every year. "In 1993, when we first came here, maternal and infant mortality rates were quite high. Coupled with this, illiteracy and superstitious beliefs were at their peak and they depended on herbs for cures. So we decided to stay back and do our best to improve the situation," says Dr Regi, who is an anesthesiologist while Dr Lalitha is a gynaecologist. Since their arrival, the IMR (Infant Mortality Rate) has come down to 30 deaths per 1000 live births from a staggering 150/1000.

The couple who hails from Kerala, met each other while they were students at the Government T D Medical College, Alappuzha and were determined to give back to society, "Right from the start, we were particular that we should work where we are needed the most and experience what comes along with it. Before we arrived, the nearest hospital was 120 km away and in case of any medical emergency, the villagers had to travel either to Salem or to Chennai," he recalls, about the state of affairs that led them to settle down in Sittilingi.

Women power: Dr Lalitha has been instrumental in bringing more village women to the forefront. Today, more than half of the hospital staffers are women

Today, THI is an ISO-certified hospital for quality medical care which boasts of modern facilities like an advanced Intensive Care Unit (ICU), a dental clinic, a labour room, a neo-natal room, a well-equipped emergency room and a fully functional laboratory. "We started with a mere OP unit in a thatched hut. Today, the villagers come to the hospital for curing almost anything," Dr Regi says resolutely, describing how far they've come.

However, the couple's biggest achievement along with improving general health levels is promoting a better standard of living. At the hospital, the villagers constitute the majority of the staff. Through Dr Lalitha's strenuous and constant effort, women are employed at THI as nurses, paramedics and health auxiliaries, with benefits like Provident Fund (PF) and gratuity to go with a stable pay. "We started training them, especially the women, right from the time we started the OP unit. At first, it was hard to convince the parents to let their daughters work with us as they were sceptical and it was unheard of for daughters to work instead of getting married. Now, they are adept and as skilled as any other other medical personnel and can even run the hospital without our supervision," Dr Regi says, the tinge of pride in his voice, unmistakable.

Silent abode: THI is located at the foothills of Kalrayan and Sitteri hill ranges

THI's main source of income is through donations from friends and through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects, "We do charge a small amount for the treatment here. At times, people pay and other times they just give us what they have. So, with the money that we get as donations, through CSR funding and the hospital's annual turnover, we are able to run THI without any government aid," says Dr Regi when asked how they keep things running.

Organic Outreach

The couple has also been instrumental in promoting the organic farming in the village. Presently, close to 500 farmers are part of the Sittinlingi Organic Farmers' Association (SOFA) through which sustainable farming methods have been introduced to them, "We started thinking about adopting organic farming when the farmers approached us for a solution for the low yield. At that time, farmers weren't making any money and the land was highly infertile due to repeated farming. Now, the practice has been widely accepted by the majority of them and we are convincing others to slowly join the association," he explains. The couple helped form SOFA in 2004.

They have also revived the dying Lambadi embroidery art from near extinction. Now, under a brand called Svad, 25 organic products are being sold across the cities in South India and other ventures like soap-making and millet biscuits are slowly catching up.

With hands that can turn anything they touch into gold, both Dr Regi and Dr Lalitha do not intend to stop their quest for bettering the lives of the tribals in Sittilingi. "Everything that you see here was possible because the people trust in us and our abilities. We don't have a future plan as such. Instead, we decide our course of action depending on what the people want and that's how we have come so far," says Dr Regi with an optimistic smile. Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: National quiz for school students URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/national-quiz-for-school- students/article24647987.ece

IIT, Madras, to hold Spark in over 20 cities Shaastra, the annual technical festival of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras, is now branching out to schools with Spark, a flagship event that aims at lighting the spark of innovation and technology in young minds.

A three-tier event, the first phase of Spark will be Spark Prelims, a national quiz to be conducted in over 20 cities with more than 4,000 participants in all. The quiz will cover topics such as science, maths, technology, general knowledge, and logic.

The Shaastra Spark Prelims in Thiruvananthapuram will be held at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Senior Secondary School, Manvila, Pangappara, on Sunday.

Students from Class 8 to 12 can take part in teams of two. Any bonafide team from a school can take part by registering online at spark.shaastra.tech. The team members need not be from the same school branch. They must carry a valid school identity card.

On-the-spot registration (subject to availability) can be done from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Sunday. The participants should report at 9.30 a.m. The quiz will begin at 10 a.m. and the results announced at 12 noon. Certificates and prizes will be awarded to the top three teams.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Bringing out the creator in children URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-in-school/bringing-out-the-creator-in- children/article24648478.ece

Bringing out the creator in children

The National STEM Education, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, IIT-Madras NSS and CurioKidz came together to conduct the third edition of ‘BRAHMA Science Festival’ on August 3 and 4. Refex Energy, CavinKare and Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd supported the event.

T. Ramsami, former secretary, Department of Science & Technology, Govt. Of India, was the chief guest. K.N Ramasamy, director, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Chennai Kendra, S S Rajsekar, executive committee member, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, P.G. Subramanian, principal, Bhavans Rajaji School, and Nagalakshmi, founder trustee, National STEM Education, chaired the event.

The winners of the Project Stall, Quiz and Group Discussions included Chettinad Harishri Vidyalayam, Velammal Vidyalaya, MVM School – Irungatukottai, P S Senior Secondary School, Bhavans Rajaji Vidyshram, NPS International- Perumbakkam, Maharishi Vidya Mandir, Chetpet, and The Ashok Leyland School, Hosur. Forty Special Jury Awards were given to the top qualifying teams under the various competition categories. More than 125 schools from across TamilNadu took part in the events.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Quiz contest on August 11 URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/quiz-contest-on-august- 11/article24649090.ece

Quiz contest on August 11

The Shaastra 2019 of Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, is conducting SPARK preliminary, a national-level quiz competition in over 20 cities across the nation.

The preliminary quiz competition will be held at Suguna PIP School here on August 11.

Students studying from Class VIII to Class XII are eligible to participate. A team should consist of two members and any bona fide team from a school can take part.

The team members need not be from the same school/branch. All the participants should carry their valid ID card.

Topics are from Science, Mathematics, Technology, General Knowledge and Logic. Registration can be done online athttp://spark.shaastra.tech/

On-the-spot registration was limited and subject to availability, a release said.

For on-the-spot registration, the teams should report between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. Reporting time for the competition is 9.30 a.m. and the quiz begins at 10 a.m.

Declaration of results and prize distribution will be held at noon.

Top five teams from each city will qualify for the national-level screening round.

Top 25 teams from the screening round will participate in the finals at IIT Madras.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: Indian Express archives say Marina not sought for late Tamil Nadu CM Kamaraj URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2018/aug/10/indian-express-archives-say- marina-not-sought-for-late-tamil-nadu-cm-kamaraj-1855748.html

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Online Journalist: NA Alumni: Raju Narayana Swamy Headline: Coconut Board gets new head URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/agri-business/coconut-board-gets-new- head/article24646291.ece

Coconut Board gets new head

Raju Narayana Swamy took over as Chairman of the Coconut Development Board on Wednesday.

He has held several posts including Agriculture Production Commissioner and Principal Secretary (Agriculture), Kerala Government; Director of Fisheries and of Collegiate Education; Managing Director of Marketing Federation; and Commissioner in the Civil Supplies Department.

Recently, he was the International Observer for the Zimbabwe General Election.

Swamy is a 1991 batch Kerala cadre IAS officer and a graduate in Computer Science and Engineering from IIT, Madras.

He also holds a post-graduate Diploma in IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) from the National Law School, Bengaluru and also has a professional diploma in Public Procurement from the World Bank.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: The News Minute Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Continental bets big on India: To invest heavily in capacity growth greenfield projects URL: https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/continental-bets-big-india-invest-heavily-capacity- growth-greenfield-projects-86288

Continental bets big on India: To invest heavily in capacity growth greenfield projects

Technology company Continental is celebrating its tenth year producing systems and component for safe, clean and intelligent mobility locally in India. All together, Continental has been serving the Indian market for almost 50 years. On this occasion, the international automotive supplier, tire manufacturer, and industrial partner announced its plan to invest on a high three-digit crore rupees level within the next two years in India. This sum entails the extension of capacity of all its divisions as well as greenfield investments, spanning across key automotive hubs. The company will also ramp up headcount in India, and plans to reach the 10,000 mark in two years.

“The global automotive industry is at the cusp of transformation; the largest it may have seen in its 130- year history. As a technology company we are at the forefront of innovation. This requires technological prowess, R&D focus, business agility, and adaptability”, explained Frank Jourdan, Member of the Executive Board of Continental AG and President of the Chassis & Safety Division, who is the Country Sponsor for the Indian market within the board of Continental. He added, “We are making investments where it matters. India is an important market and R&D hub for Continental, and it is in our strategy to bet big on this market.”

Additionally, Continental TCI, the Corporation’s in-house R&D centre, is on the fast lane, ramping up headcount aggressively in several technology areas. The R&D centre, which supports all automotive divisions of Continental globally, is well on its way to become a centre of competence for different technologies, for example Artificial Intelligence and ADAS technology.

TCI is also engaging actively with the ecosystem. Recently, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras for advanced research in Machine Learning, for Continental’s ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business. The joint research is for the application of bio-inspired neural networks to expand the scope of what assisted driving functions can accomplish.

Prashanth Doreswamy, Head of Continental India, said, “Continental has a rich legacy in India. We have been growing steadily in terms of business volumes, manufacturing & R&D footprint and technology achievements. With competent resources and proven Continental technologies, the timely investment will propel our localisations efforts for safe, clean and intelligent mobility, for both passenger cars and two wheeler segments.”

Ten years of existence as an independent entity in the Indian market

The 147-year German technology company has been present in India for close to 50 years, through technology partnerships (Continental Tires since 1974) and joint ventures for its various businesses. The first Indian independent legal entity was formed in 2008, following the acquisition of Siemens VDO globally. Today the company operates across India – with over 8,000 employees across 15 locations, including eight plants that cater to the Indian market, and a Technical Centre in Bengaluru that supports Continental's global R&D activities.

Industry 4.0 for future readiness

According to Doreswamy, future-readiness is a priority consideration for the manufacturing sector. “When the industry takes giant leap driven by technology, manufacturing has to be at the same pace. Technology adoption is the key”.

In view of Continental’s production strategy in India, he said, “Continental India is upgrading to Industry 4.0 to ensure smarter, more efficient production processes and practices. Our Central Electronics Plant at Bangalore has just deployed the first Collaborative Robot (COBOT), to work in a human-machine team environment.”

Unlike traditional industrial robots, the COBOT works hand in hand with operators, sharing mutual work spaces. It is intended to assist with complex and repetitive tasks, thereby relieving operators to focus on more precision jobs and quality aspects of production. “We are currently at the first phase of deployment of COBOTS. Once complete, this will be a benchmark in smart automation,” he added.

Clean, safe and intelligent vehicles are the future

According to Continental, safety on the roads, comfort and convenience while driving should not be seen as luxury. The more mobile the world's population becomes, the more important it is to make this mobility clean, safe and intelligent.

“Among our areas of focus in India are safety technologies and powertrain solutions that range from the current legislative requirements to more advanced technologies, electric drives, and products that transform vehicles into digital companions. As electronic content in vehicles increases, a number of new and advanced features and technologies may be introduced by the help of Continental, which could be a game changer for the Indian auto sector”, said Doreswamy.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: The Hans India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof. Philip Headline:‘ Country can generate 2 billion tonnes of bio-diesel by 2022’ URL: http://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/Telangana/2018-08-10/Country-can-generate-2-billion- tonnes-of-bio-diesel-by-2022/404708

‘Country can generate 2 billion tonnes of bio-diesel by 2022’

‘Country can generate 2 billion tonnes of bio-diesel by 2022’‘Country can generate 2 billion tonnes of bio-diesel by 2022’

Hyderabad: The country will emerge successful in meeting the global demands of clean and renewable energy sources with the prospect of generating two billion tonnes of bio-diesel by the year 2022, according to Y B Ramakrishna, Chairman, Working Group on Bio-Fuels, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

Speaking on the second day of the three-day international conference on sustainable chemistry on health, environment and materials (Su-Chem) at the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) organised as part of its platinum jubilee celebrations, he mentioned the government’s strategy for generating second generation ethanol production from sugar industries waste as well as other biomass from sweet sorghum, pearl millet. Ramakrishna said that the modern ongoing research in several national institutes, including CSIR-IICT, on bio-ethanol production was worth commending.

In a series of lectures, eminent scientists from the UK, the US, Australia and Germany laid stress on their research findings on alternate energy sources for the next generation. Dr. Dionisi, University of Aberdeen (UK) showcased his research on anaerobic digestion of biomass including feed stocks –grass, vegetable waste and industrial wastewaters as well as model substrates for the production of chemicals, such as short chain organic acids and energy molecules, such as hydrogen.

Dr Somnath Basu from Global Process Engineering and CTO, Headworks International (Houston-US), shared the firm’s newer technology of treating waste water using ‘moving bed bio-reactor’ yielding a source of ‘green energy’. Dr. Beltramini of University of Queensland (Australia), threw light on critical designing of heterogeneous catalysts.

Dr. Kalevaru from Leibniz Institute for Catalysis (Germany) explained the catalytic performance of palladium catalysts. Prof. Philip form IIT-Madras, explained the immediate steps essential for removal of contaminants from the effluent water. Prof Dong-Soo Shin of Changwon National University (South Korea), shared the unique synthesis of excellent organic-inorganic hybrid material with extreme thermal and mechanical stability. Prof. Jin K Cha, of Wayne State University (USA) described the synthesis of alkaloids with molecular complexity by his group. Novel anti-cancer molecules Prof Tietze from Goettingen (Germany) shared with the gathering the unique process of targeting cancer cells using Antibody Directed Enzyme Prodrug Therapy (ADEPT). With this technical knowhow, existing from 1985 in the world, Goettingen successfully synthesized novel anti- cancer molecules that can target cancer cell at an extremely low concentration as much as 150 femto molar level. Chairman of the session, Dr. Rama Rao, former IICT Director, observed that one day Prof. Teitze’s developed molecule will come to the market as the most effective drug for cancer cure. Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: Factor Daily Edition: Online Journalist: Jayadevan PK Headline: Intel ready to chip at the AI market as it matures URL: https://factordaily.com/intel-artificial-intelligence-nervana/

Intel ready to chip at the AI market as it matures

Intel, one of the world’s largest chip makers, was caught flat-footed when artificial intelligence came out of yet another winter in the early parts of this decade. Not many could have predicted the rise of AI — aided by abundant data and cheap computing power — to have such a profound impact on the way the world is run.

Much of the gains from this AI- awakening went to Nvidia, a much smaller and younger chip maker because its gaming chipsets — commonly referred as graphics processing units or GPUs — were better suited to train machine intelligence models. The company, which was once seen as a specialist chipmaker for the gaming industry, is now leading the race to make chips powering the AI revolution. Nvidia had its best quarter ever in the first one of 2018 with revenues of over $3.2 billion on the back of strong sales in gaming and AI. Intel’s first quarter revenue was $16.1 billion of which about 49% came from its data-centric business.

Nvidia’s run in AI has been pretty much unchallenged in recent years. But that could be changing if you were to believe Intel veteran Gadi Singer. The Intel executive, who has spent over three decades at the company, feels the chipmaker has a real shot at winning the race to power the AI market as the industry matures and more applications that focus on drawing inferences from data are born.

“Inference is done primarily on Intel and the world is going towards inference,” Singer, vice president, Artificial Intelligence Products Group — Intel, told FactorDaily in an interview on Wednesday. Singer is referring to the increasing computing power that’s dedicated to inferencing what actions machines must take given a set of data and a trained model.

Gadi Singer, Artificial Intelligence Products Group at Intel Corporation The training phase was all about using data sets to develop algorithms. The inference phase is about what a machine does when it sees a query based on the training it has received. Neural networks that power a majority of AI systems today have two key phases. One is the training phase, where it is presented with training data sets. This is a compute intensive phase and is primarily used to teach machines. Then comes the inference phase. This is when a trained neural network is deployed to carry out a real world task, or infer what action a machine is supposed to take when presented with new data.

This has been part of Intel’s pitch for many months now. And it’s starting to pay dividends. Intel announced yesterday that in 2017, it made nearly $1 billion in revenues from customers running AI code on Intel Xeon processors in the data center. The Xeon processors, widely used in servers and workstations, were first introduced nearly 20 years ago. Singer was the first general manager at that division then.

Some analysts seem to be seeing Intel’s point of view. “While we expect Nvidia’s GPUs to remain dominant in training, we think other solutions are more suitable for the inferencing portion of deep learning, which we estimate to be a larger opportunity,” investment firm Morningstar’s analyst Abhinav Davuluri wrote last year.

Singer’s argument is quite simple: The years 2014 and 2015 were the breakthrough years for deep learning. At the time, most solutions were experimental. Machines caught up with humans in image recognition, for instance, then. Speech recognition improved dramatically. But the AI industry was still about training machines, experimentation and proof of concepts.

Also see: An ARM killer from IIT, Madras? Meet the brains behind India’s ambitious processor project

“I call this the illustrious childhood where you suddenly see that things are possible,” said Singer, who was in Bengaluru to speak at an Intel developer conference. The development environment for machine learning was also early with the use of C++ or proprietary frameworks like CUDA dominating the landscape. CUDA, short for compute unified device architecture, is the framework used to program Nvidia’s GPUs.

“If you look at 2019-20, it’s the coming of age of deep learning,” predicts Singer. Instead of experimental projects, real world applications of AI are set to grow. If image recognition was about identifying dog species back in the day, it’s now about finding malignant cells in CT scans. “So, both the data is wider and the thing you’re looking for is much more complex,” said Singer.

As AI systems mature, more and more computing power will be spent on inferences as compared to training, he says. “The ratio is about five to one (inference cycles to training cycles)…somewhere in the coming five years, we will hit the ratio of 10 to one between inference and training,” said Singer. This plays out well for Intel, which has positioned its Xeon chipsets as suitable for inferencing.

“A combination of hardware and software and will continue to improve the Xeon functionality that’s dedicated for AI,” said Singer, an electrical and computer science engineer by training from Israel’s Technion.

“The companies who will win are the companies that understand how the problem space changes.”

The company’s AI portfolio includes the Intel Xeon Scalable processor; the Intel Xeon Phi family of processors — used in situations that need higher levels of parallelism and computing power, the Intel FPGAs, that offer low-latency, low power inference and the yet to be launched Nervana chips. Intel’s Nervana chipsets are expected to roll out in 2019. These are better suited for training machine models. Singer wasn’t very specific about the launch timelines. Intel bought Nervana Systems, a deep learning startup in 2016 for $408 million. Nervana co-founder Naveen Rao now heads Intel’s Artificial Intelligence Products Group.

“The pace of change is something I have not seen in the past. In all the cases before, the problem was pretty clear. But the race between the companies was to find the best solution to that problem. In AI, the problem changes. The companies who will win are the companies that understand how the problem space changes,” said Singer, who joined Intel in the early 80s and was involved in the development of its early chipsets such as the Intel 80386.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: Business World Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Fintech Startup Propelld Raises Seed Funding from Indian Angel Network & IAN Fund URL: http://bwdisrupt.businessworld.in/article/Fintech-Startup-Propelld-Raises-Seed-Funding-from- Indian-Angel-Network-IAN-Fund/09-08-2018-157252/

Fintech Startup Propelld Raises Seed Funding from Indian Angel Network & IAN Fund

Propelld is a student education financing platform which brings Financial Institutions to lend to students taking professional training/Vocational certification courses

Bangalore-based fintech startup Bluebear Technology Private Limited which owns and operates Propelld, has raised $250K in seed funding from Indian Angel Network and IAN Fund. IAN Members who have participated in the funding round are Ambarish Raghuvanshi (Former, CFO, Naukri), Alok Sharma (Former CEO, Apple India) and Satish Jajodia (Former-CEO/CFO of Education Dynamics, Ex. Director Strategy and Advanced Analytics with Citigroup).

Propelld is a student education financing platform which brings Financial Institutions to lend to students taking professional training/Vocational certification courses, using its proprietary employability outcome algorithm to include earning potential when determining the ability of a borrower to repay. This includes data points such as schools, academic performance, stream and work experience to get a grasp on ability and propensity to repay.

Commenting on the future direction of Propelld, Victor (Co-Founder at Propelld) said “Measuring employability of students based on their academic history and skills is our core strength. We are looking at leveraging the data to introduce new financing products in the markets such as CV based lending (without the need of co-guarantors) and also expand our scope of services to career path discovery, lead generation for Institutes, creating skill community etc.”

Over the last 5-7 years, a lot of alternate short-term courses have sprung up which focuses on teaching hands-on industry skills that are more market oriented and cost a fraction of the traditional longer duration degrees. However, the current lending infrastructure shy away in lending to students of such courses due to high perceived risk and legacy systems which do not permit product customization. This results in unfilled seats and drop-outs.

Addressing these challenges, Victor adds, "Before us, Banks/NBFCs saw lending in this space as high risk, equating youth and lack of credit to risk. I believe, we have cracked the code of quantifying the risk in one’s education. We model our decisions on expected income and expected expenses. Till date, we haven’t had a single case of default. We started with technology courses such as certification programs in Data Science, Digital Marketing, Cyber Security, Coding etc. However, having seen a much larger demand in the non-technology space, we have now started moving in that as well. Currently we provide loans in such diverse sectors as Beauty, Aviation, Paramedical training as well, to name a few. Given the impetus given by the Government on the Skill India story, we do believe that India is poised towards becoming the Skill Capital of the world. We have the basic resources – employable human capital. It is just a challenge of empowering them with the right tools and creating that supporting eco-system.”

The unique system provides a win-win situation for both institutes and lenders. Institutes benefit from increased lead conversion, higher quality students and decreased lead conversion times. Financial lenders benefit from getting access to high-quality students pursuing quality courses, at bulk, with zero upfront investment and zero acquisition cost.

Having launched in the year 2017, Propelld currently works with Institutes covering both technology and non-technology certification/skilling courses across Bangalore and Hyderabad. Propelld partnered Institutes have an annual intake of approximately 30,000 students. The Startup has 12 employees, with founders from IIT Madras, MBAs, Banking professionals with experience across Risk, Debt Raise, Product, Technology and Data Science.

Last month, IAN Fund backed virtual reality (VR) startup SmartVizX with an amount of Rs 10 crore ($1.4 million) in a pre-Series A round in participation with angel fund YourNest Venture Capital.

In May this year, Bengaluru-based gamified learning startup Knudge.me also secured funding from the Indian Angel Network.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: BW education Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT And IIM Graduates Earning Way More Than Their Peers, Studies Confirmed URL: http://bweducation.businessworld.in/article/IIT-And-IIM-Graduates-Earning-Way-More-Than- Their-Peers-Studies-Confirmed/09-08-2018-157234/

IIT And IIM Graduates Earning Way More Than Their Peers, Studies Confirmed

Responses collected from 114 engineering colleges across India during the first six months of 2018 India’s elite engineering colleges are worth priceless. Graduates of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) receive an average salary offer of Rs 11.1 lakh per annum, which is $16,000 and nearly 140% higher than the Rs 4.7 lakh that basic-level engineers make in the country, said a research by Mettl, an online assessments platform . The research is based on the responses collected from 114 engineering colleges across India during the first six months of 2018.

According to a report, “IIT’s penchant for quality intake, top-notch infrastructure, and fine faculty is what draws the employers towards them.” Not just the top Indian companies but even international behemoths like Apple and Microsoft, too, come to IITs for recruitment.

The salary offers at the new IITs, formed in and after 2008, are far lower as compared to the older IITs – Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kharagpur, Roorkee, and Kanpur – which are deemed “top.”

Computer Science or Information Technology are the most lucrative among the various streams of engineering. On average, IT engineers make Rs 6.7 lakh a year, while those pursuing electrical, mechanical or civil engineering earn far lesser. Machine learning offers the most rewarding jobs with an average annual pay upwards of Rs 18 lakh among computer science and IT roles.

At the master’s level, too, there’s a clear leader. Commended as the world’s toughest B-schools to get into, the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) far exceeds other management colleges in terms of pay scales.

Graduates from the top IIMs like Ahmedabad or Bangalore earn Rs 20.6 lakh per annum at the entry level, which is 121% higher than the Rs 9.3 lakh graduates get on average in India, Mettl’s survey of 80 MBA colleges revealed.

However, unlike the IITs, the IIMs are not beating the rest by a mile.

Students from the country’s top private colleges, such as Management Development Institute, Gurugram, and Mumbai-based SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, make nearly as much as those from IIMs.

Ideal for candidates who have both, an MBA and a B Tech degree, roles like IT consultant, product head, and chief technology officer, have the most attractive pay packages, Mettl found.

While they face criticism for the high-pressure and sometimes uninspiring learning environment, the resources and networks available to students of the IITs and IIMs are priceless and securing a job or funding comes easier to them. Higher pay scales are add-ons.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: English Matrubhumi Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: GATE in February 2019: Applications from September 1...... URL: https://english.mathrubhumi.com/education/news/news-updates/gate-in-february-2019- applications-from-september-1-1.3049197

GATE in February 2019: Applications from September

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: Robotics and Automation News Edition: Online Journalist: Sam Francis Headline: Continental strengthens AI research partnership with University of California URL: http://roboticsandautomationnews.com/2018/08/09/continental-strengthens-ai-research- partnership-with-university-of-california/18765/

Technology company Continental today celebrated its tenth year producing systems and component for safe, clean and intelligent mobility locally in India.

The 147-year-old German technology company has been present in India for close to 50 years, through technology partnerships (Continental Tires since 1974) and joint ventures for its various businesses. Today, at a function in Bangalore, the global automotive supplier, tyre manufacturer, and industrial partner announced a three-digit crore rupees investment within the next two years in India. This entails the extension of capacity of all its divisions as well as greenfield investments, spanning across key automotive hubs. The company will also ramp up headcount in India, and plans to reach the 10,000 mark in two years.

“The global automotive industry is at the cusp of transformation; the largest it may have seen in its 130- year history. As a technology company, we are at the forefront of innovation. This requires technological prowess, R&D focus, business agility, and adaptability,” said Frank Jourdan, Member of the Executive Board of Continental AG and President of the Chassis & Safety Division, who is the Country Sponsor for the Indian market within the board of Continental. He added: “We are making investments where it matters. India is an important market and R&D hub for Continental, and it is in our strategy to bet big on this market.”

Prashanth Doreswamy, Head of Continental India, added: “Continental has a rich legacy in India. We have been growing steadily in terms of business volumes, manufacturing & R&D footprint and technology achievements. With competent resources and proven Continental technologies, the timely investment will propel our localisation efforts for safe, clean and intelligent mobility, for both passenger cars and two wheeler segments”.

Additionally, Continental TCI, the Corporation’s in-house R&D center, is on the fast lane, ramping up headcount aggressively in several technology areas. The R&D center, which supports all automotive divisions of Continental globally, is well on its way to become a center of competence for different technologies, for example Artificial Intelligence and ADAS technologies.

TCI is also engaging actively with the ecosystem. Recently, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras for advanced research in Machine Learning, for Continental’s ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business. The joint research is for the application of bio-inspired neural networks to expand the scope of what assisted driving functions can accomplish.

Upgrading to Industry 4.0 for future readiness

According to Doreswamy, future-readiness is a priority consideration for the manufacturing sector. “When the industry takes giant leap driven by technology, manufacturing has to be at the same pace. Technology adoption is the key”.

In view of Continental’s production strategy in India, he enumerated: “Continental India is upgrading to Industry 4.0 to ensure smarter, more efficient production processes and practices. Our Central Electronics Plant at Bangalore has just deployed the first Collaborative Robot (COBOT), to work in a human-machine team environment.” Unlike traditional industrial robots, the COBOT works hand in hand with operators, sharing mutual work spaces. It is intended to assist with complex and repetitive tasks, thereby relieving operators to focus on more precision jobs and quality aspects of production. “We are currently at the first phase of deployment of COBOTS. Once complete, this will be a benchmark in smart automation,” he added.

Continental today operates across India – with over 8000 employees across 15 locations, including eight plants that cater to the Indian market, and a technical center that supports Continental's global R&D activities.

According to Continental, safety on the roads, comfort and convenience while driving should not be seen as luxury. The more mobile the world's population becomes, the more important it is to make this mobility clean, safe and intelligent.

“Among our areas of focus in India are safety technologies and powertrain solutions that range from the current legislative requirements to more advanced technologies, electric drives, and products that transform vehicles into digital companions. As electronic content in vehicles increases, a number of new and advanced features and technologies may be introduced by the help of Continental, which could be a game-changer for the Indian auto sector,” concluded Doreswamy.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: Auto Car professional Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Continental completes a decade in India, looks to expand capacity and headcount URL: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-national/continental-completes-a-decade-in-india,-looks-to- expand-capacity-and-headcount-40407

Continental completes a decade in India, looks to expand capacity and headcount AUTO COMPONENTS Technology company Continental today celebrated its tenth year producing systems and component for safe, clean and intelligent mobility locally in India.

The 147-year-old German technology company has been present in India for close to 50 years, through technology partnerships (Continental Tires since 1974) and joint ventures for its various businesses. Today, at a function in Bangalore, the global automotive supplier, tyre manufacturer, and industrial partner announced a three-digit crore rupees investment within the next two years in India. This entails the extension of capacity of all its divisions as well as greenfield investments, spanning across key automotive hubs. The company will also ramp up headcount in India, and plans to reach the 10,000 mark in two years.

“The global automotive industry is at the cusp of transformation; the largest it may have seen in its 130- year history. As a technology company, we are at the forefront of innovation. This requires technological prowess, R&D focus, business agility, and adaptability,” said Frank Jourdan, Member of the Executive Board of Continental AG and President of the Chassis & Safety Division, who is the Country Sponsor for the Indian market within the board of Continental. He added: “We are making investments where it matters. India is an important market and R&D hub for Continental, and it is in our strategy to bet big on this market.”

Prashanth Doreswamy, Head of Continental India, added: “Continental has a rich legacy in India. We have been growing steadily in terms of business volumes, manufacturing & R&D footprint and technology achievements. With competent resources and proven Continental technologies, the timely investment will propel our localisation efforts for safe, clean and intelligent mobility, for both passenger cars and two wheeler segments”.

Additionally, Continental TCI, the Corporation’s in-house R&D center, is on the fast lane, ramping up headcount aggressively in several technology areas. The R&D center, which supports all automotive divisions of Continental globally, is well on its way to become a center of competence for different technologies, for example Artificial Intelligence and ADAS technologies.

TCI is also engaging actively with the ecosystem. Recently, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras for advanced research in Machine Learning, for Continental’s ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business. The joint research is for the application of bio-inspired neural networks to expand the scope of what assisted driving functions can accomplish.

Upgrading to Industry 4.0 for future readiness

According to Doreswamy, future-readiness is a priority consideration for the manufacturing sector. “When the industry takes giant leap driven by technology, manufacturing has to be at the same pace. Technology adoption is the key”.

In view of Continental’s production strategy in India, he enumerated: “Continental India is upgrading to Industry 4.0 to ensure smarter, more efficient production processes and practices. Our Central Electronics Plant at Bangalore has just deployed the first Collaborative Robot (COBOT), to work in a human-machine team environment.” Unlike traditional industrial robots, the COBOT works hand in hand with operators, sharing mutual work spaces. It is intended to assist with complex and repetitive tasks, thereby relieving operators to focus on more precision jobs and quality aspects of production. “We are currently at the first phase of deployment of COBOTS. Once complete, this will be a benchmark in smart automation,” he added.

Continental today operates across India – with over 8000 employees across 15 locations, including eight plants that cater to the Indian market, and a technical center that supports Continental's global R&D activities.

According to Continental, safety on the roads, comfort and convenience while driving should not be seen as luxury. The more mobile the world's population becomes, the more important it is to make this mobility clean, safe and intelligent.

“Among our areas of focus in India are safety technologies and powertrain solutions that range from the current legislative requirements to more advanced technologies, electric drives, and products that transform vehicles into digital companions. As electronic content in vehicles increases, a number of new and advanced features and technologies may be introduced by the help of Continental, which could be a game-changer for the Indian auto sector,” concluded Doreswamy.

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Bangalore Page No: 24 Journalist: NA Headline: Auto major Continental will add 2000 people in India

Date: 10th August 2018 Publication: Deccan Herald Edition: Bangalore Page No: 13 Journalist: NA Headline: Continental to expand in India

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Tvm Engagements (Sat and Sun) URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-kerala/tvm-engagements-sat-and- sun/article24662676.ece

Tvm Engagements (Sat and Sun)

SATURDAY Archives Department: Exhibition of palm-leaf Ramayanas, Archives Directorate, 10 a.m.

MBS Youth Choir: Minister for Cultural Affairs A.K. Balan to present MBS Award to playback singer Selma George, Tagore Theatre, 5 p.m.

Vivekananda Cultural Institute: Kathakali performance by Margi, Vivekananda Cultural Institute premises, Palayam, 5.30 p.m.

Shri Guruvayurappan Dharma Kala Samuchayam Trust: Presentation of dance drama on ‘Dasavatharam’, Governor P. Sathasivam to attend, Kerala University Senate Hall, 6 p.m.

Thunchan Smaraka Samiti: Ramayana Sandhyacharanam, Airanimuttam, 6 p.m.

Natyagruham: Presentation of one-act play ‘Ninneyorkkunnu Njan’, directed by Raja Warrier, Ganesham, Thycaud, 6.30 p.m.

SUNDAY IIT Madras: Spark Junior Quiz, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Senior Secondary School, Manvila, 10 a.m.

Navarasam Sangeetha Sabha: Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran to inaugurate 32nd anniversary celebrations, Chembai Smaraka Hall, Sreevaraham, 10.30 a.m.

P. Kesavadev Trust: 6th Annual Global Diabetes Convention, Governor P. Sathasivam and Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran to attend, Hotel Uday Samudra, 11 a.m.

Oasis Cultural Society: Manaveeyam Queer Fest, Manaveeyam Veedhi, 5 p.m.

Sreevaraham Mukkolakkal Bhagavathy Temple: Adichova festival and Music festival, Temple premises, 5.30 p.m.

Thunchan Smaraka Samiti: Ramayana Sandhyacharanam, Airanimuttam, 6 p.m. Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: FnB News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Alumni: Raju Narayana Swamy Headline: Swamy assumes office of chairman of Kochi’s Coconut Development Board URL: http://www.fnbnews.com/Top-News/swamy-assumes-office-of-chairman-of-kochis-coconut- development-board-43585

Swamy assumes office of chairman of Kochi’s Coconut Development Board

Raju Narayana Swamy has taken over as chairman, Coconut Development Board, Kochi, which is under the aegis of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Government of India.

A graduate in computer engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras, he is a Kerala- cadre Indian Administrative Services (IAS) officer of the 1991 batch.

Swamy holds a post-graduate diploma in intellectual property rights from National Law School, Bangalore, and a professional diploma in public procurement from World Bank. He was also awarded a doctorate by Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham.

He has served as the collector of five districts in Kerala, namely Thrissur, Kottayam, Idukki, Kasargod and Pathanamthitta. He has also been agriculture production commissioner and principal secretary (agriculture), .

Swamy was director, fisheries and collegiate education; managing director, marketing federation, commissioner, civil supplies department, and the international observer for the general election that took place in Zimbabwe recently.

A prolific author, he has penned 28 books of different genres, and bagged the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for his travelogue, titled Santhimantram Muzhangunna Thazvaravil.

He has also won the Bhima Gold Medal and Kunhunni Award, both for children’s literature, and the prestigious Homi Bhabha Fellowship for his work in the field of cyber law.

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: Star of Mysore Edition: Online Journalist: NA Alumni: Prasanna Headline: Weekend Music From This Evening URL: https://starofmysore.com/weekend-music-from-this-evening/

Weekend Music From This Evening Nadabrahma Sangeetha Sabha has organised a variety weekend music concert at its K. Vasudevacharya Bhavan on JLB Road. Today (Aug. 10) at 6 pm, the Octogenarian and senior-most performing veena artiste Prof. R. Visweswaran is enriching the audience with his veena concert.

Surabhi Gana Kala Mandira is presenting a unique feature “Prahlada Bhakti Vijaya” directed by renowned Guru Dr. Sukanya Prabhakar on Aug.11 at 6 pm while Prasanna Venkatraman from Chennai is going to enthral the music-lovers with his vocal concert on Aug.12 at 5.30 pm.

Renowned Veena Maestro Prof. R. Visweswaran is a front rank artiste, highly respected for his individualistic style, all his own without a direct Guru. He developed his own techniques on the veena with the strong conviction that the vocal style is the ideal for the veena as he is alos a vocalist.

Graded as a top ranking artiste by the All India Radio and Doordarshan, the BBC, London, Cambridge Radio, Dublin Radio, ITV of Burmingham, Belfast TV have all broadcast Visweswaran’s Veena as also his interview with them in their “Eminent Artiste’s Interview” programmes.

A musicologist with a difference, he is a musical composer with over a hundred compositions to his credit in Sanskrit, Telugu and a few in Kannada. An M.A. in Indology, Visweswaran served the University of Mysore as Professor and Head of Music with a long and distinguished record of service.

This evening, the Veena Maestro will be accompanied by Anoor Anatha Krishna Sharma on mridanga, G.S.Ramanujan on ghata and V.S. Ramesh on morching. The programme is sponsored by Sri Tyagaraja Sangeetha Sabha, Mysuru

Aug.11 at 6 pm: Dr. K. Srikantaiah Memorial Programme (an Endowment by Dr. K.S. Chandrasekar) features a Musical Dance Drama “Prahlada Bhakti Vijaya” of Tyagaraja by Surabhi Gana Kala Mandira led by Dr. Sukanya Prabhakar. Tyagaraja is one of the Trinity who composed Kritis in praise of mostly Lord Rama. There is no concert in Karnatak music which cannot have a Tyagaraja composition.

Tyagaraja has equally classically composed with his vast knowledge on music and devotion a musical ballet “Prahallada Bhakti Vijaya” or simply Bhakti Vijaya with 5 sequences.

The great work depicts the knowledge Tyagaraja had on contemporary arts such as Bhagavata Mela, Koravanji Drama and Kathakali. Tyagaraja has also brought in the nuances of a drama with poems, prose,couplets, kanda padya, seesa padya, champakamala, utkalamala etc., for excellant dramatisation.

Surabhi team known for their creativeness is presenting this for the second time.

Aug. 12 at 5.30 pm: Raman Memorial Concert (an Endowment sponsored by Sudha Raman & Aroon Raman) showcases Prasanna Venkatraman accompanied by B.K. Raghu on violin, K.U.Jayachandra Rao on mridanga and Phanindra Bhaskar on ghata.

A much sought after artiste, Prasanna Venkatraman is a disciple of late Guru T.R. Balamani and Sangeetha Kalanidhi late T.K Govindarao. He is currently under the guidance of Sanjay Subrahmanyan.

An ‘A’ Grade artiste of All India Radio, Prasanna has been performing in all prestigious music festivals across the country. He has also made concert tours to North America and Canada, France, Singapore and Dubai. Prasanna is an M.Tech Graduate from IIT Madras and also a recipient of ‘Institute Blues’ Award.

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: Inc42 Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Companies are also coming up with QR Code-based cashless payment solutions for campuses. URL: https://inc42.com/buzz/olly-credit-raises-funding-to-offer-credit-card-loans-to-students/ Olly Credit Raises Funding, To Offer Credit Card Loans To Students Dipen Pradhan Dipen Pradhan Inc42 Staff 10 Aug'18 2 min read SHARE STORY 129 SHARES Olly Credit raised the latest round of funding from China-headquartered JadeValue, and Mumbai-based Lead Angels Network

Olly's Student Expense Cards will be first introduced for the engineering students of Maharana Pratap Group of Institutions in Kanpur

Universities across the country are popularising cashless campuses in a bid to provide an efficient way to students

Olly Credit Raises Funding, To Offer Credit Card Loans To Students Delhi-based early-stage startup Olly Credit, which offers loans to salaried individuals through instant microcredit cards, has raised an undisclosed amount in a pre-Series A funding round from China- headquartered fintech incubator and investor JadeValue, and Mumbai-based Lead Angels Network. It plans to use the funds to introduce credit card loans for students.

Olly Credit was founded in 2015 by Anand Kumar, Ashwin Bhambri, and Ringaile Noq. Last year, the company raised an undisclosed funding in a Seed round led by Japan’s Incubate Fund with participation from angels investors.

The company, which follows the B2B2C user acquisition model, claims to have on-boarded more than 40 corporate clients. It offers microcredit cards to salaried Indians with a credit limit of up to $290 (INR 20K). It claims to provide instant credit within three minutes after the burrower submits his/her documents.

With the fundraise, Olly Credit also announced its latest product — ‘Student Expense Cards’ — to be introduced for the engineering students of Maharana Pratap Group of Institutions in Kanpur. According to an official from Pratap University, the partnership with Olly Credit complements the university’s Cashless Campus initiative.

The latest investment in Olly Credit marks the first investment of Jade Value in Indian startups. “We will be working closely with Olly Credit and help them build-on a state-of-art digital underwriting system,” Johan Uddman, general manager of Jade Value said.

Creating Cashless Campuses in India Universities across the country are popularising cashless campuses in a bid to provide an efficient way to students to handle their money and pay for food, transport, and other services on the campus. Students using such cards just need to scan them while purchasing anything on the campus. The objective is to make all campus-related transactions cashless.

Companies are also coming up with QR Code-based cashless payment solutions for campuses. Digital wallet company Paytm provides such a cashless solution to IIT Kanpur, IIM Ahmedabad, IIT Madras, and Shree Ram College of Commerce, among others. Similar solutions for students are being provided by Chillar Payment Solutions, among others.

Meanwhile, only today, Bengaluru-based consumer finance startup HappyEMI raised a seed funding of $1 Mn from AJ Ventures and Jain International Trade Organisation (JITO).

With the latest funding, Olly Credit is looking to enter the country’s most thriving fintech market, which is estimated to touch $2.4 Bn by 2020, as per a Nasscom report. With the raised capital, the startup strives to enhance the country’s credit card penetration. It is also looking to raise Series A round of funding soon.

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: ET Auto Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Continental announces high Rs three-digit crore expansion in India over 2 yrs URL: https://auto.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/auto-components/continental-announces-high- rs-three-digit-crore-expansion-in-india-over-2-yrs/65354434

Continental announces high Rs three-digit crore expansion in India over 2 yrs

Bangalore: Technology company Continental on Friday celebrated its tenth year of local production of systems and components for safe, clean and intelligent mobility in India, according to a company statement.

Continental has been in the Indian market for almost 50 years now. The German automotive supplier has announced its plan to invest on a high three-digit crore rupees expansion within the next two years in India.

This sum entails the extension of capacity of all its divisions as well as greenfield investments, spanning key automotive hubs. The company will also ramp up headcount in India, and plans to reach the 10,000 mark in two years.

“The global automotive industry is at the cusp of transformation; the largest it may have seen in its 130 year history. As a technology company we are at the forefront of innovation. This requires technological prowess, R&D focus, business agility, and adaptability”, explained Frank Jourdan, Member of the Executive Board of Continental AG and President of the Chassis & Safety Division, who is the Country Sponsor for the Indian market within the board of Continental. He added: “We are making investments where it matters. India is an important market and R&D hub for Continental, and it is in our strategy to bet big on this market.”

Brand Solutions Join ETAuto Retail Forum 2018 - India's Biggest Workshop & Conference for Automobile Dealers Join an exclusive conference on connected technology in automobiles Prashanth Doreswamy, Head of Continental India, added: “We have been growing steadily in terms of business volumes,manufacturing & R&D footprint and technology achievements. With competent resources and proven Continental technologies, the timely investment will propel our localizations efforts for safe, clean and intelligent mobility, for both passenger cars and two wheeler segments”.

Additionally, Continental TCI, the Corporation’s in-house R&D center, is on the fast lane, ramping up headcount aggressively in several technology areas. The R&D center, which supports all automotive divisions of Continental globally, is well on its way to become a center of competence for different technologies, for example Artificial Intelligence and ADAS technologies. TCI is also engaging actively with the ecosystem. Recently, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras for advanced research in Machine Learning, for Continental’s ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) business. The joint research is for the application of bio-inspired neural networks to expand the scope of what assisted driving functions can accomplish.

According to Doreswamy, future-readiness is a priority consideration for the manufacturing sector. “When the industry takes giant leap driven by technology, manufacturing has to be at the same pace. Technology adoption is the key”.

In view of Continental’s production strategy in India he explained: “Continental India is upgrading to Industry 4.0 to ensure smarter, more efficient production processes and practices. Our Central Electronics Plant at Bangalore has just deployed the first Collaborative Robot (COBOT), to work in a human-machine team environment.” Unlike traditional industrial robots, the COBOT works hand in hand with operators, sharing mutual work spaces. It is intended to assist with complex and repetitive tasks, thereby relieving operators to focus on more precision jobs and quality aspects of production. “We are currently at the first phase of deployment of COBOTS. Once complete, this will be a benchmark in smart automation,” he added.

The 147 year old German technology company has been present in India through technology partnerships (Continental Tires since 1974) and joint ventures for its various businesses. The first Indian independent legal entity was formed in 2008, following the acquisition of Siemens VDO globally.

Today the tier 1 automotive supplier, tire manufacturer and industrial partner operates across India – with over 8000 employees across 15 locations, including eight plants that cater to the Indian market, and a Technical Center that supports Continental's global R&D activities.

According to Continental, safety on the roads, comfort and convenience while driving should not be seen as luxury. The more mobile the world's population becomes, the more important it is to make this mobility clean, safe and intelligent.

“Among our areas of focus in India are safety technologies and powertrain solutions that range from the current legislative requirements to more advanced technologies, electric drives, and products that transform vehicles into digital companions. As electronic content in vehicles increases, a number of new and advanced features and technologies may be introduced by the help of Continental, which could be a game changer for the Indian auto sector”, explains Doreswamy.

In addition to trendsetting technologies such as automated and autonomous driving, electrification, connected vehicles, and lightweight design, several very fundamental needs are influencing the sector, namely, digitalization, climate control, legislative requirements, sustainability, efficiency, and cost saving.

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: Fair Columnist Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Automotive Speed Monitoring System market analysis, market size, application, regional, competitive strategies and forecasts 2018 To 2022 URL: https://faircolumnist.com/automotive-speed-monitoring-system-market-analysis-market-size- application-regional-competitive-strategies-and-forecasts-2018-to-2022/

Automotive Speed Monitoring System market analysis, market size, application, regional, competitive strategies and forecasts 2018 To 2022

The Global Automotive Speed Monitoring System Market Research Report Forecast 2018-2022 provides the industry overview along with the growth analysis, historical and projected estimations, revenue, and supply data (as applicable). The research study is a valuable source of insightful data for all the business strategies. An in-depth depiction of the value chain and the distribution channel is provided in this study by the industry professionals. The Automotive Speed Monitoring System Market study provides detailed information regarding the scope and application of the market, which helps in better understanding of the market.

The automotive speed monitoring device is an instrument which enables a driver to enter a speed tolerance profile that represents the driver’s personal travel speed preferences and alerts the driver when the vehicle speed falls outside the speed tolerance profile.

Specifically, the speed tolerance profile consists of a number of speed tolerance ranges, each associated with a particular posted speed limit. As the vehicle travels through various map zones, the applicable posted speed limit is determined using a customized GPS map.

The device determines the vehicle location, speed, and the posted speed limit and then compares the vehicle speed using a running average to see whether vehicle speed is within the driver’s speed tolerance profile and if not, the device provides the driver with a visual and/or audible warning according to the driver’s operational preferences

The value chain of vehicle speed monitoring system consists of equipment provider, assemblers, software providers, retailers, and distributors. The worldwide Automotive Speed Monitoring System advertise is relied upon to be driven by numerous components, for example, GPS route and expanding vehicular activity in highways.

Also, these systems help to catch hold the drivers who are driving above a particular speed limit. All the prevailing bodies with diverse geographical regions are enforcing the vehicle speed monitoring system in their respective areas. However, global vehicle speed monitoring system have some restraints such as the system is very cost-infusive and overdependence on technology.

US motorists will recognize Bosch as the name of a supplier of parts of various kinds to the auto industry. Before long, the brand may become much better known as being a key player in the development of technologies that power autonomous passenger cars and freight trucks. Bosch is convinced that fully autonomous commercial vehicles will be operating on US highways sooner than most people expect, as the technical advances just keep coming.

That as the company held an open house showcasing its technology progress last week at what Bosch called the Mobility Experience US 2018, held at the Bosch Proving Grounds site outside Detroit.

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: The Statesman Edition: Delhi / Kolkata Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Headline: HRD scheme to encourage quality research

Date: 11th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: kolkata Page No: 11 Journalist: NA Headline: Niti praise for Kolkata bus app

Date: 12th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: HC asks CMRL to repair law college building with heritage panel help URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/hc-asks-cmrl-to-repair-law-college-building-with- heritage-panel-help/articleshow/65371590.cms

Date: 12th August 2018 Publication: the Indian Express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Thalapathi’s time: M K Stalin finally emerges as the undisputed chief of DMK URL: https://indianexpress.com/article/india/thalapathis-time-dmk-m-k-stalin-karunanidhi-death- chennai-5302451/

Thalapathi’s time: MK Stalin finally emerges as the undisputed chief of DMK

But as he steps into his father’s giant shoes, he will feel the burden of expectations — his own and that of his partymen.

DMK leader MK Stalin’s five-decade-long political career — he started as a student campaigner in the 1967 elections and went on to become deputy CM in his father’s 2006-2011 DMK government — has been no easy climb. (Express photo by Arun Janardhanan) The day M K Stalin was born, his father Muthuvel Karunanidhi, then an emerging DMK leader, was at a condolence meeting for Joseph Stalin. As someone informed him about the birth of his second child from his second wife Dayalu Ammal, Karunanidhi instantly named his son after the Soviet Communist leader. This DMK fable is not without the contradictions that such lores are allowed — Stalin was born on March 1, 1953; the Soviet leader died four days later.

M Naganathan, one of Karunanidhi’s closest friends, who taught economics at the University of Madras and who accompanied the late DMK leader for his morning walks for about 25 years, is fond of recounting this story. Talking to The Indian Express the day Karunanidhi travelled out of Chennai for the last time — to address rallies in a few northern and central districts ahead of the April 2016 Assembly elections — Naganathan also compared Karunanidhi’s stand on his successor to that of another Communist leader, China’s Mao Zedong.

“Whenever the topic of handing over the reins to Stalin came up, Kalaignar (as Karunanidhi was fondly called) would say, ‘I don’t support anyone, they act and grow for themselves’. That’s just like Mao,” he said. Mao wouldn’t name a successor and even dared the ‘Gang of Four’ led by his wife Jiang Qing to capture power.

“But at the same time, Kalaignar knew what his son was capable of, and admired Stalin for that,” added Naganathan.

Thus, Karunanidhi, who is credited with giving Tamil cinema of the 1940s and ’50s some of its best lines, scripted much of his son’s life — from the unconventional name to Stalin’s entry into politics to deciding when he would take over the party.

At the peak of the May 2016 Assembly polls, when Stalin ran a much-celebrated campaign despite his father’s reluctance to declare him the chief ministerial candidate, Karunanidhi said, “Stalin can become chief minister if nature does something to me.”

Once again, the script worked unfailingly. It was only in January 2017, three months after Karunanidhi, then 93 years old, fell sick, that a high-level party committee named Stalin ‘working president’. With Karunanidhi’s death on August 7 at age 94, Stalin is now the undisputed chief.

Read | Road ahead for post-Karunanidhi DMK: New rivals, battlelines

Thalapathi’s time: M K Stalin finally emerges as the undisputed chief of DMK Stalin and Karunanidhi (Source: PTI photo) A LONG CLIMB

From the image of “a bratty VIP kid” in his early years to ‘Aravindan’ — the character of a journalist that Stalin played in Doordarshan TV serial Kurinji Malar in the mid-1990s — and now, ‘Thalapathi (General, as he has come to be known)’, Stalin has come a long way.

His five-decade-long political career — he started as a student campaigner in the 1967 elections and went on to become deputy CM in his father’s 2006-2011 DMK government — has been no easy climb.

All along, there have been unflattering comparisons between father and son — that Stalin, politically, is not a patch on his father, that he is not the voracious reader or prolific writer that his father was. Yet, even his critics concede that it’s unusual for a dynast to wait this patiently, without a hint of revolt, for his turn.

Now that the 65-year-old has finally got his chance, the most pressing political challenge ahead of him would be to display the political acumen his father had in generous measure. “After Kalaignar, people will expect a lot from Stalin. But Stalin’s advantage is that he is a familiar administrator, people of Chennai know him and his work as mayor, and the state has seen him working hard while he was deputy CM,” says DMK organisation secretary T K S Elangovan, pointing to Stalin’s tenure as Chennai city mayor between 1996 and 2001 and his stint as rural development minister in Karunanidhi’s Cabinet in 2006-11.

As mayor, Stalin’s signature pet project, ‘Singara Chennai (Beautiful Chennai)’, is credited with sprucing up the city’s infrastructure. “Also, when he became deputy CM in 2006-2011, Kalaignar didn’t give him any of the sought-after portfolios such as PWD, highways and electricity. Instead, he gave him the Rural Development portfolio and that’s where Stalin picked up his administrative skills,” says a senior leader.

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India -Education Times Edition: Delhi Page No: 5 Journalist: Shyna Karla Professor: Prof R Nagarajan Headline: Do IITs need new admission rules to enrol foreign students

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Headline: None of the top 100 have opted for IIT-Kharagpur in a decade

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Hyderabad /Ahemdabad Page No: 7 Journalist: Hemali Chappia Headline: This year 63 of top 100 at jee chose IIT-B; 30 went to IIT-D URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/this-year-63-of-top-100-at-jee-chose-iit- b/articleshow/65380170.cms

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Kolkata Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: Howrah bridge may get canopy for pedestrians URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/howrah-bridge-may-get-canopy-for- pedestrians/articleshow/65380736.cms

Date: 12th August 2018 Publication: OP India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT-B students accuse ‘The Wire’ of writing baseless story to tarnish image of their institute URL: http://www.opindia.com/2018/08/iit-b-students-accuse-the-wire-of-writing-baseless-story-to- tarnish-image-of-their-institute/

IIT-B students accuse ‘The Wire’ of writing baseless story to tarnish image of their institute

On 11th August 2018, Prime Minister Modi addressed the 56th convocation of the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B). In an over 30 minute speech, Prime Minister Modi announced a Rs. 1000 crores aid for the institute and hailed its startup innovation. PM Modi said that due to the continuous effort of the past 6 decades, IIT Bombay has made its place in the country’s selected institutions of eminence. “IITs have built Brand India globally. IIT students are at the forefront of some of the best startups in India”, added PM Modi. Delighted to address the convocation ceremony at IIT-B. Here is my speech.` pscp.tv 15.8K 4,652 people are talking about this Twitter Ads information and privacy For any student, it would be quite the honour to have the Prime Minister of the country address their convocation ceremony, a day which holds special importance for any student. However, a leftist propaganda website dampened the mood when it published an article headlined “IIT Bombay students question the decision to invite Modi to Convocation ceremony”. Amongst questioning what the government has done, this anonymous group of students, according to The Wire asked whether the Prime Minister wants education for all, or is he more interested in “promoting the Brahmanical idea of education only for a few people, belonging to upper caste and upper-class backgrounds”.

The anonymous students have also, according to The Wire questioned Prime Ministers’s silence on hate crimes in the country.

The Wire used these students and their statements to paint a picture of the entire institution being unhappy with the decision to invite PM Modi for the convocation. They also said that the students wished to stay anonymous because they feared a backlash.

However, this does not seem to be the case.

Senior Fellow at IIT-B, Raghav Pandey took to Twitter to call The Wire’s assertions an outright lie. He asserted that no such statement has been issued by any student body of IIT-B. He also said it is shameful for a media house to individually talk to a few students and publish that as the larger view of the students. Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: Telangana Today Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Statistics in GATE 2019 URL: https://telanganatoday.com/statistics-gate-2019

Statistics in GATE 2019

Till this year, the examination was held in 23 papers including Aerospace Engineering, Agricultural Engineering, Architecture and Planning, Biotechnology, Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering,

GATE 2019The GATE scores are used for admission into postgraduate programmes offered by IITs and jobs in Public Sector Undertaking.

Hyderabad: Starting next year, the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) will be held for Statistics (ST) paper. Accordingly it has been included in the list of papers in which the GATE 2019 would be conducted. Till this year, the examination was held in 23 papers including Aerospace Engineering, Agricultural Engineering, Architecture and Planning, Biotechnology, Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Instrumentation Engineering, Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering among other subjects.

The Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) would conduct the examination on February 2, 3, 9 and 10, 2019. There is no change in the pattern of the examination. An online test will contain some questions for which numerical answers must be keyed in by the candidate using a virtual keypad while the rest of the questions will be of multiple choice question type.

The candidates will be allowed to use only an on-screen virtual calculator during the examination. This apart, aspirants can appear only in any one among the 24 subjects listed in the notification. Exam for some papers is likely to be held in multiple sessions. However, the aspirants can appear in any one session only.

According to IIT-M which is organizing the exam, physical calculators, mobile phones and wristwatches would not be allowed into the examination hall and candidates carrying any one of these would be disqualified. Also biometric information i.e. photographs and fingerprints would be captured for randomly selected candidates before the commencement of the examination.

The syllabus for the newly introduced statistics subject and others papers has been made available on the website http://gate.iitm.ac.in/index.

The online registrations through the website will commence from September 1 and conclude on September 21. Test fee without late fee is Rs.750 for women and SC/ST/PwD candidates whereas for others, it is Rs.1,500. Aspirants can also apply till October 1 by paying Rs.1,250 for women, SC/ST/PwD candidates and for others it is Rs.2,000. The GATE scores are used for admissions into various post graduate programmes offered by the IITs. Besides, several Public Sector Undertaking (PSUs) like Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, Gas Authority of India Limited, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Indian Oil Corporation Limited, National Thermal Power Corporation, Nuclear Corporation of India Limited, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and Power Grid Corporation of India were shortlisting candidates for jobs. And also direct recruitment to the Group-A level posts in central government including senior field officer (Tele), senior research officer (Crypto) and senior research officer (S&T) in cabinet secretariat, government of India were now being done on the basis of GATE score.

Some other Central organizations have also expressed their interest to utilize GATE 2019 score for recruitment, the IIT-M said. Date: 12th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Government re-instates Trivandrum Engineering Science and Technology (TrEST) park project URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/thiruvananthapuram/2018/aug/13/government-re- instates-trivandrum-engineering-science-and-technology-trest-park-project-1857102.html

Government re-instates Trivandrum Engineering Science and Technology (TrEST) park project

The project was inaugurated in February 2011 during the tenure of the previous LDF Government.The main objective of TrEST Park is to promote partnership and interaction.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state government has re-instated the research park project focusing on science and technology at the College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram (CET) which hit a major roadblock seven years ago. The park titled ‘TrEST’ (Trivandrum Engineering Science and Technology) will be of international standards modelled on the research parks at Stanford Research Park at Silicon Valley in the United States and IIT Chennai Research park.

The project was inaugurated in February 2011 during the tenure of the previous LDF Government. A fund of `10 crore was also set aside by the then government during the Budget.

However, it did not take off later. Now, the project has received a lease of life following the arrival of multi-national companies to the state with the support of CET Alumni. The Kerala Technology University (KTU) will also be a stakeholder of the project.

Speaking to Express, J Letha, vice-chancellor in-charge,KTU, said the project would be alive again after a few years of deadlock. “This project is expected to offer quality research mechanism to the students as well as the faculty members.

This will be a first of its kind in the state which has top-class facilities. Many multi-national companies will be part of the project in the field of industry research.

A major laptop manufacturing company will be the first institution to join hands with the facility,” Letha said.

The government has begun the initial proceedings by appointing former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Kerala Start-up Mission C Jayasankar Prasad as the CEO of the project. The main objective of TrEST Park is to promote partnership and interaction between academic community and industry.

The synergy is expected to benefit both and bring about qualitative and quantitative improvements. Tony Thomas, Chief Information Officer of Nissan who was instrumental in bringing the Nissan global digital hub, and Ajay Prasad, Country Head of US-based Taurus Investment Holdings LLC, who brought the investment of Taurus Embassy IT township to Technopark phase-III, were the students of the college. Hence the government has started looking at the possibilities of developing the capability of students in the field of research in technology.

“Even though the park to be set up inside the CET, the vision is to eventually bring in all engineering and technology academic and research institutions in Kerala into its fold, ” an official associated with the proposed park said.

A 10 cr set aside by the then government during the Budget

Now, the project has received a lease of life following the arrival of multi-national companies to the state with the support of CET Alumni

Date: 12th August 2018 Publication: Millennium Post Edition: Kolkata Page No: 4 Journalist: NA Headline: KoPT looks to remove 'suicide point' status of Howrah Bridge URL: http://www.millenniumpost.in/kolkata/kopt-looks-to-remove-suicide-point-status-of-howrah- bridge-314015

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times Of India-Education Times Edition: Delhi / Bangalore Page No: 3 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi Headline: Will it be fruitful to have PhD enrolments after UG

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Delhi/Bangalore Page No: 5 Journalist: Chandandeep K Headline: A device to prevent road accidents, underruns

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Pune Page No: 9 Journalist: NA Headline: Pichai inspires students to pick

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Bangalore Page No: 2 Journalist: Sheetal. Banchariya Headline: Unexplored Blue economy of India URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/unexplored-blue-economy-in- india/articleshow/65292887.cms

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times Of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 4 Journalist: NA Headline: Event on mega projects risk management held

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 1 Journalist: Hemali Chappia Headline: ITT-B is 1st choice of JEE toppers, just 6 in first 100 go for IIT-M

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Student: Divanshu Kumar, Headline: Involving Students in Teaching

Date: 12th August 2018 Publication: The Indian Express Edition: Chennai/Mumbai Page No: 11 Journalist: NA Headline: Thalapathi’s time URL: https://indianexpress.com/article/india/thalapathis-time-dmk-m-k-stalin-karunanidhi-death- chennai-5302451/

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Pune Page No: 18 Journalist: NA Headline: All IlTs will work together to recruit foreign faculty

Date: 12th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Headline: HC asks CMRL to repair law college building with heritage panel help URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/hc-asks-cmrl-to-repair-law-college-building-with- heritage-panel-help/articleshow/65371590.cms

Date: 14th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Delhi/Mumbai / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Chennai / Kochi/Kolkata Page No: 15 Journalist: NA Headline: IITM-DoMS wins Boardroom Challenge semis URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/iitm-doms-wins-boardroom-challenge- semis/article24681769.ece

Date: 14th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Thinaikulam school building is safe, says Chennai firm URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Madurai/thinaikulam-school-building-is-safe-says- chennai-firm-ramanathapuram/article24680907.ece

Thinaikulam school building is safe, says Chennai firm

But the IIT-M-incubated company finds RC columns severely distressed RAMANATHAPURAM Chennai-based Concrete Quality Concepts, an IIT-Madras-incubated company, which had conducted tests to assess the stability of the Government Higher Secondary School at Thinaikulam in the district, has said the ‘stability of the building is good’ but found some of the RC columns ‘severely distressed.’

In its report submitted before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, the company, which carried out ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV), rebound hammer (RH), assessment of carbonation, compressive cell and half cell potential tests in February, said the concrete in the near surface portion was in the range of ‘good to very good’.

“The average RH values in RC structural elements of the school building indicate that the quality of concrete in the near surface portion is good to very good, except the RC columns C8 and C10 on the ground floor and C6 on the second floor,” it said.

The average RH values in these RC columns indicated that the quality of concrete in the near surface portion was satisfactory. The average UPV values in a majority of the structural elements could be considered as good and in certain RC columns doubtful, the report said.

The visual inspection and non-destructive tests revealed that the corrosion was predominant in the RC columns of the ground floor and RC lintel beams of the first and the second floors. “However, the RC beams and RC slab on all the three floors did not show any distress bearing in RC beam A8 and B8 in the second floor,” it said.

The severely distressed RC columns on all the three floors should be rehabilitated using micro concrete jacketing, the company suggested. The tile joints in the terrace might be rectified to arrest the leakage with lime grout and repainting, it said.

After the court suo motu took cognisance of media reports that the school building was unsafe for students, the Engineer-in-chief (Buildings) of Public Works Department had ordered the tests.

The building, constructed at a cost of ₹ 1.26 crore, was inaugurated in 2016. After plastering in the walls and columns peeled off, exposing corroded steel rods, the Parent-Teachers’ Association pulled out the students and the block remained locked for about eight months.

Date: 14th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: Chandandeep Kour Professor: Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi Headline: Is enrolling graduates directly to PhD a wise move URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/is-enrolling-graduates-directly-to-phd- a-wise-move/articleshow/65383977.cms

Date: 13th August 2018 Publication: DNA Edition: Delhi/Mumbai Page No: 10 Journalist: NA Headline: Mumbai is the choice: 63% of top 100 JEE toppers choose IIT Bombay URL: http://www.dnaindia.com/education/report-mumbai-is-the-choice-63-of-top-100-jee-toppers- choose-iit-bombay-2649159

Date: 14th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 1 Journalist: Purnima Sah Headline: Two species of spiders named after MCC faculty URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/two-species-of-spiders-named-after-mcc- faculty/articleshow/65387122.cms

Date: 14th August 2018 Publication: Entrepreneur Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Has India Become The Hub of Startups, Courtesy IIT? URL: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/318373 Has India Become The Hub of Startups, Courtesy IIT? IITs are becoming the breeding ground for budding entrepreneurs NEXT ARTICLE Add to Queue

Has India Become The Hub of Startups, Courtesy IIT? Image credit: Shutterstock Aastha Singal Aastha Singal Features Writer August 13, 2018 4 min read Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. The possibility of diving directly into the sea of business possibilities has empowered the younger generation to innovate. Individuals, right out of colleges buzzing with ideas and knowledge to implement don’t hesitate from starting their own business ventures.

While many startups fail due to the lack of experience and real-world application of ideas, we have witnessed an array of organizations reaching Unicorn stage and mushrooming into a public entity in the recent years. Statistics indicate that the majorly of startups which flourish in India have one or the other technological aspect associated.

However distinctive the business idea be, the acceptance of technology has opened gates of success for budding entrepreneurs and startups. Talking about the technology, IIT or Indian Institute of Technology is considered as the birthing ground for majority of Indian startups. Even the Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi believes so.

PM Modi on IIT

Addressing the 56th convocation of IIT-Bombay, PM Modi called IIT graduates the frontrunners of India’s startup ecosystem. Considerably, a large number of Engineering graduates have built the IT sector of India with hard-work and diligence leading to the nation becoming “one of the world’s largest pools of technical manpower”.

Calling IIT -- India’s Instrument of Transformation, PM Modi expressed that the institute has sourced the Startup revolution in India. Entrepreneur India analyzed the gravity of his words and assessed the formation of India’s 15 tech unicorns only to realize that 8 out of these businesses have IIT graduates in their founders’ team.

IIT Graduates Leading India's Tech Unicorns

“IIT graduates are at the forefront of some of the best startups in India. These are start-ups that are also at the forefront of solving so many national problems,” said PM Narendra Modi stating that India is proud of what IIT graduates have achieved over the years as technology experts, entrepreneurs, executives and in academics.

Hoping for a long term sustainable technology-led economic growth, the government of India has initiated programs like Start Up India and Atal Innovation Mission to nurture budding ventures into full- fledged business organizations with a bit of hand-holding. However, government can’t do all the work alone.

IITs Helping Potential Startups

With the aim of lending a helping hand to future entrepreneurs in creating potential startups, IIT-Delhi had recently announced a program of turning thesis papers submitted by PhD scholars into full-fledged startups. The ventures will also be provided with seed capital, mentoring, accommodation and access to IIT-Delhi labs.

The program will also provide the shortlisted researchers pursuing doctoral studies with a monthly compensation to kickstart their startups for three years considering the challenges and expertise needed. To ensure seamless nurturing of over 50 companies every year, the institute is planning to set up a separate incubation centre at Sonipat, Haryana.

Earlier in 2014, IIT Madras had also started an Incubation Cell which has so far witnessed the establishment of 142 successful startups. The entrepreneurship cell of IIT Bombay has also offered a number of opportunities to bring out the best of student's ability towards entrepreneurship through master-classes, workshops, investor summits and exhibitions.

IIT Bombay Alumnus and CEO of Auxledger, Akash Gaurav started his Blockchain research group with the help of IIT-B’s E-Cell. He said that different departments of the institute like Placement Cell are taking initiatives for introducing deferral programs to support upcoming Entrepreneurs. “The deferral program allows final year students to skip the placement process and if require, can re-enroll in subsequent years.”

Ayush Gangwar, the founder and CEO of Kuants, web-based platform for developing and deploying Automated Algorithmic trading strategies who recently passed out from IIT Kharagpur has stated that IITs have well-established incubation centers within their campuses that provide the students with help in technology and monetary resources in the least hassle-free manner. He further added, “IITs have a lot of tech-based activities, mostly in collaboration with different industries, going on in their campuses all the year long, wherein students come up with innovative solutions to problems faced in there. Various departmental fests, inter-hall events, and events carried out by different companies provide a huge exposure to the students who burn their brains out to solve different problems.”

Date: 14th August 2018 Publication: Your Story Edition: Online Journalist: Shradha Sharma Headline: Nothing geeky about it: Meet the ex-Googlers whose Facebook filters have clocked 15M downloads URL: https://yourstory.com/2018/08/nothing-geeky-meet-ex-googlers-whose-facebook-filters-clocked- 15m-downloads/

Nothing geeky about it: Meet the ex-Googlers whose Facebook filters have clocked 15M downloads During a quick visit to Chennai last week, I had the privilege to meet a host of young entrepreneurs who had chosen to start up in the city – some have grown up here and find no need to head out, while others have wandered the globe and returned, or even chosen to make Chennai home.

One such entrepreneur duo working on augmented reality is Jai Ramamirtham and Pradnya Karbhari. Both have PhDs, but don’t use the Dr prefix. No matter what they say about the geekily quirky name of their startups, they are anything but geeky. Point105.AR is not only creating AR-based solutions, it’s also changing the way designers and enterprises change the way that AR works, moving everything to the cloud. Here are edited excerpts of the conversation.

Pradnya Karbhari Shradha: Point105-AR – that’s one of the most interesting names that I’ve heard in recent times. You’re into 3D Asset Management for augmented reality (AR). Now this sounds very exotic to me. Tell me more, Jai and Pradnya.

Jai: Point105-AR is a name we came up with based on the work we have been doing in AR over the last couple of years. AR gives life to digital assets. When you look at a webpage today or a Facebook feed, all of it is images, but in 2D. AR gives people the ability to look at objects in 3D. You can move objects, rotate them, look at them from the side, behind or under them. That’s referred to as giving 6 degrees of freedom to any object in the virtual world. 6 degrees turns out to be 0.105 radians. We want to essentially ensure enterprises that your technology is under safe and secure hands of absolute geeks. It’s a super-geeky name!

[For those of us not mathematically inclined, a radian is a unit of measure for angles. A circle is 360 degrees, which is about 6.28 radians]

Shradha: Pradnya, we don’t get to see many women CTOs and I am very delighted to meet you. Tell us what got you to leave Google to be part of this amazing startup?

Pradnya: Both of us are PhDs. I did my PhD from the US, and then joined Google in the Bay Area, where I worked for a couple of years. After that, I moved to the Google Bengaluru office, where I won the Founders Award for a project.

I am a hard-core technologist; I love technology. Three years ago, I decided to leave Google because although I loved it, I had been there a long time and wanted to start up on my own. That’s when I decided to move to Chennai as well, for personal reasons. And then I realised Jai, whom I knew from Google Bengaluru, had moved to Chennai a year before me. That’s when we decided to get together and found this company.

Augmented reality is a really up-and-coming technology; it’s becoming mainstream now. And I was really excited to start working in a really core tech space. That’s how we started.

Shradha: What’s your moat around this model? Can’t many other people do this? Pradnya: In short, our moat is the IP that we are building in terms of the core technology for managing 3D assets in the AR domain. To give you some more background, we started on the consumer side with AR. We have an app on Android and iOS called MaskUp. We also have filters on Facebook AR Studio. In fact, we were the first worldwide third-party developer to launch a filter on Facebook.

One of our filters has been used 15 million times. We add 3D digital assets on top of your face. When we started digging deep into this, we realised that there are certain technology components in this that are applicable across various AR verticals - entertainment, furniture, training, etc. So, we decided to pull out this technology and build our IP around it and give it as a SaaS service to any 3D technology vertical.

Jai: 3D tends to be one of the core content components that people have to create in order to create awesome AR experiences. And 3D models are notoriously hard to manage. Most of the tools are created by Autodesk and Adobe, and these are file-based workflows which reside on your desktop. The files are not on the network. The web hasn’t touched the 3D industry.

Secondly, AR specifically has new formatting models that have come up, similar to JPEG for images. Two dominant models have emerged - GLTF and USDZ. Formatting these AR models to fit into these formats is cumbersome for most enterprises and 3D artists. We are automating that entire process, moving their workflows to the cloud, which will result in massive productivity gains.

The third and most exciting technology piece is that we are optimising these assets. A typical 3D modeling artist will create models which are 50MB, 100MB in size. These are not viable to be used on mobile networks. So, we are creating tools that will automatically compress these models at various levels of detail. That optimisation piece is going to be very critical for us to cement the lock in for these enterprises.

Shradha: Something like this will require a lot of R&D and a lot of investment. These kind of solutions usually come from a Google or an Adobe. But you guys are taking that on. How are you going to do it from a resource standpoint?

Jai Ramamirtham Jai: Thankfully for us, these two formats have come up at the right time. Most people are clueless as to what these mean, the workflows for these are not yet set. We have an opportunity to get a foot in the door by just doing formatting work. That’s not hard-core technology. Once we get a foot in the door, we want to cement our place by introducing the optimisation work. So hopefully we will end up generating enough revenue to invest in R&D to build out the technology portfolio.

Pradnya: And what this enables enterprises to do is improve their productivity on model generation. So, if people want to generate these models at scale, even a 50 percent or 100 percent productivity improvement is going to be huge for them.

Once they see the benefits from one of the pieces, they have an incentive to stick around for other productivity optimizations. Designers will get to focus on the creative aspect more.

Shradha: What brought you to Chennai?

Jai: Both of us moved from Bengaluru. I am from Chennai and I love this place. I am a beach guy. So Mumbai or Chennai would be my choice. I have deep roots in this place and I moved here.

Pradnya: I actually grew up in Mumbai, and like him, the beach has that attraction for me. My husband is a faculty member at IIT Madras. Three years ago, I decided to join him. We have a sea-facing apartment, not something we would have in Bengaluru. More importantly, Chennai is one of the up and coming (startup) cities. In terms of tech talent, tech companies, Chennai is great. Once you get used to the weather, you start liking the city. The startup community is very helpful and collaborative. We don’t miss Bengaluru much. And it’s just a short flight away, so we can hop over for any meetings.

Shradha: So, are you able to hire some good tech talent here?

Pradnya: Right now, we are bootstrapped. We are strong technologists and we believe in ourselves, and we believe in our ability to attract good tech talent. We have worked with interns and they were excellent. We really enjoyed working with them.

Jai: The college interns are great. Anna University, IIT Madras…there is a very real opportunity for us to engage with even faculty and do the deep technology that we want to do. More importantly, we are not spending half our lives in traffic! Which makes a big difference.

Shradha: How do you go about getting customers? Do you have to do a lot of sales? Or are they listening to you and signing up?

Jai: We have not yet signed up many customers. We are part of the Target Accelerator for this year. We started the work on our business offering about 4 months back. We have very deep consumer AR experience. We talked to Target Accelerator folks and we just instantly resonated on the problems we were working. And they were excited that it will boost their AR portfolio and they are still exploring how to deploy these. Once we get that marquee implementation done, it will offer us an opportunity to pitch other enterprises on the value of what we are building and figure out what the exact pain points are and how we can bring the technology into their systems. That’s the critical enterprise piece that we need to figure out.

Shradha: And how did you go about choosing that this is what you want to do?

Pradnya: When we started on AR a couple of years ago, it sounded interesting. Snapchat was there, PokemonGo was there. The technology seemed exciting. And then we got into the consumer space. We had a lot of fun doing that. And while we were working with a couple of pilot clients, we zeroed in on this particular core tech problem. So, it was more of iterating over the various pieces in the core AR tech space. Shradha: So, was it like you thought I have to do something then thought of the idea or was there an idea and you decided to take the plunge? Jai: Actually, we started doing video mostly. The germ of the idea came from these family WhatsApp groups where everybody sends happy birthday messages, and it becomes unmanageable. We started doing video happy birthday messages, which felt more personal. You invested time in creating video messages for people. It resonated and we could see other people doing this.

So, we said let’s create a unique experience for these kind of occasions and we started working on video. But very soon we figured out WhatsApp works for video. But the fun part of it was missing, you know, put a party hat on my head, throw streamers, throw confetti, maybe put a cake in. Those were all AR problems essentially. That was the genesis of why we started on AR, but very soon figured out that it’s just a massive trend at this point in time.

Shradha: What’s the big dream? What’s keeping you going? What’s that thing that even if you had a bad day as an entrepreneur, you say ok, let’s do this? Jai: For us, it’s been really exciting to see the Facebook AR filters taking off. We didn’t make any money out of it, but 15 million people have used it. And the usage is in all age groups, throughout India. When we see the people who have used it, it is just so satisfying that technology has touched the lives of so many people, and we are very, very happy about that. We actually think that for the first time AR as a technology is available on everyone’s phones in India. This was not the case with the smartphone revolution where the iPhone started in the US and we were 2-3 years behind. This is an opportunity where every mobile is capable of AR today. And we are at par almost with rest of the world today. Pradnya: And that’s today. If you look five years ahead, there will be various forms in which we will experience AR. Be it glasses, virtual mirrors, there will be various forms in which AR will be around you while you are shopping. It’s just a very exciting place to be, considering that everyone is going to start using this very soon.

Date: 14th August 2018 Publication: Irish Tech News Edition: Online Journalist: Authored article Alumni: Awanish Rajan Headline: Cryptocurrency Derivatives, Is It The nudge for Wall Street Investors? URL: https://irishtechnews.ie/cryptocurrency-derivatives-is-it-the-nudge-for-wall-street-investors/

CRYPTOCURRENCY DERIVATIVES, IS IT THE NUDGE FOR WALL STREET INVESTORS?

An inspection of the BTC spot trade volumes against the combined BTC futures trade volumes (BitMex + CME + CBOE) will reveal that the derivatives market for Bitcoin is now neck to neck with the actual coins being traded. When SEC was still mulling over what decision to take with respect to a Bitcoin ETF, the market saw prices rally from ~$6000 to ~$8500, before coming back down. Clearly the introduction of financial instruments for cryptocurrencies, now looked upon as a new asset class, is around the corner and Wall Street will in all probability treat this as its go-to signal to dive into cryptos. While ETFs may take time, crypto derivatives, beyond BTC futures, in the meantime can be harbingers of good tidings for the bear market of digital assets.

It is significant to note that Wall Street is late to the crypto party; retail investors took to cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin, back in 2017 and the crypto world has never looked back since. Now the corporate dollars of Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan clients’ want in, but institutional investors will not pour their billions into Bitcoin and the likes if they have to tread unfamiliar territory. This is where the role of derivatives becomes crucial: they can provide the much-needed indirect exposure to traditional investors.

For those unfamiliar, a financial derivative can be defined as a contract between two or more parties (buyers and sellers) whose value is based on an underlying asset agreed upon by the parties involved. Consider cryptocurrency coins or tokens and you can have derivatives that use them as the underlying asset. Those who are trading these contracts now have exposure to the crypto markets, without actually having to own any cryptocurrencies. In the case of traders who have spent the last 30 years or so making trades on CME or ICE in the derivatives market, trading BTC or ETH derivatives will be no different. Familiarity will be one of many factors to attract a new grade of crypto investors and traders, the grade who has up until now, shied away from the digital asset markets.

Introduction of a wider set of derivatives, like calendar spreads & butterfly, options, swaps, and indices, not just for a couple of top coins but for a good mix of coins and tokens, greatly stands to boost the cryptocurrency landscape. To begin with, derivatives are a good way to hedge a portfolio; the current crypto trader will benefit greatly from this. Moreover, a diverse market, with different types of derivatives instruments traded by traders with varying amounts of appetite for risk will aid in better price discovery. Not just that, a vibrant crypto derivatives market will see increased participation and as a consequence, improved liquidity. This will help many coins and tokens that have smaller markets today and poor liquidity; an increase in both the variety and the number of trading choices via derivatives products will benefit the alt-coins market.

The introduction of derivatives in traditional markets transformed the space and fuelled the evolution of global financial markets into the form we see today. The crypto markets, still far from maturity can capitalise on the merits of the legacy markets and embrace derivatives to improve liquidity as well as the freedom they proffer to their participants.

Date: 14th August 2018 Publication: IDW Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Sachin S Gunthe Headline: The cycling of poisonous chemicals from the past URL: https://idw-online.de/de/news700573

The cycling of poisonous chemicals from the past

Persistent organic pollutants are toxic chemicals that cannot decompose in nature, or only do so very slowly, and are harmful to the environment. Through accumulation along food chains they also have significant negative effects on human health. Nowadays, many of them are banned. Traces of those compounds can still be found in soils, oceans, vegetation and air globally. An international team, led by scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, has now found out that persistent organic pollutants, stored for decades in South Asian soils, can be re-mobilized by the monsoon and volatilize into the air. The research, published recently in the Journal of Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, contributes to the understanding of the large scale distribution and fate of chemical pollution.

Chemicals such as dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are included in the list of the Stockholm Convention, an international treaty aimed at protecting human health and the environment from persistent organic pollutants (POPs). The production and use of these substances is thus either banned or highly restricted.

One key region where POPs have been heavily used as agricultural pesticides in the past is South Asia. The region is thus considered a hot spot. Until now studies on environmental exposure of the Indian subcontinent have been mostly limited to urban areas, while rural inland regions were scarcely addressed.

Um die Wechselwirkung zwischen den Monsun-Luftmassen, die über den Indischen Ozean herangetragen werden, und der kontaminierten Böden zu verstehen, führten die Wissenschaftler Messungen in den Westghats durch, einem Gebirge an der indischen Westküste. „Es war sehr wichtig, aber ebenso schwierig für uns, einen geeigneten Standort in Indien zu finden, um unsere Hypothese zu prüfen. Wir wollten wissen, ob der Rückgang der Schadstoffkonzentration in der Luft zu Beginn des Sommermonsuns die im Boden gespeicherten Chemikalien wieder aktiviert und freisetzt“, sagt Sachin S. Gunthe, Forscher am Indian Institute of Technology in Chennai.

Die Analyse der entnommenen Boden- und Luftproben belegte, dass die Ankunft des Sommer-Monsuns die Chemikalien HCH und PCB, die heutzutage verboten sind, aus den Böden neu freisetzt oder deren anhaltende Ausdünstung verstärkt. Die Studienergebnisse zeigten zudem, dass je mehr sich der Monsun im Juni und Juli über dem Subkontinent nach Norden und Osten ausbreitet, desto mehr verunreinigen die Chemikalien die Luft.

„Sowohl die Feldmessungen als auch unsere Modellstudien zeigen einen bisher übersehenen Teil des Schadstoffkreislaufs auf dem indischen Subkontinent“, sagt Gerhard Lammel, Gruppenleiter am Max- Planck-Institut für Chemie und wissenschaftlicher Leiter der Studie. „Ein Teil der Schadstoffe in den Böden Indiens werden durch den Monsun einmal im Jahr freigesetzt und großräumig verteilt“, fügt er hinzu.

Die Untersuchungen der Kontamination der Böden und des chemischen Austausches zwischen Böden und Atmosphäre dienen der Beurteilung der Schadstoffverteilung in der Region und weltweit. Das Remobilisierungspotenzial organischer Chemikalien von Land- und Meeresoberflächen ist wichtig für die Risikobewertung von naturfremden Stoffen aller Art.

Wissenschaftliche Ansprechpartner: Prof. Dr. Gerhard Lammel Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Mainz Telephone: +49(6131)305-7601 E-Mail: [email protected]

Dr. Sachin S Gunthe Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai Telephone: +91 (44) 2257-4308 E-Mail: [email protected]

Originalpublikation: Re-volatilisation of soil accumulated pollutants triggered by the summer monsoon in India

Gerhard Lammel, Céline Degrendele, Sachin S. Gunthe, Qing Mu, Akila Muthalagu, Ondřej Audy, Chelackal V. Biju, Petr Kukučka, Marie D. Mulder, Mega Octaviani, Petra Příbylová, Pourya Shahpoury, Irene Stemmler, and Aswathy E. Valsan

Date: 14th August 2018 Publication: The Times Of India Edition: Kochi Page No: 1 Journalist: Hemali Chappia Headline: ITT-B is 1st choice of JEE toppers, just 6 in first 100 go for IIT-M

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Shaastra Spark Quiz on Sunday URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/shaastra-spark-quiz-on- sunday/article24700138.ece

Shaastra Spark Quiz on Sunday

The preliminary round of the Shaastra Spark Quiz, the national-level quiz competition for schoolchildren organised by IIT Madras as part of its annual technical festival ‘SHAASTRA, will be held in the city on August 19.

The competition is open to students of classes VIII to XII and will be held at Jairam Public School, Chinnathirupathi in the city.

A team should consist of two members and they need not be from the same school / branch. Participants should carry a valid school ID. Students can register online athttp://spark.shaastra.tech/.There will be limited spot registrations, subject to availability. There is no registration fee. Spot registration will be done between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. and the competition will commence at 10 a.m.

Certificate of appreciation and prizes will be awarded to top three teams. Top five teams from each city will qualify for the national screening round. Top 25 teams from the screening round, will get a chance to take part in the finals. Top three teams of the finals will be declared as national winners. For queries, contact 9920325008 or send an email [email protected], a statement of Tarakram Ramgopal, coordinator, publicity team of the event, said here on Monday.

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: The Hans India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: PM Modi Autographs Medical Device Innovation Book URL: http://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/Life-Style/2018-08-15/PM-Modi-Autographs-Medical- Device-Innovation-Book/405672

PM Modi Autographs Medical Device Innovation Book

In a quiet shed within IIT Bombay, a handful of engineers who left their jobs elsewhere started working on innovative medical devices guided by Prof. B. Ravi, supported by the Government of Maharashtra and Central Govt of India.

In less than four years, BETiC (Biomedical Engineering and Technology incubation Centre) has grown to 10 centres across the State, where more than 100 doctors and engineers are working together closely to solve the healthcare problems of a billion people.

They have developed and filed patents for 40 different novel and affordable medical devices. Of these 15 products are being put into production; so far 6 startups and 4 other Indian companies have licensed the technologies. Their stories are chronicled in Prof B Ravi’s book ‘The Essence of Medical Device Innovation’, published by The Write Place', a division of Crossword Bookstores.

Prof. Ravi gifted the book to Honourable PM Shri Modi during his visit to IIT-Bombay for the Diamond Jubilee Convocation on 11th August. The PM gracefully autographed a copy, much to the delight of BETiC team. He also took time to see four BETiC products - smart stethoscope, flexible laparoscopy instrument, custom medical devices and prosthetic leg, and heard Prof. Ravi explaining their features and applications.

The smart stethoscope allows doctors in a remote place to record and send heart or chest sounds to experts in tertiary hospitals for second opinion and diagnosis.The first batch of these stethoscopes has been given to 10 PHCs in Bhavnagar.

The flexible laparoscopic instrument allows minimally invasive yet complex surgical steps like suturing inside the abdomen - by giving surgeons additional degrees of movement compared conventional instruments.

3D printed anatomical models allow doctors to plan and practice the surgery in advance; patient-specific jigs enable accurate cuts; and 3D printed titanium implants allow reconstruction of the resected anatomy. These are very useful in cases like bone cancer in jaw region.

The novel prosthetic leg combines customized 3D-printed sockets from IIT Bombay, knee joints from IIT Madras and Jaipur Foots from BMVSS Jaipur along with the domain experience of Ratna Nidhi Trust, Mumbai. It avoids the traditional process of making the sockets using plaster of Paris, which is uncomfortable to the patients. The new process is more accurate as well as faster, while keeping the prosthesis highly affordable even for poor people.

“We need to rapidly traverse the path from idea to invention to innovation to impact in healthcare domain. This requires all relevant stakeholders to come out of their comfort zones and work together. Our experience at BETiC shows that this is now possible in India - thanks to the market pull by doctors, technology push by researchers and conducive environment created by the government for entrepreneurs" added Prof B Ravi.

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: Latestly Edition: Online Journalist: Madhurima Sarkar Headline: GATE 2019: Online Application Begins From September 1; Apply at gate.iitm.ac.in URL:https://www.latestly.com/india/education/gate-2019-online-application-begins-from-september-1- apply-at-gate-iitm-ac-in-326503.html

GATE 2019: Online Application Begins From September 1; Apply at gate.iitm.ac.in

GATE 2019: Online Application Begins From September 1; Apply at gate.iitm.ac.in Representational Image (Photo Credits: GATE official) The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has released the notification for the national entrance Graduate Aptitude Test Engineering (GATE) 2019. According to the notice, the online application process will begin from September 1, and the window will remain open till September 21, 2018. All the candidates who are interested in applying in the exam can read the detailed notification available on the official website if IIT Madras; gate.iitm.ac.in. The GATE 2019 exam is tentatively scheduled on February 2, 3, 9 and 10, 2019. If the exams are held on time, the engineering aspirants can expect the results on March 16.

Before beginning with the registration process, the students much read the GATE 2019 Information Brochure. In case if any candidate wants to change the examination city, they can put forward the request on or before November 16. Applicants will have to fill in the required details along with their educational qualification, and the registration will be completed only after paying the application fee for GATE 2019. Students under the general and OBC category will have to submit Rs. 1500, for SC/ST/PWD and women candidates, they need to pay Rs. 750 to apply for the entrance exam.

IITs conduct the GATE exam for engineering aspirants once every year. In 2019, IIT Madras will host the coveted entrance exams. Those who wish to seek admission in MTech, PhD and other government scholarships/ assistantships in the field of engineering and technology. It is a computer-based online test with 65 objective and numerical type questions which shall be answered in 3 hours. After the completion of the application procedure, GATE admit card will be made available from January 4, 2019.

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: Chandigarh Metro Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: GATE 2019 Online Application Process To Begin From 1st September | Exam To Be Held in February 2019 URL: https://chandigarhmetro.com/gate-2019-online-application-process-to-begin-from-1st-september- exam-to-be-held-in-february-2019/

GATE 2019 Online Application Process To Begin From 1st September | Exam To Be Held in February 2019 Sushant 14/08/2018 1,004 1 minute read gate-2019-online-application-to-begin-from-1st-september-exam-to-be-held-in-february-2019

GATE 2019: Indian Institute of Technology Madras has released the official notification for the GATE 2019 Exam on its official website. All the graduate candidates who want to appear for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering Exam 2019 are advised to read the official GATE 2019 notification on the website of IIT Madras. Here are the important details regarding GATE 2019 Exam.

GATE 2019 Exam Starting Date Of Applications & Exam Date As per the GATE 2019 Information Brochure which is available at gate.iitm.ac.in, the online applications process for the GATE exam 2019 will begin from 1st September 2018. The process of online applications will remain open till 21st September and candidates will be able to fill the online applications till 21st September. The extended closing date for the Online Applications for Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering is 1st October 2018.

As per the official information brochure of GATE Exam 2019, the last date for requestion change in Examination City is 16th November 2018. The GATE Exam 2019 admit cards will be out on 4th January 2019. The tentative exam dates for GATE 2019 exam dates is 2nd Feb, 3rd Feb, 9th Feb and 10th Feb. The result of GATE 2019 Exam will be out on 16th March 2019.

GATE 2019 Online Application Process & Fee As said above, the process of filling the GATE exam 2019 application form will begin from 1st September. Candidates who want to appear in the GATE exam will have to apply online through GOAPS website. Candidates can fill the application on the website http://appsgate.iitm.ac.in. Candidates will have to pay the application fee for the exam and the application form of GATE submitted without the application fee will be rejected.

The application fee for the GATE exam 2019 is Rs.1500 for the General and OBC Category, Rs.750 for the SC/ST /PWD and women candidates. However, in the extended period, the application fee will be increased by Rs.500. In the Extended period, the General and OBC Category candidates will have to pay Rs.2000 as application fee and other candidates will have to pay Rs.1250 as application fee.

This fee is for the examination centres in India. For examination centre outside India, candidates will have to pay $50 for Addis, Colombo, Kathmandu, Dhaka and Ababa before 21st September and $70 in the extended period. For GATE 2019 Examination Centres in Dubai and Singapore, the candidates will have to pay $100 and $120 in the extended period. For more details, candidates can check the GATE Exam 2019 Brochure on the official website.

Date: 15th August 2018 Publication: Hindustan Times Edition: Delhi / Pune / Patna Page No: 4 Journalist: Neelam Pandey Headline: Multiple agencies may get to accredit educational bodies URL: https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/now-govt-semi-govt-agencies-to-accredit- educational-institutions/story-QNMtbfSKCSgCYSJTbSneUM.html

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 6 Journalist: Shanmughasundaram J Headline: 50% work on Jaya memorial over says, pwd URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/50-work-on-jaya-memorial-over-says- pwd/articleshow/65407602.cms

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: Deccan Chronicle Edition: Chennai Page No: 22 Journalist: NA Student: Pranav Nadimpalli, Headline: Students

Date: 17th August 2018 Publication: The Indian Express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: GATE 2019: Registration to commence from September 1, check eligibility URL: https://indianexpress.com/article/education/gate-2019-registration-from-september-1-check- eligibility-exam-date-application-process-syllabus-gate-iitm-ac-in-5309463/ GATE 2019: Registration to commence from September 1, check eligibility GATE 2019: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras will conduct the entrance exam this time. The last date to submit the application process on September 21. 270 SHARES SHARE

By: Education Desk | New Delhi | Updated: August 17, 2018 8:44:00 am GATE 2019, gate 2019 application, gate.iitm.ac.in,

X GATE 2019: The exam will be held in the morning and evening slots on February 2, 3 and February 9 and 10 TOP NEWS Asian Games 2018 Day 9 Live updates Live streaming: India defeat Thailand 5-0 in women's hockey; PV Sindhu enters historic finalAsian Games 2018 Day 9 Live updates Live streaming: India defeat Thailand 5- 0 in women's hockey; PV Sindhu enters historic final Major Leetul Gogoi found guilty in Srinagar hotel case, Army orders disciplinary actionMajor Leetul Gogoi found guilty in Srinagar hotel case, Army orders disciplinary action The river by my homeThe river by my home GATE 2019: The registration process for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) will start from September 1. This year, Statistics paper is also included in the entrance exam. Candidates who wish to join master’s and direct doctoral programs in engineering, technology, architecture and in other branches of science at various Indian Institute of Science and IITs are required to clear GATE 2019. Candidates can apply for the exams from the official website (gate.iitm.ac.in).

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras will conduct the entrance exam this time. The last date to submit the application process on September 21. GATE 2019 will be held in the morning and evening slots on February 2, 3 and February 9 and 10. The exam will be conducted on 24 subjects including Aerospace Engineering, Agricultural Engineering, Architecture and Planning, Biotechnology, Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Instrumentation Engineering, Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering among other subjects. A candidate is allowed to appear in only one paper in any one session.

GATE is administered jointly by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore and seven Indian Institutes of Technology (namely, IITs at Bombay, Delhi, Guwahati, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Madras and Roorkee).

GATE 2019: Important dates The application process begins: September 1, 2018 Last date to apply: September 21 Extended Closing Date for Submission of (Online) Application: October 1 Last Date for change of examination City (an additional fee will be applicable): November 16 Admit cards: January 4, 2018 GATE 2018 exam date: February 2,3 and February 9, 10, 2018 (9 am to 12 pm and 2 pm to 5 pm) Result declaration: March 16, 2018

Application fee:

Unreserved: Rs 1,500 Women: Rs 750 SC/ST/PwD: Rs 750 International: $ 50

GATE 2019: Eligibility There is no age limit for GATE 2018. Candidates should be graduating BE, BTech, BPharmacy, BArch, BSc (Research), BS, MA, MSc, MCA, Int MSc or Int BSMS in 2018. If not the above then they should have be completing their Int ME, MTech (post BSc) or a dual degree after 10+2 by 2019-20.

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: Dgital Learning Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: XAT 2019 registration to begin from next week URL: http://digitallearning.eletsonline.com/2018/08/xat-2019-registration-to-begin-from-next-week/

NEWS XAT 2019 registration to begin from next week Views: 630 Published: August 16, 2018

Online registration for Xavier Aptitude Test (XAT) 2019 will begin from August 20, 2018. The exam will be held on January 6, 2019 from 10 am to 1 pm for admission to various courses available at XLRI and institutes with XAT.

The exam is organised by XLRI for XAMI members. There are 11 prestigious management schools which are XAMI members. Apart from the member institutions, XAT score is also accepted by some other prestigious institutes of the country. Candidates can apply for XAT 2019 at xatonline.in.

XAT 2019 application fee without any delay charges is Rs 1700 and with late fee it is Rs 2000 with late fee.

It is important for every candidate to go through the instructions given in the official website of XAT 2019 for filling up the application form. Candidates therefore suggested to keep scanned images of their photograph, signature and other certificates ready before applying for the XAT 2019 online application process.

The last date to apply for XAT 2019 is November 20.

XAT 2019 Important Dates

XAT Exam 2019 Notification Date August 20, 2018

XAT Exam 2019 Registration Start Date August 20, 2018

Date: 16th August 2018 Publication: Firstpost Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: GATE 2019: IIT-Madras releases exam details, candidates can register themselves online from 1 to 21 September URL: https://www.firstpost.com/india/gate-2019-iit-madras-releases-exam-details-candidates-can- register-themselves-online-from-1-to-21-september-4978931.html

GATE 2019: IIT-Madras releases exam details, candidates can register themselves online from 1 to 21 September

India FP Staff Aug 16, 2018 17:32:49 IST

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Madras has released the official details for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) 2019 exam. The exam will be held in two sessions on 2, 3, 9 and 10 February, 2019.

Candidates can register for the examination online between 1 September and 21 September, 2018 on the GATE official website: gate.iitm.ac.in. The application fee for GATE 2019 is Rs 1,500, and Rs 2,000 for fees submitted during the extended period, which is after 1 October, 2018.

The examination will be conducted online, where some questions will be numerical, but most will be multiple choice. Candidates can solve numerical questions using only a virtual calculator, and no physical calculators will be allowed. They can then key in their answers using a virtual keypad.

Candidates can access the syllabi for all the subjects at http://gate.iitm.ac.in/Syllabus.

The GATE scores, which will be conducted in 24 subjects as of 2019, are used for admissions into various postgraduate programmes offered by the IITs.

Date: 17th August 2018 Publication: Gulf News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Alumni: Prashant Bhushan Headline: ‘Morals and probity are important and I value them’ URL: https://gulfnews.com/opinion/thinkers/morals-and-probity-are-important-and-i-value-them- 1.2267160

‘Morals and probity are important and I value them’

India’s top lawyer and rights activist Prashant Bhushan discusses the fears and hopes of the world’s largest democracy in a no-holds-barred interview with Gulf News

Gulf News recently caught up with Prashant Bhushan, rights activist and one of India’s leading lawyers. In this exclusive, he walks us through his unusual career, his early interest in environment and anti- corruption drives, his unequivocal opinions on ‘case law judges’, the intriguing Judge Loya case and the current political scenario.

GULF NEWS: You have been described as a lawyer, activist and politician. The First Post caricatured you as 2G’s Dabangg (Dabangg, a hit film). Play on Dabangg, a fearless crusader, who exposed the 2G Spectrum scandal, senior advocate Colin Gonzales who heads the Human Rights Law Network, New York, compared you to a tiger prowling in the court, while your peers — lawyers — say derisively you are ‘an activist who takes up causes, not cases’.

PRASHANT BHUSHAN: Yes, I am an activist and causes are important to me, not cases, unless of course a principle is involved. Morals and probity are important and I value them. My very first case and the cause that I got involved in, albeit indirectly, was in the disbarment of [former prime minister] Indira Gandhi’s election as a member of parliament. I say ‘indirectly’ because it was my father who was handling the case. To what extent were you influenced by your father, and his professional career? Despite an unusual career path, you have followed in his footsteps. Why are you so closely linked to public interest litigations [PIL] and seen primarily as an anti-corruption crusader? My father was the lawyer for Raj Narain, Mrs Gandhi’s opponent and they were difficult days and so I began assisting my father in court, taking notes and closely observing the proceedings. Yes, to a large extent I was influenced by my father, but I came to law through a circuitous route. My first interest was Physics and I finished a semester at IIT [Indian Institute of Technology] Madras only to find that Philosophy was what drew me and so when I got a scholarship to Princeton, I flew off to New Jersey. Princeton was wonderful, but their Philosophy Department did not interest me and so I returned to India. And then I completed my law degrees from Allahabad. The Raj Narain case was my initiation, the rites of passage to PILs. I was also intensely involved in environment-related issues, specifically the ‘Narmada Bachao Andolan’ [save Narmada movement].

On corruption, it is my earnest opinion that this is at the very heart of almost all that ails India. Corruption impacts on everything around us. Akin to cancer, it eats into our entrails — the body politics — and taints and maims institutions. Tackle corruption and you are set free. India is set free. I also consider case-law judges and lawyers to be prisoners of the past. The human condition is far too complex to fall back on judgements and precedents of the past. Case laws are important, but one needs to be innovative and open-minded. How does a great deal of personal wealth square with activism? American novelist Edith Wharton said — ‘the only way not to think of wealth is to have a great deal of it’. I see no dichotomy there. First, this idea of enormous personal fortune has been overdone. Yes, we — the family — are moderately wealthy and since I had the luxury — early in my life — of staying with my father and sharing his office space, I did not have to chase cases to make money or pursue the conventional lawyering career. I could devote time to ‘causes’ and PIL work. It’s been a great boon, as wealth allows you the opportunity to be engaged full-time in wider social issues. Would you rate the Judge Loya Case and the various verdicts that have been issued on this case as the most scandalous cover-up in the history of India’s Supreme Court? The Caravan magazine has done extensive investigative work on this case. There is no doubt in my mind that the CJI [Chief Justice of India] has been compromised and pressure was put on the courts. There are also audio tapes confirming payments to the judiciary to obtain a favourable verdict. Bench-fixing is rampant and Caravan magazine has questioned pivotal evidence, namely, whether Judge Loya even stayed at Ravi Bhawan, Nagpur, the alleged scene of death. You are an avid reader of science fiction. Please share with our readers, the favourite authors you love to read. What are you reading now? Why have you not written after your early work The Case that Shocked India? I love to read but don’t get the time to read. The last book I read was Arundhati Roy’s The Ministry of Utmost Happiness. She is one of my favourites. Yes, I love sci-fi but haven’t read any for a while. On penning books, I have an unpublished work of fiction. It is unlikely I will ever get it printed though; because I don’t find it good enough to be inked. CJI Dipak Misra firmly believes the master of roster function and the special powers enshrined in his office are inalienable rights. Is this written into India’s Constitution? If so, have the founding fathers failed us? The Constitution of India is silent on this issue. By precedent, this administrative function has been performed by the CJI. Earlier, master of roster was a routine task. However, in more recent times, this routine has taken an altogether new dimension. Indeed, in a hypothetical situation, an ambitious CJI and a strong prime minister can try and subvert the Constitution and rule of law. The founding fathers, therefore, ensured this right or privilege was not cast in stone. Was Indira’s era of emergency less dangerous to democracy than Narendra Modi’s tactics — subterranean and the resort to stealth to control public institutions? Former Union minister Arun Shourie calls it “an undeclared Emergency”. Yes. Mrs Gandhi undoubtedly started the slide, committed bureaucracy and judiciary, and shades of ‘I am the state’ etc were all her legacy, but that was a one-time aberration and there was nothing hidden about it. No stealth. Here, since it is invisible, it is more dangerous. Now even the RTI [Right to Information Act], a vital weapon of defence for the citizenry from an overbearing state, is under threat. The ‘Big Brother’ syndrome and ‘US-against-Them’ are here to stay unless Modi is unseated in 2019. Ravi Menon is a Dubai-based writer, working on a series of essays on India and on a public service initiative called India Talks.

Date: 17th August 2018 Publication: Hindustan Times Edition: Delhi / Mumbai / Faridabad / Noida Page No: 15 Journalist: Neelam Pandey Headline: More agencies set to accredit institutions URL: https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/now-govt-semi-govt-agencies-to-accredit- educational-institutions/story-QNMtbfSKCSgCYSJTbSneUM.html

Date: 17th August 2018 Publication: Deccan Chronicle Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 3 Journalist: Anusha Puppla Headline: University rankings on a downward spiral URL: https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/170818/hyderabad-university-rankinon-

a-downward-spiral.html

Date: 17th August 2018 Publication: News Today Edition: Chennai Page No: 5 Journalist: NA Headline: Be authentic in biz students urged

Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: Catch News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: GATE 2019: 1 सितंबर िे श셂ु हⴂगे आवेदन, जानᴂ परीक्षा िे िंबंधित ज셂री जानकारी(GATE 2019: Application will start from September 1, Learn more about the examination related information) URL: http://hindi.catchnews.com/education-news/gate-2019-online-applications-will-start-from-1- september-iit-madras-will-conduct-exam-apply-at-gate-iitm-ac-in-128393.html

GATE 2019: 1 सितंबर िे श셂ु हⴂगे आवेदन, जानᴂ परीक्षा िे िंबंधित ज셂री जानकारीकैच 녍यरू ो

GATE-2019: इंजीनियर ंग पास टू डᴂ絍स के लिए आयोजजत Gate प ीक्षा के लिए िोटटफिफिकेशि जा ी क टिया गया है. ग्रेजुएट एप्टी絍यटू टेट इि इंजीनियर ंग (GATE-2019) की प ीक्षा के लिए आवेिि प्रफकया 1 लसंतब से श셂ु हो जाएगी. इस प ीक्षा के लिए आवेिि क िे के लिए इ楍छु क उ륍मीिवा 1 लसतंब से 21 लसतंब , 2018 तक ववभाग की ऑफिलशयि वेबसाइट gate.iitm.ac.in. प िॉग-इि क आवेिि क सकते हℂ.

गौ तिब है फक इस साि गेट की प ीक्षा इंडडयि इंजट絍यटू ऑि टे啍िॉिजी (IIT) मद्रास आयोजजत क ेगा. गेट की प ीक्षा (Gate Exam) अगिे साि ि व ी मᴂ आयोजजत की जाएगी. प ीक्षा की संभाववत ता ीख 2, 3, 9 औ 10 ि व ी को निर्ाार त है. गेट की प ीक्षा के लिए Gate Admit Card 4 जिव ी 2019 को जा ी फकया जाएगा.

आवेिि क िे की यो嵍यता

Gate Exam मᴂ चा वर्षीय इंजीनियर ंग मᴂ बैचि डडग्री (B.E./ B.Tech) प्राप्त उ륍मीिवा आवेिि क सकते हℂ.

आफकाटे啍च मᴂ ग्रेजुएट भी गेट प ीक्षा के लिए आवेिि क सकते हℂ. Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: PALS: Inauguration function, Governor Banwarilal Purohit participates, IC&SR auditorium, IIT M URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/chennai- today/article24721397.ece

Chennai Today

AUGUST 18, 2018 00:00 IST

UPDATED: AUGUST 18, 2018 03:44 IST

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RELIGION

Narayaneeyam: Kesavan, Narada Gana Sabha, Alwarpet, 6.30 p.m.

Arana Desikanum Varanam Tholaithavanum: Aravamudhacharya, K.P. Sannadhi St., Mylapore, 6.30 p.m.

Acharya Nistai: Kidambi Narayanan, Sri Andalammal Matam, 84, Sanjeevaroyan Koil St., Old Washermenpet, 6.45 p.m.

Thiru Kolur Penn Pillai Ragashyam: Venu Raza Narayanan, Thirukatchi Nambi Temple, Tana St., 6.30 p.m.

Siva Puranam: Dr. Sudha Seshayyan, Asthika Samajam, Venus Colony, Alwarpet, 6.30 p.m.

Soundarya Lahiri: Sankararama, Ramana Kendra, Alamelumangapuram, 6.30 p.m.; B. Sundarkumar, Vijaya Ganapathi Temple, Ullagaram, 7 p.m.

Vicharasagara: Satyavratananda, Kesari High School, T. Nagar, 6 p.m.

Atma Bodha: R. Aravindan, Parsn Renascence, Aster 203, Mambakkam Main Rd., Medavakkam, 7.30 a.m.

CULTURE

Alliance Francaise of Madras: Trash art project ‘Wave’, Gallery Veda, 4/22, Rutland Gate, 6.30 p.m

GENERAL

PALS: Inauguration function, Governor Banwarilal Purohit participates, IC&SR auditorium, IIT M, Adyar, 5 p.m.

Hamsadhwani and Sri Krishna Sweets: Anniversary celebration, Minister Ma Foi K. Pandiarajan participates, Youth Hostel, 2nd Avenue, Indira Nagar, Adyar, 6.10 p.m.

Optometric Association of Tamil Nanbargal: Optometric Intelligence Conference, Chennai Trade Centre, 5 p.m.

Organising Committee: Talk on ‘Chennai’s land transformations and implications for its resilience’, Madras School of Social Work, Egmore, 5 p.m.

Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: Open PR Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Microgrid Market 2018 Growth Analysis, Industry Size, Technology and Top Key Leaders Lockheed Martin, ABB, Anbaric, S&C Electric, Homer Energy LLC, Microgrid, Energy, Power Analytics URL: https://www.openpr.com/news/1184753/Microgrid-Market-2018-Growth-Analysis-Industry-Size- Technology-and-Top-Key-Leaders-Lockheed-Martin-ABB-Anbaric-S-C-Electric-Homer-Energy-LLC- Microgrid-Energy-Power-Analytics.html

Microgrid Market 2018 Growth Analysis, Industry Size, Technology and Top Key Leaders Lockheed Martin, ABB, Anbaric, S&C Electric, Homer Energy LLC, Microgrid, Energy, Power Analytics Press release from: Market Research Future

Market Research Future published research report on “Microgrid Market - Forecast to 2023” Market Analysis, Scope, Stake, Progress, Trends and Forecast to 2023. Microgrid Market Provide comprehensive Information, by End-User (Industrial, Education, Healthcare, Military & Defense, Electric Utility), by Type (Off Grid, Hybrid Grid, Smart Grid) by Forecast 2022 Globally the market for Microgrid Market is expected to grow at the rate of more than 10% from 2018 to 2022

Microgrid Key Companies Analyzed Are:

The prominent players in the market of microgrid market is – Lockheed Martin Corporation (US), ABB, Ltd. (US), Anbaric (US), S&C Electric Company (US), Homer Energy LLC (US), Microgrid Energy LLC (US), Power Analytics Corporation (US), Siemens AG (Germany), Eaton Corporation PLC (Ireland), General Electric Company (US) and others.

Get Sample Report Microgrid @ www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample_request/2215

Microgrid - Overview

A microgrid system is a type of discrete energy systems that includes appropriated energy sources, and power loads and provides power to residential, commercial, industrial & government consumers. The main purpose of microgrid is to provide affordable energy for rural and urban areas during emergency. The microgrid can be charged through batteries, distributed generator, and renewable source of energy. The microgrid systems are the compact version of traditional power grid as it provides efficient power and can be integrated with renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind, geothermal, and others. The microgrid even operates independently during the time of the primary grid failure.

The advantages of microgrid system over conventional power grid system includes power quality, dependability and security for end user, improves the coordination of distributed and renewable power sources, limit carbon footprints, and generate clean energy without affecting the environment, reduces the green house gas emission. This is one of the major factors that is driving the microgrid market globally. Similarly, rising awareness among the consumer about the renewable sources of energy is also fuelling the market growth. The increase in the pollution is a major challenge faced by many countries. To reduce these challenges, governments of different nations are taking initiative to generate power through renewable source of energy such as utilization of solar panels to convert solar energy into electricity and reduce the pollution caused by production through conventional technique. This will eventually reduce the pollution to a certain level caused due to traditional power grid. According to Victoria State Government, it will contribute USD 10 million to develop and implement projects utilizing microgrid models, the project will be completed by the year 2021. This will result to provide more reliable source of power. However, high cost for installation of microgrid and economic constraints is projected to hinder the growth of microgrid market.

Microgrid - Segmentation:

Based on type, the market is segmented into off grid, smart grid, hybrid grid, others

On the basis on end users, the market is segmented into healthcare, education, industrial, military & defense, electric utility, and others Based on Region, the market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC), and Rest of the World

Microgrid - Regional Analysis:

The regional analysis of global microgrid market is being studied for region such as Asia–Pacific, North America, Europe and rest of the world. North America dominates the global microgrid market during the forecast period. US among other countries in North America hold the largest market share for microgrid product due expanding microgrid limit among other provincial economies. Additionally, the developing industrialization and necessity of viable jolt in the area is fuelling North America predominance in the microgrid market. In Europe, with increasing investment by government & key companies to improve energy security and reliability is one of the factor for the growth for microgrid market in the region. Similarly, Asia-pacific is the fastest growing region due to presence of economies such as China, Japan, India, South Korea and others. The Asia-Pacific region is growing due to growing government initiatives for creating awareness about renewable energy sources among the consumers and high demand of microgrid machines in military & defense sector is fuelling the market.

Industry News:

In November 2016, Siemens and the US-based LO3 Energy formed a strategic alliance

The US-based LO3 Energy and Siemens formed a strategic alliance for the development of microgrid. The primary intention of this partnership is to develop microgrid that permits energy trading by block- chain technology. In November 2016, ABB Ltd. and IIT Madras formed a strategic partnership For enhancing the performance of microgrid and its consumption for increasing electricity supply to remote areas ABB Ltd. and IIT Madras formed a strategic alliance. This initiative is expected to play a significant role in increasing the usage of the product in isolated locations of India over the next eight years. The formation of strategic partnerships with research institutes is expected to remain a key critical success factor over the next eight years.

Get More Information of Microgrid @ www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/microgrid-market-2215

Target Audience: • Raw material providers • Microgrid system manufacturers • Energy storage providers • Hardware providers • Research & consultancy • Government & utilities • End-user sectors • Technology investors

About Market Research Future:

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Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: The Indian Panaroma News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Whose Independence Is it Anyway?? URL: https://www.theindianpanorama.news/featured/whose-independence-is-it-anyway/

WHOSE INDEPENDENCE IS IT ANYWAY? By George Abraham The ultimate goal of the agenda is to transform the pluralistic and democratic India to a Hindu nation where the majority religion will have the pre-eminence and minorities are relegated to subservient role probably being denied equal protection or opportunities, that too, to a substantial segment of the population. As the Diaspora is celebrating 72nd Independence Day of India, one of the questions that arises in minds across the globe is whose independence and freedom is actually being celebrated on August 15, 2018. Obviously, it is not the freedom of Akbar Khan, who was lynched by a mob in Rajasthan on suspicion of cattle smuggling, or Gauri Lankesh, a journalist who was shot by a Hindutva fanatic who brazenly stated that “she was anti-Hindu and had to be killed” , or Rohit Vemula, a Dalit Scholar who was driven to commit suicide because of the entrenched anti-Dalit mindsets and practices still prevalent across the nation.

In the case of Akbar Khan, instead of immediately rushing him to the hospital, the police appeared to have given priority in arranging the transportation of the cattle to a cow shelter and thereby denying him timely medical care that could have saved his life. It only appears to have given fodder to those who believe that it is safer to be a cow in India than a human being. What happened to their right to life and liberty? Why has the state once again failed to protect their rights as equal citizens? Who empowered these marauding thugs to conduct street-level justice to promote a sectarian ideology? What is happening to the soul of Indian democracy?

After four years of BJP rule, lynching has become the national pastime, mobocracy rules the day. The latest attack in Rajasthan came days after India’s Supreme Court requested the government to enact new legislation to end an increase in mob violence and lynching that have reportedly killed more than dozen people accused of cattle theft or eating beef.

‘The basis for democracy is Liberty,’ said Aristotle. However, today, the Institutions that were built to safeguard that principle are under duress. India is one of the most diverse nations in the world. The country has its population 80% Hindu, 14 % Muslim, Sikhs, and Christians about 2 % each. It has Castes and sub-castes, many languages and dialects and varying customs and traditions including different dress codes and dietary habits. That is the crossroad where India is today with Narendra Modi in power disregarding the aspirations of the minorities and diminishing the power structures that provided political and social equilibrium in the last seven decades or more.

Despite these variances, India has not only survived but prospered as a nation under a Nehruvian vision and the constitutional umbrella engineered by the great B.R. Ambedkar. Together, they have built Institutions that guaranteed life and property of every Citizen regardless of their background or circumstances, providing an opportunity to climb up the ladder of success and economic prosperity. Thanks to the economic liberalization policies initiated by Rajiv Gandhi and Manmohan Singh, former Prime Ministers, India has surpassed France as the sixth largest economy in the world. What we should have witnessed is a continuum of those policies and practices resulting in more openness and tolerance, and yet the opposite seems to have taken place.

In this week, we may witness widespread celebrations of India’s independence that will be held in many cities across the country. However, one may hear very little in regard to whether the hard-fought freedom by the founding fathers of modern India is in danger of being extinguished!

The Cultural and Religious organizations that provide forums for these events appear not to be concerned about the ever-diminishing freedom of India’s citizens or weakening of its institutions. They rather keep repeating the same narrative of India’s history and heritage and remind everyone on a regular basis of our noble ancestry. Compounding that, many of these same leaders may not only fail to mention the opportunities and privileges they were accorded here in their adopted land but often make even derisive comments about the ‘decadent culture’ of the west as if we were forced to migrate to this part of the world.

In these days, Embassies and Consulates of India have been utilized as propaganda machinery for the ruling party in India. In the name of promoting soft power, they have been forced to underwrite programs with intrinsic religious themes or one that would fit their nationalist agenda. Even English is often being banished at official functions to the dismay of the attendee population that always include non-Hindi speaking people or the people who are born and brought up in this country.

Indians have done well with the open electoral process in the US having elected four of their own to the House of Representatives and another one to the Senate. Although most of them ascribe to policies considered far left of the center and often very strident on issues dealing with Civil Rights, Social Policies or Immigration, they rarely criticize the Government of India for any similar wrongdoings such as violations of human rights or religious freedom and seem reluctant even to raise these issues when meeting with the Prime Minister or other officials.

Many of the Desi civil rights organizations in this country that would make loud protests, justifiably so, at the slightest discrimination or physical attack on an Indian, remain largely silent to any level of atrocities committed on vulnerable groups in India. Some of them act as if they are mouthpieces of the BJP regime often defending actions that would violate the basic values and principles of the democracy where we all live. As a minority, we demand equal opportunities and protection from the U.S. government, however, most, remain reluctant to hold Modi regime accountable to the same standard! It is quite a paradox!

Many liberal critics of the Modi regime sincerely believe that his administration is run by a political dogma inspired by the RSS ideology. That ideology is based on a common thread promoted by the Sangh Parivar organizations and is called the ‘Hindu Nationalist agenda of BJP.’ The ultimate goal of the agenda is to transform the pluralistic and democratic India to a Hindu nation where the majority religion will have the pre-eminence and minorities are relegated to subservient role probably being denied equal protection or opportunities, that too, to a substantial segment of the population.

The constitution’s framers created a democratic system wherein the legislature would make laws, the executive would implement laws and be accountable to parliament, and an independent judiciary would interpret the laws. They also put in a system of checks and balances among these three organs of the state. However, over the years, these three organs of the state have pushed the boundaries of their relationship with one another. NDA has the majority in the Lok Sabha where they pass ordinary bills and then pass it on to Rajya Sabha as Money bills to circumvent their numerical impairment in that body. They also have shown utter disregard to deliberate on essential bills bypassing various parliamentary committees.

Agencies such as India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Enforcement Directorate of the Finance Ministry, the Tax authorities and even local police forces are often accused of doing Government’s bidding. The opposition has charged that their leaders have often been targeted for harassment which they consider as a political vendetta for expressing their opinions critical of the government.

India has witnessed an extraordinary news conference by four members of the Collegiums revealing the skew in the allocation of work and lack of transparency by Dipak Misra, the Chief Justice of India. According to Justice Chelameswar, recently retired, “we tried to persuade the CJI to take steps but failed. Unless the Institution of Supreme Court is preserved, democracy won’t survive in the country”. There is indeed a cloud still casting a pall over the recent verdicts on Loya and Mecca Masjid cases.

Since the Narendra Modi government came to power, access to information through the Right to Information (RTI) Act has diminished greatly, according to the annual report of the Central Information Commission (CIC) for 2014-15. “Every Indian deserves to know the truth, and the BJP wants to hide the truth. The BJP believes the truth must be hidden from the people and they must not question people in power. The changes proposed to the RTI will make it a useless Act,” Rahul Gandhi said recently on the Twitter.

Shiv Sena, a member of the NDA coalition has recently dubbed the election commission as a ‘Tawaif’ (Mistress) of a political party. Coming from an ally, it only amplifies the long-held suspicion by many that the election commission has become a tool increasingly in the hands of the BJP government. “People are losing faith in the voting system,” Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut told ANI.

Freedom of Conscience is fundamental to all other freedoms. It is innate and God-given. It is guaranteed under the Indian Constitution. However, it is open season on those who freely exercise it. Professor M.M Kalburgi and Govind Pansare were active in combating the organized mysticism and cultures of gullibility widespread at the “popular” level. Their professed independence and determined efforts to alert the common man from the hideous agenda of the so-called religious godmen cost them their lives.

Media is dubbed as the fourth estate and has a vital role to play in a vibrant democracy. However, they are increasingly fearful for their existence if they do not toe the line of the Government. Many of these media outlets are bought out by the crony capitalists and have become the cheerleaders of the BJP agenda.

Academia has become another favorite target of the Modi Government. BJP and its ilk have always hated Institutions like JNU where the free flow of ideas flourished, and lively debates on the pros and cons of contemporary issues were the order of the day. Today, the students and faculty in these revered institutions are intimidated, harassed and called anti-national for failing to toe Hindutva agenda line and are even charged with sedition. Modi Government has been openly hostile to civil society groups. It repeatedly denounces human rights and environmental activism as “anti-national” – a phrase that carries connotations of treason.

Religious freedom in India continued on a downward trend in 2017, said the United States Commission on International religious freedom’s annual report released recently. It said that although government statistics have indicated that communal violence has decreased over the past two years, during the year, Hindu-nationalists groups sought to “saffronize” India through violence, intimidation, and harassment against non-Hindus and Hindu Dalits” although Indian Constitution guarantees freedom of religion through article 25 and 26. Since the ascendance of Modi as the Prime Minister, tensions between Muslims and Hindus have increased in many parts of the country. Modi’s rise has further pushed Muslims towards marginalization.

Christians who constitute around 2% of the population are also under severe stress with many of their places of worship under attack, increased re-conversion efforts by Hindu fundamentalist organizations, removal of Christmas Day and Easter Day from the National Calendar and by the cancellation of FCRA of thousands of Christian charities effectively putting them out of business, the Saffron brigade appears to be questioning the very India ness of every Christian in India.

“Democracy is under threat in India with “artists, writers and rationalists” being attacked in some form or the other, says acclaimed actress and filmmaker Nandita Das who feels conservatives and right-wing groups are increasingly becoming country’s moral police citing the effort to block the release of the movie ‘Padmavati.

Since the ascension of BJP to power, there is one in a series of incidents that has revealed the mindset of a party, on the one hand, urging Dalits to unite under the flag of Hindutva but on the other, setting up a delimiter to what extent they can be included; first, the ban on the Ambedkar-Periyar Study circle of IIT Madras, then the burning alive of Dalit children in Haryana and finally General VK Singh allegedly referring to them as animals.

The Bharatiya Janata Party’s victory in the Lok Sabha elections of 2014 has ushered in an unprecedented attack on India’s democracy and injected new elements of intolerance and authoritarianism into the lives of people living in the country. Martin Luther King Jr. once said: Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter’. The question is: will the Diaspora continue its long-held silence!

(The author is a former Chief Technology Officer at the United Nations and Vice-Chairman of the Indian Overseas Congress, USA)

Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: Eettaiwan Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Indian startups join the ranks of RISC-V architecture URL: https://www.eettaiwan.com/news/article/20180817NT03-India-Startup-Preps-RISC-V-AI-Cores

Indian startups join the ranks of RISC-V architecture

August 17, 2018Rick Merritt, Director, EE Times Shibuya Interview Center

Indian startup InCore is expected to launch its first RISC-V-based processor core, as well as deep learning accelerators and SoC design tools by the end of the year...

InCore Semiconductors, a startup in India, recently announced a ambitious plan to design and license RISC-V-based processor cores, as well as deep learning accelerators and SoC design tools. The company expects to launch its first core by the end of the year.

This program is expected to bring important bonus points to the RISC-V ecosystem. Not only does it show global interest in its Open Sources Instruction Set (IAS) architecture, it is also expected to be an alternative to Arm and other traditional vendor offerings.

InCore is independent from the Shakti processor research team at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-Madras) and utilizes its machine learning research at the Robert Bosch AI Center. According to GS Madhusudan, CEO of InCore and chief scientist of IIT-Madras, the company's funding so far has come mainly from revenue from commercial support for Shakti's core.

The startup is currently developing two sequential core families for edge system applications from ultra low power Internet of Things (IoT) to desktop computers.

Its low-end product, the E-Series core, uses a third-order pipeline that provides 32-bit and 64-bit versions to support a subset of RISC-V ISA. They will be executed at frequencies below 200MHz and will be equipped with FreeRTOS埠, which locks Arm's M-series core.

The high-end 64-bit C-Series core uses a fifth-order pipeline to support full RISC-V ISA and virtualization. The goal is for applications with speeds up to 800MHz, but can be customized to 2GHz with two instructions per cycle.

The C Series core will support the Level 4 security level Linux® version, targeting the Arm A35/A55 core. The startup also plans to offer a range of extensions to the C-Series core to provide fault tolerance for the automotive and other markets.

The core versions of the E-series and C-series will be available by the end of this year, and super- quantity and dual-issue execution capabilities will be available by April next year.

InCore AI arrayPulsating Array for Implementing AI Accelerator Core (Source: InCore)

The AI plan starts from the accelerator block

To accelerate the deep learning of embedded systems, InCore will provide blocks that are integrated with its core by the end of the year. This line of products, called Axon, is the starting point for designing the accelerator core for machine learning.

One of the blocks will use a data flow architecture and support architectures (such as Caffe and TensorFlow) to provide a basic systolic array. Another block provides cache optimization, skipping redundant jobs in sparse data sets by using special address tables and scratchpad files.

Another Aegis series will provide hardware-based security features such as the tagging architecture that is expected to be available in June next year to prevent common memory attacks. However, it also requires software support and extends beyond the specifications of RISC-V.

In addition, InCore will also release SoC design tools for its core, the first version is available for open source code. The goal of the tool is to easily integrate and test its cores and blocks using standard interfaces such as AXI and TileLink.

InCore expects to make money by combining its authorized IP and providing design services. The company has so far worked with Indian HCL Technologies on foundry. Intel's IIT-Madras Shakti core, which is based on a 22nm node, is designed for back-end by HCL.

Madhusudan said: "We can implement the concept to any fab in any fab, even the 7nm node." He believes that Intel's 22nm process is quite suitable for building IoT and sub-GHz devices. Indian startups join the ranks of RISC-V architecture

August 17, 2018Rick Merritt, Director, EE Times Shibuya Interview Center

Indian startup InCore is expected to launch its first RISC-V-based processor core, as well as deep learning accelerators and SoC design tools by the end of the year...

InCore Semiconductors, a startup in India, recently announced a ambitious plan to design and license RISC-V-based processor cores, as well as deep learning accelerators and SoC design tools. The company expects to launch its first core by the end of the year.

This program is expected to bring important bonus points to the RISC-V ecosystem. Not only does it show global interest in its Open Sources Instruction Set (IAS) architecture, it is also expected to be an alternative to Arm and other traditional vendor offerings.

InCore is independent from the Shakti processor research team at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-Madras) and utilizes its machine learning research at the Robert Bosch AI Center. According to GS Madhusudan, CEO of InCore and chief scientist of IIT-Madras, the company's funding so far has come mainly from revenue from commercial support for Shakti's core.

The startup is currently developing two sequential core families for edge system applications from ultra low power Internet of Things (IoT) to desktop computers.

Its low-end product, the E-Series core, uses a third-order pipeline that provides 32-bit and 64-bit versions to support a subset of RISC-V ISA. They will be executed at frequencies below 200MHz and will be equipped with FreeRTOS埠, which locks Arm's M-series core.

The high-end 64-bit C-Series core uses a fifth-order pipeline to support full RISC-V ISA and virtualization. The goal is for applications with speeds up to 800MHz, but can be customized to 2GHz with two instructions per cycle.

The C Series core will support the Level 4 security level Linux® version, targeting the Arm A35/A55 core. The startup also plans to offer a range of extensions to the C-Series core to provide fault tolerance for the automotive and other markets.

The core versions of the E-series and C-series will be available by the end of this year, and super- quantity and dual-issue execution capabilities will be available by April next year.

InCore AI arrayPulsating Array for Implementing AI Accelerator Core (Source: InCore)

The AI plan starts from the accelerator block

To accelerate the deep learning of embedded systems, InCore will provide blocks that are integrated with its core by the end of the year. This line of products, called Axon, is the starting point for designing the accelerator core for machine learning.

One of the blocks will use a data flow architecture and support architectures (such as Caffe and TensorFlow) to provide a basic systolic array. Another block provides cache optimization, skipping redundant jobs in sparse data sets by using special address tables and scratchpad files.

Another Aegis series will provide hardware-based security features such as the tagging architecture that is expected to be available in June next year to prevent common memory attacks. However, it also requires software support and extends beyond the specifications of RISC-V.

In addition, InCore will also release SoC design tools for its core, the first version is available for open source code. The goal of the tool is to easily integrate and test its cores and blocks using standard interfaces such as AXI and TileLink.

InCore expects to make money by combining its authorized IP and providing design services. The company has so far worked with Indian HCL Technologies on foundry. Intel's IIT-Madras Shakti core, which is based on a 22nm node, is designed for back-end by HCL.

Madhusudan said: "We can implement the concept to any fab in any fab, even the 7nm node." He believes that Intel's 22nm process is quite suitable for building IoT and sub-GHz devices.

Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: State College Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Penn State’s New International Students: Embracing a Small Town and Big Creamery Cones URL:http://www.statecollege.com/news/columns/penn-states-new-international-students-embracing- a-small-town-and-big-creamery-cones,1477478/

Penn State’s New International Students: Embracing a Small Town and Big Creamery Cones

There he was, struggling across the Wegmans parking lot with his four bags of groceries and two gallons of water, hoping against hope that he wouldn’t miss the CATA bus.

Aviral Prakash, a resident of State College for less than a week, was stressed out. He knew the 10 p.m. bus was the last one for the evening, and it was pulling away from the bus stop. Would the driver cut him a break? Or was he faced with a long walk in a strange town?

Not to worry, Aviral. This is Happy Valley. The driver wasn’t going to leave you stranded after she saw you staggering toward her bus.

“She stopped the bus and waited for me,” recalls Aviral, a graduate of India’s prestigious Indian Institute of Technology Madras. “And after I said, ‘Thank you,’ she said, ‘Anything for you, sweetie.’ “

Now, I don’t know a lot about Indian culture. But I have my doubts about whether Aviral would ever be addressed as “sweetie” by a bus driver in his homeland. Far from being offended, he was charmed by this down home Pennsylvania warmth. “I’m not used to this,” he says. “I’m not used to being treated so well by a stranger.”

Given that Aviral is a new Ph.D. student in physics at Penn State, he’ll probably be here for four to six years and he looks forward to much more local kindness. “I believe it is ingrained in the American culture that people are courteous and they greet you with a smile,” he says. “In India, we don’t talk to strangers; we don’t even like to look at them. If I try to greet a stranger, he or she will wonder why.”

Aviral Prakash is a doctoral student from India who quickly learned to appreciate the CATA bus system and to “hate” Ohio State.

Last August, I set out to see how incoming internationals felt about our town and gown, and I interviewed 20 or so new students. I had guessed they would provide a relatively positive view of our tidy community, but I was surprised by the degree of their enthusiasm. Perhaps the most memorable comment in my column (“Why New International Students Already Love Happy Valley”) was this one from a Croatian freshman: “I have fear and excitement because of the unknown. But you can’t get lost in State College and, if you do, everyone will help you.”

As this new school year approached, I wondered if my previous experience was somehow skewed toward the positive. Knowing that the University Park campus was in the midst of welcoming 450 international grad students and 800 international undergrads, I knew there were plenty of new subjects available. I would be happy to talk to all who would talk to me — whether they turned out to be the nattering nabobs of negativism or the perky Pollyannas of positivity.

And don’t you know that, once again, Happy Valley has seemingly worked its charm among new internationals. Aside from one student who wondered why his bus is always late (maybe the driver is assisting people like Aviral?), comments were extremely positive:

“State College is an American town as presented in the movies. The grass is incredibly green, the streets are clean and the people are friendly. It is better than I could have imagined.” – Isabelle Hens, freshman from Belgium

“Life at Penn State is independent and free. Students are expected to serve themselves. This can be a boon as well as a bane. To me, it is a breath of fresh air.” – Ishaan Anavkar, freshman from Dubai

“Even though classes and clubs didn’t start yet, this is definitely what I would like to call ‘Happy Valley.’ From great food to great outdoor experiences, I think that the next four years of my life will be unforgettable.” – Abdullah Redwan, freshman from Saudi Arabia

“This feels like an easy and open area, close to nature. My bachelor’s degree was in forestry engineering, so I’m very comfortable in this kind of environment.” – Juan Blazquez-Cuena, Ph.D. student from Spain

ECSTASY AT THE CREAMERY

Of all the internationals I met, a new master’s student in law named Feng Jin seemed the most thrilled about our community. After her first two weeks in Happy Valley, this woman from Shanghai was positively beaming with enthusiasm.

“In big cities,” she said, “you can just see the tall buildings, they are very close to each other. You can’t see such a big sky and such beautiful, tall trees. The first day I came here, I see the blue sky and I smell the fresh air and I am so surprised and amazed by all of this. I love it so much.”

This aspiring human rights lawyer knows she will need to work hard to earn a master’s degree from Penn State Law, and I was certainly impressed by the four massive textbooks she had just purchased in the HUB bookstore. But she’s already found the perfect study break. “I think the ice cream is the ‘happiest’ ice cream I have ever eaten in my life. When I feel not very happy in my studies, I go to the Creamery and I get Death by Chocolate. It’s very big. I love it so much. I’m going to get it every week; if I can, every day!

‘THREE UNITED ALIENS’

Although the Happy Valley environment puts a smile on many international faces, nothing can match the ongoing value of warm relationships. And that brings me to the story of three new Ph.D. students from disparate nations — Jacob Bradd from Australia, Gabriel Reimao from Brazil and Saptarashmi (“Rob”) Bandyopadhyay from India.

They flew into University Park Airport on the same small aircraft, but perhaps because of shyness or travel fatigue, they didn’t actually meet until the check-in day that is part of International Student Orientation.

“It was a complete coincidence,” says Jacob. “Literally the first two people I talked to (at Penn State) were on that plane.” Adds Gabriel, “If someone ever makes a movie about our lives, no one is going to believe that scene.”

Immediately, the three became a group and hung out especially during their first days on campus that are potentially lonely. They dubbed themselves “Three United Aliens” because they flew here on United Airlines and because they’re amused by the U.S. government’s use of the word “alien” to describe people from other nations.

Jacob would probably say that he has benefited most from the trio. Now just 19 as he begins Ph.D. work, he is ready to expand his social boundaries. “One of the things about going overseas,” he says, “is that I see it as a way to grow as a person. I was pretty shy at uni (the University of Woolongong) in Australia, so this is a way to get out there. I’ve had it pretty good since I met Gabriel and Rob on the first day. I haven’t been completely alone.”

The “Three United Aliens” shared a flight into State College and later became close friends. From left: Gabriel Reimao from Brazil, Rob Bandyopadhyay from India and Jacob Bragg from Australia.

MULTI-PURPOSE ORIENTATION

Of course, not every international student can count on such a serendipitous introduction to new friends. And that’s one of the reasons why Penn State offers International Student Orientation. Including time for administrative check-in, the ISO program lasts two days for graduate students and three days for

“We want to welcome international students and make them feel valued as members of the Penn State community,” says Lauren Halberstadt, the student engagement and intercultural learning manager within the Office of Global Programs. “We want to help them learn the rules and regulations — everything from Title IX to academic integrity. We want them to have the tools to succeed. And we want to help them make friends.”

Given all those goals to be reached in a brief window of time, Halberstadt’s team can succeed only through a major commitment of time and energy. “It’s crazy, it’s so busy,” she says. “But it is wonderful, so fun. As soon as we see the new students, we get immediately energized. And we prepare meticulously in advance so that during ISO, we can focus on the student experience.” NFL TEAM NAMES

The result is a fast-paced delivery of information about Penn State that is punctuated with humor and small group interaction. Each small group contains roughly 20 students and two student leaders; each is named for a National Football League team.

Of course, I had to ask Lauren why these small groups are named for NFL teams. Is this a way to help internationals identify more deeply with American culture?

“We need to split the students into teams so they can have a tight-knit community,” says Halberstadt, who holds three bachelor degrees, a master’s degree and a Ph.D. from Penn State. “The real reason for using NFL teams is that we want the groups to be as diverse as possible. If we chose another sport like soccer the students would switch teams to reflect their loyalties.”

And there you have the inside scoop — the use of NFL names within International Student Orientation is just a way to protect small group demographics.

So Aviral, does that mean you learned nothing about American football during ISO? “Not much,” says the Indian fan of CATA. “Just the fact that we hate Ohio State, and we’re not supposed to wear red when we go to a football game.” Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: Deccan Chronicle Edition: Chennai Page No: 31 Journalist: NA Headline: Srithar hits Ton in Sunny Sachin Win

Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Chennai Page No: 21 Journalist: NA Headline: Around the city (Flying start for Loyola)

Date: 18th August 2018 Publication: Divya Bhaskar (clip attached) Edition: Ahmedabad Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Professor: Headline: (IIT-GN)

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: P Oppili Headline: IIT-M team creates low-cost exhaust emission controller URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/iit-m-team-creates-low-cost-exhaust-emission- controller/articleshow/65456425.cms

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: Business Standard Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Infosys CFO Ranganath quits; move may impact firm's stabilisation efforts URL: https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/infosys-cfo-ranganath-quits-move-may- impact-firm-s-stabilisation-efforts-118081800408_1.html

Infosys CFO Ranganath quits; move may impact firm's stabilisation efforts M D Ranganath's departure an irreparable loss for Infosys at such a critical juncture, says founder Narayana Murthy

Panaya pain haunts Infosys; Parekh assures stronger due diligence in AGM Nandan Nilekani may have a longer stint at Infosys; Q1 earnings on Friday Infosys slaps countersuit of Rs 1 billion against ex-CFO Rajiv Bansal Whistleblower's heat on Infosys board, questions U-turn on Panaya Infosys Q1 net profit rises 3.7% to Rs 36.12 bn, delivers in-line numbers

In a move that might add to Infosys' woes, M D Ranganath, a company veteran who is currently its chief financial officer (CFO), has decided to leave the IT major to pursue external opportunities. In a release on Saturday, Infosys said that the board of directors has accepted his resignation, and the company will immediately commence the search for the next CFO. The company also said that Ranganath will continue in his current position till November 16, which will ensure smooth transitioning of role to his successor.

"Over the past 18 years, Ranga has played a pivotal role in the growth and success of Infosys," said Infosys chairman Nandan Nilekani. "With Ranga as CFO, the company has in the past 3 crucial years, delivered a strong and resilient financial performance on multiple fronts, implemented an efficient capital allocation policy and earned the respect of all stakeholders through enhanced value creation. On behalf of the board, I thank Ranga for his excellent contribution to the company and wish him all the very best in his endeavours," he added.

This is the second CFO-level exit at Infosys within a span of three years. In October 2015, the company's then CFO Rajiv Bansal had quit owing to differences with the management team over the acquisition of Panaya. He was to be paid a hefty severance package of Rs 174 million by the previous board of Infosys under the chairmanship of R Seshasayee. This unprecedented level of severance payout of close to 30 months of salary sparked a huge controversy, with founders like N R Narayana Murthy raising questions on corporate governance issues. This had led to the halting of the assured payout after an initial payment of Rs 50 million. Currently, the case is under arbitration over the remaining amount.

Ranganath, who has been with Infosys for the past 18 years, was one of the key executives who played a vital role in the period of turbulence in 2013, which forced Murthy to return to the IT major as the executive chairman. Ranganath was part of a four-member team in the chairman's office that was responsible for driving cost optimisation, managing top clients and global delivery, among other things. He was also instrumental in managing the transition period when Vishal Sikka took over as the new CEO in mid-2014. An MTech in Mechanical Engineering from IIT-Madras and MBA in Finance & Strategy from IIM-Ahmedabad, Ranganath took over the charge of the CFO in October 2015.

"His departure is an irreplaceable loss for Infosys at this critical juncture," said Murthy, who had hired Ranganath back in 2000 when the latter was with ICICI Bank as a senior vice-president.

"Ranganath's ability to take tough decisions in challenging situations, his solid financial expertise, strong value system, unfailing courtesy and flawless execution always distinguished him as an exemplary leader and a key asset for the company. He is a rare individual who understands all important stakeholders -- clients, delivery teams, employee aspirations, finance, investors, governance, the law, and the role of an ethical business in building a better society. He is everything the idea of Infosys has always stood for," Murthy added.

ALSO READ: Infosys to go ahead with Kolkata project worth Rs 1 bn without SEZ status

Ranganath's exit comes at a time when the Bengaluru-based company is fighting battles on several fronts, including bringing back stability at the top under a new CEO who has joined in January this year. The attrition rate is at an all-time high while the company is already engaged in firefighting to bring back investors' confidence following allegations of corporate governance issues under erstwhile CEO Vishal Sikka, especially over the controversial acquisition of Israeli automation software company Panaya and the high severance money payout to Bansal. The incidents resulted in the exit of Sikka, followed by non- executive chairman Seshasayee, forcing Nilekani to return to the company as the non-executive chairman.

"I am grateful to Infosys for giving me the opportunity of serving as CFO of this global iconic company," said Ranganath in a statement. "I am proud that over the last 3 years, during a critical phase of the company, we delivered strong and consistent financial outcomes, maintained high standards of financial reporting, built a world-class finance team, further strengthened the company’s competitive position and thereby enhanced value to the stakeholders," he added.

ALSO READ: Infosys to spend Rs 7.5 bn in upcoming Noida software development facility

After the new CEO Salil Parekh, who joined the company from Capgemini, took over in January this year, the company has seen at least three top-level exits, including Rajesh Krishnamurthy, a president who was in charge of the energy, utilities and telecommunications business, and Sangita Singh, an executive vice-president who was in charge of the healthcare vertical globally. The company also saw the exit of Nitesh Banga, a senior VP who was heading the manufacturing vertical and edge products for the company globally. BIDDING ADIEU Joined Infosys in 2000 Played leadership roles across consulting, sales, finance and strategy During his tenure, Infy’s market capitalisation touched a 25-year high at Rs 3,126.2 billion Was instrumental in designing Infosys' capital allocation policy Played a key role in containing cost and maintaining margin levels

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: India’s Sinking Cities URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/magazine/2018/aug/19/indias-sinking-cities-1858743.html

India’s Sinking Cities

The paradox of progress is that when mankind rises, cities sink. Prosperity through technology causes large-scale migrations to urban areas, and pressure on resources, land and systems upset the balan The paradox of progress is that when mankind rises, cities sink. Prosperity through technology causes large-scale migrations to urban areas, and pressure on resources, land and systems upset the balance of Nature. Unchecked industry and pollution are the main culprits of climate change that ultimately leads to catastrophe. India’s historic cities—Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata—are slowly sinking. So are other metros such as Bengaluru and Kochi, as well as a host of smaller cities. The root problem of monsoon disasters is uncontrolled urban population growth.

Between the top five metros—Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Bengaluru—the population is a whopping 37.8 crore and climbing; India is an urban disaster in the making. Forty million Indians are likely to be affected by rising sea levels as global warming drives temperatures up, causing ice sheets to melt. India is not saving up for a rainy day. Waterlogged roads, flood-related deaths and crippled infrastructure, urban displacement and economic loss make wearingly repetitive news every time it rains.

Kochi: Mahesh’s house was located around five feet above the river bank of Keerithodu in Kochi region. When the river rose suddenly, he along with his wife and 10-month-old daughter had to seek shelter on higher ground as they watched all their worldly belongings being swept away. Water levels in the Periyar River, swollen by incessant rain, forced authorities to open the sluice gates of Idukki reservoir, 130 km away from the city. The water level had crossed the 2,401-ft mark by 7 am on August 9, inching closer to the maximum storage level of 2,403 ft. At least 4,000 people living in low-lying areas were evacuated to relief camps.

Delhi: Close to 80 people had a narrow escape after heavy rainfall on July 13, when a DTC bus was submerged at Minto Road Bridge. Firemen stepped in to rescue the passengers. The soon-to-be-opened Bhikaji Cama Place Metro Station was waterlogged after a portion of a pavement adjoining it caved in post rains on July 30. Just 10 days prior to this, Greater Kailash Metro Station had also witnessed a major cave-in near one of its entrance gates. On July 27, the water level in the Yamuna River crossed the danger mark, prompting officials to sound a flood alert.

Mumbai: Last year, Dr Deepak Amarapurkar lost his life after he slipped into an open manhole on a waterlogged street. It never stops with one. In the famously ‘resilient city’, a pedestrian bridge collapsed on a crucial railway line in Andheri on July 3 this year, injuring many, and causing urban paralysis. Four walls collapsed across the city, and trees were uprooted at 43 places. Chennai: The city witnessed heavy rains in 1943, 1978, 1985, 2002 and 2005 caused by heavy rain associated with cyclonic activity. These events of catastrophic flooding, besides the ‘manmade floods of 2015’, were found to be attributable to failure of the major rivers and other drainage systems to clear the inundations.

Bengaluru: India’s IT hub is the perfect example of how terrible things are in urban centres. Poor maintenance of roads and drains has made it vulnerable to flooding. Dumping of solid waste into stormwater drains coupled with illegal constructions blocking drains are affecting infrastructure. Kolkata: Heavy rains on July 22 prompted two traders to take shelter in a run-down building in Sealdah. But the building proved to be their death knell. They were buried under the debris when part of the building collapsed due to the rain. With its natural defences such as the Ganges and wetlands emptying into the mangrove-rich regions, this metro could have kept floods at bay. But it was not to be.

Bhubaneswar: A spate of low-pressure induced rains last month submerged most of the city, ranked among the Top 20 global Smart Cities and 32 among best 50 Smart City Governments. The whole city turned into a landscape gripped by severe floods disrupting normal life. Water gushed into homes, which had even not witnessed any waterlogging outside their gates.

NASA scientists predict that melting ice sheets will force sea levels to rise, affecting Mangaluru, Mumbai and Kakinada. Over the next century, Mangaluru’s sea level will rise by 15.98 cm and Mumbai’s by 15.26. The Andaman and Nicobar islands are likely to be totally swallowed by the sea, said a 2017 World Bank report. A study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development found Mumbai and Kolkata can be submerged fully by 2070. The study encompassed 136 of the world’s largest port cities. A Greenpeace report prepared by IIT-Chennai climate expert Sudhir Chellarajan has predicted that 4-5 degree rise in temperature due to greenhouse emissions will cause rise in sea levels of up to five metres, pushing most of Mumbai under water by 2100.

An international scientific community report forecasts that Chennai is at risk of submersion and that by 2050, Thiruvallur, Kanchipuram, Villupuram, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur, Thanjavur, Pudukottai, Ramanathapuram, Tuticorin, Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari districts will face storm surges to go four metre above sea level. Another study by the Tamil Nadu State Land Use Research Board predicts danger to 10 lakh residents and 144 sq km of land in Chennai should the sea level rise by a metre by 2050. The West Antartic Ice Sheet (WAIS), which seems to be melting, has enough water to raise sea levels by 4.8 metre. It’s small comfort that cities such as New York, Miami and Jakarta are also predicted to go under. New Orleans has been sinking for decades. One of the major causes of sinking is the depletion of groundwater. India is the world’s largest consumer of groundwater at 85 percent of its drinking water.

The reasons of sinking cities vary by location. They are migration, construction of bigger buildings, ground sinking naturally in coastal cities built on river deltas, rising sea levels and depleting groundwater. Migration from the countryside into urban areas places stress on natural resources. The immense weight of huge buildings presses down on earth.

Land subsidence is increased by the building of levees and dams that prevent the river floods from replenishing the ground with silt and sand. Sea levels could rise in coastal cities from a few inches to a few feet over the next century. Geologist Sushmita Sengupta, whose book Why Urban India Floods reviews the state of urban flooding, says, “Many Indian water bodies have been built over through the process of urbanisation because they are rarely recorded under municipal law. Planners only see land, not water. A rethinking is needed. Urban floods are capable of causing major economic losses and devastating social and environmental impacts.”

Financial Hub Drowns If the sea is Mumbai’s life, rain is its nemesis. Every year the city floods during the monsoon with transport services grinding to a halt, massive power cuts, with the municipal drainage systems, newly made roads and old buildings collapsing. Last year, Mumbai floods claimed over 20 lives. The reason for the paralysis goes beyond mere planning and government apathy. Mumbai has expanded exponentially as it absorbed migrants looking to be part of the Bombay Dream.

This has resulted in massive expansion of both residential and commercial space. The fast-growing nexus between politics, the land mafia and organised crime has compromised the city’s ecosystem. Encroachment of stormwater drains and rampant illegal construction have led to natural water bodies being filled up beyond capacity. Felling of trees and concretisation compound the problem.

The fatal mistake city planners make is that all rainwater should be purged using pumps, channels and drainage. Redevelopment of older neighbourhoods has led to gigantic buildings coming up. These areas lose their green cover as the soil’s absorptive power is degraded. Rainwater is usually absorbed by the earth or flows into natural lakes and ponds, and is absorbed by flood plains, coastal wetlands, salt marshes, lakes, rivers, natural green cover, fields and non-concrete land which also recharge the groundwater. Concrete prevents this. The infamous high tide of Mumbai adds to nature’s wrath.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) data shows nine extremely heavy rainfall days exceeding 204.5 mm in Mumbai annualy along with the rise in the annual frequency of heavy rainfall. The deadly July 2005 downpour caused by an unexpected cloudburst claimed over 700 lives, injured 3,00,000, damaged 20,000 cars, and 2,500 BEST buses. Mumbai’s drainage system cannot handle such rains, because the system built during British times was not laid out depending on data: there was simply no data.

Capital Crisis Every monsoon Delhi throws up a fresh surprise. This year, it was the scene of a waterlogged elevated road in Delhi-NCR in July. “I commute on the elevated road on a daily basis. An elevated road is supposed to be free of such ground-level problems as waterlogging. Why is there no water outlet?” asks a bewildered Bhaskar Sathe, who commutes from Noida to Delhi every day. Places such as Old Delhi, Mayur Vihar, Lakshmi Nagar, Indirapuram, Chhattarpur are continually submerged. One hour of incessant rain and most roads are waterlogged leading to traffic snarls that last for hours.

This year, schools in Indirapuram had to be shut after just a day’s downpour—it was deemed ‘too risky’ for children to commute. The city, which has a growing population, is home to illegal constructions and encroachments. Even government projects such as flyovers and laying of Metro lines add to the debris that ends up on the Yamuna riverbed.

After the recent waterlogging in Delhi, a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar questioned authorities on “why action taken is not visible”. They said year after year waterlogging occurs and the Minto Bridge had become a proverbial issue. “This year, even the airport was flooded,” the bench observed. It went on to add that the situation exposes the falsity in claims made by authorities. Commenting on the recent flooding on the elevated road, the bench said it was “shocking that the flyover which is considered a panacea for easing traffic is beset with waterlogging”. It appointed a panel headed by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) CEO to look into difficulties in drainage of stormwater and sewage, calling for “emergency efforts”.

A Delhi civic body official on condition of anonymity said, “It is beyond us to manage the entire city. All departments have to work together—from the traffic police to the public works department to sanitation. Besides, while passing tenders for construction, the administration should look into all pros and cons. The Yamuna river belt is almost destroyed. Each year, the government issues flood warnings, but that has not stopped encroachments.”

A foreign consultant to the DJB says Delhi, like Cape Town, would run out of water in a decade. The built-up area in the city increased sevenfold between 1970s and 1990s. To make space for the construction, the area under wetlands reduced to one-third of its earlier size. The last major flood to hit the city was in 2013, when the water level of Yamuna rose to 207.49 m, the highest ever. The story is the same in Delhi’s glamorous stepsister Gurgaon. Once mostly farmland and a few scattered villages, it has grown into a Millennial City. The farmers sold land to developers, multinationals and businessmen at outrageous prices and grew rich beyond their wildest dreams.

Gurgaon became a city of contrasts: swanky skyscraper offices, exclusive gated communities with clubs and malls on one side and on the other, claustrophobic illegal colonies populated by migrants living cheek by jowl with livestock, kachcha roads and open sewage lines. The Badkhal lake in Faridabad that would overflow in the 1990s is now a bare on which housing colonies are coming up.

Awaiting a Tragedy More than two years have passed since the 2015 floods that brought Chennai to a standstill, but stormwater drains across the city are yet to be completed. Also, the plan to rejuvenate 100 water bodies is still on paper and the removal of encroachments is a half-hearted attempt. It is another calamity waiting to happen. Association of Professional Town Planners president K M Sadanand says, “The deluge is a forgotten chapter. Many of the schemes are still on paper.” The fault lies in the state government for not enacting the Flood Plain Zoning (FPZ) mandated by the Central Water Commission which in 1975 circulated a model Bill of FPZ. Even the Second Master Plan prepared by the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority did not provide for FPZ.

A Comptroller and Auditor General report has described Chennai’s 2015 floods as a ‘manmade disaster’. It states that land use plans were not adhered, as a result many water bodies, considered to be flood carriers, have shrunk or have vanished. Between 1979 and 2016, the area under water bodies declined by 9.67 sq km. While the First Master Plan and Second Master Plan projected a total increase in built-up area by 330.58 sq km (33,058 hectare) over the 50-year period between 1976 and 2026, the actual increase in built-up area as worked out using satellite imageries over 37 years between 1979 and 2016 was 450.26 sq km pointing to large-scale illegal constructions.

Research by Delhi-based non-profit Centre for Science and Environment notes the more than 600 healthy water bodies in Chennai in the 1980s have dwindled to just a fraction. The state’s Water Resources Department records that the area of 19 major lakes had shrunk. Even a slightly heavy rainfall could bring back the unpleasant situation of 2015. Consider this: Chennai has only 855 km of stormwater drains against 2,847 km of urban roads. The Pallikarni marshland, 20 km south of Chennai that worked as a flood sink, today doubles as a waste disposal site and houses several residential projects.

Bay of Bengal Rises Many lakes and canals in Kolkata today are just muck. Quite a few have completely vanished with buildings built on drained land—their sustainability is anybody’s guess. Swanky New Kolkata—a fast- growing planned satellite city—has usurped low-lying fields that once absorbed the runoff water. The rapid extraction of groundwater is also causing the landscape to sink. The Sundarbans, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, thanks to its natural mangrove forest, is fast losing its land as the Bay of Bengal is rising faster than the global average. The displaced people are pouring into Kolkata. They live in neighbourhoods where during monsoons one has to wade through the filthy and stinking floodwaterwws. Kolkata, however, is working on increasing its green cover; from 290 parks a decade ago, it grew to 600 in 2010.

IT centre in Doldrums A study led by Prof TV Ramachandra of the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, predicts the death of the Karnataka capital by 2021. A field survey shows that 98 percent of water bodies have been encroached on. There is loss of catchment area, used as dumping yards. A latest field survey shows that nearly 66 percent of its existing lakes are sewage-fed, 14 percent are surrounded by slums and 72 percent show loss of catchment area. Satellite imagery and on-ground studies show built-up area in the Garden City has increased by 525 percent as water bodies and greenery declined by 70 percent. The water table has sunk to 1,000 ft and more.

Concretisation has seen a 925 percent growth since 1970. Indian cities account for about 18 percent of the shrinking cities in the developing world. The lost city of Atlantis as mentioned by Greek philosopher Plato is an enduring myth and the Holy Grail of archaeologists the world over. Plato suggested the civilisation was destroyed overnight when an earthquake and tsunami struck caused by ecological damage. In 2016, archaeological remains of the washed away city of Dwarka were discovered 120 feet underwater in the Gulf of Cambay. If mankind doesn’t step in, abandoning irresponsibility, greed and political connivance to protect these ecosystems, more cities like this are likely to be found by archaeologists millennia later. But for this generation, it will be too late. Inputs by S Sivakumar, Manoj Viswanathan and Gopika IS pressing Concerns The Management of Urban Flooding report, published by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), says concretisation is a major problem. According to the Union Ministry of Urban Development, almost 50 percent of the country will be urbanised by 2050. Natural streams and watercourses have been altered to accommodate a growing populace. “As a result, the flow of water has increased. The natural drains should have been widened, but on the contrary, there have been large scale encroachments.

Consequently, the capacity of natural drains has decreased, resulting in flooding,” says the report published in 2010. According to the NDMA, urban flooding is significantly different from rural flooding as urbanisation leads to developed catchments, which increases the flood peaks from 1.8 to 8 times and flood volumes by up to six times. Consequently, flooding occurs very quickly due to faster flow times (in a matter of minutes). preventive measures

Green roofs: These roofs absorb rainwater and help mitigate flooding. The stormwater management tool prevents sewer overflow, neutralises acid rain effect.

Flood plains: There is a movement to restore flood plains because of their significant role in flood protection.

Better sewer system: To improve water management, cities are beginning to separate rainwater from the sewer system. This enables wastewater treatment plants to function properly without being overburdened.

Sponge cities: This concept is popular in China. “A sponge city is one that can hold, clean, and drain water in a natural way, using an ecological approach,” says Kongjian Yu, the Dean of Peking University’s College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. Rather than funnelling rainwater away, a sponge city retains it for its own use.

Sustainable drainage: Concrete is not permeable. It does not absorb rainwater, so it should be replaced with permeable materials such as grass and gardens.

Improve warning mechanisms: The earlier the warning arrives and is heeded, the easier it is to tackle the situation and contain overall damage. Be flood-ready: Despite the best of efforts, a calamity does strike. The only solution is to plan ahead and be prepared for the worst. what causes Floods

The reduction in water holding capacity of the city’s surface due to loss of green cover

Uncontrolled urban sprawl and loss of natural drainage

Drainage channels have been blocked and urban lakes filled and encroached

Canals degraded and heavily silted

Lack of unified flood control implementing agency

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The Economic Times Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Faculty cannot pursue full time course while teaching: Madras HC URL://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/65453277.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm _medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Faculty cannot pursue full time course while teaching: Madras HC

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The Indian Express Edition: Delhi / Pune / Kolkata / Chandigarh / Mumbai / Ahmedabad Page No: 6 Journalist: Ritika Chopra Headline: Govt proposes panel for JEE (Advanced) reforms, headed by IIT-Madras director URL: https://indianexpress.com/article/education/govt-proposes-panel-for-jee-advanced-reforms- 5313689/

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The Economic Times Edition: Mumbai / Delhi / Pune / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Kochi / Ahmedabad / Chandigarh / Chennai Page No: 21 Journalist: Hari Pulakkat Professor: Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Prof G. Venkatesh & Prof. T Pradeep Headline: Once deemed impossible, IITs and IISc are ushering in changes URL: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/education/once-deemed-impossible-iits- and-iisc-are-ushering-in-changes/articleshow/65455325.cms

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The Financial Express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: To reform JEE (Advanced) exam, HRD Ministry proposes panel headed by IIT-Madras director URL: https://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/to-reform-jee-advanced-exam-hrd-ministry- proposes-panel-headed-by-iit-madras-director/1285454/ To reform JEE (Advanced) exam, HRD Ministry proposes panel headed by IIT-Madras director

The Human Resource and Development ministry has proposed to set up a five-member panel to suggest changes to the JEE (Advanced) examination.

To reform JEE (Advanced) exam, HRD Ministry proposes panel headed by IIT-Madras director The Human Resource and Development ministry has proposed to set up a five-member panel to suggest changes to the JEE (Advanced) examination. The move comes after an insufficient number of applicants had qualified the entrance test this year. According to a report by The Indian Express, Abhay Karandikar, Director of IIT-Kanpur, Vineet Joshi, Director General of National Testing Agency, and Professor Kannan Moudgalya of IIT-Bombay are likely to be the other member of the committee. The proposal to suggest changes in the examination syllabus will be decided by the IIT Council, which is considered to be the top decision-making body of all the IITs. The IIT Council is scheduled to meet on August 21, 2018.

A total of 18,138 candidates had qualified the JEE 2018 (Advanced) test this year. On June 11, in a report, The Indian Express had mentioned that since 2013, when IIT-JEE was renamed as JEE (Advanced), the number of qualified candidates was always twice the number of seats. Therefore, the final merit list of 2018 (18,138 candidates) was the least since 2012. In the last moment, the HRD ministry had ordered IIT Kanpur (as 2018 JEE-Advanced exam was organized by it) to publish another list of candidates having twice the number of seats in each discipline and category.

Afterwards, IIT Kanpur released a list of around 13,842 candidates (8,954 general candidates, 3,824 OBC candidates, 771 SCs and 293 from ST category ) taking the total to 31,980 candidates. Hence, in a bid to avoid the similar awkwardness in near future, the panel will consider and develop a “robust and scientifically designed entrance exam system to test the potential of the candidates as well as to reduce their dependence on coaching institutes”.

Apart from this, the IIT-Council is likely to discuss a recommendation made by one of the 23 premier engineering schools that the candidates who qualify JEE (Advanced) exam should be offered an institute instead of an engineering college in the first year. As per the recommendation, the student should be offered an engineering branch from the second year. “The above suggestion has the advantage of reducing pressure on the ranks in the JEE-Advanced examinations and would ensure that students take their first-year course seriously,” reports IE.

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: NDTV Edition: Online Journalist: Sam Daniel Headline: Tamil Nadu Bans Mobile Phones In Colleges, Students Say "Regressive" Move URL: https://www.ndtv.com/tamil-nadu-news/tamil-nadu-bans-mobile-phones-in-colleges-students- say-regressive-move-1902867

Tamil Nadu Bans Mobile Phones In Colleges, Students Say "Regressive" Move

Some students agree that the use of mobile phones can be restricted during classes, but a complete ban does not make sense, said others Tamil Nadu | Written by J Sam Daniel Stalin | Updated: August 19, 2018 20:59 IST by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored His liver & kidneys have failed. Please save our dying child. (Ketto) Tamil Nadu Bans Mobile Phones In Colleges, Students Say 'Regressive' Move The directive will not apply to centre-run institutions such as IIT Madras.

CHENNAI: College students will no longer be allowed to carry cellphones as their use has been banned on campuses across Tamil Nadu. A circular issued by the Directorate of Collegiate Education, accessed by NDTV, directs all regional joint directors to inform all government, aided and self-financing colleges about the order. However, the directive will not apply to centre-run institutions such as IIT Madras. A principal of a private college in Chennai, who did not wish to be named, blamed it on the misuse of camera phones. She said, "Students film women faculty members in embarrassing positions and share videos on social media."

She added, "In co-educational institutions, women students are filmed in the company of their male friends, the videos are later misused."

Another principal said that over the last few years, they have banned use of mobile phones on campus. "But considering the need to have connectivity, we have allowed use of phones in the cafeteria and outside the campus. They can keep their phones in their bag during other times."

The students call it a regressive move. D Elizabeth, a literature student, said, "We boast of digital India, but see what we are doing."

Advertisement Shalini Daga, a journalism student, suggests a measured approach. She agrees that the use of mobile phones can be restricted during classes, but a complete ban does not make sense.

"Most of our work is done via phones. We have to use internet for almost everything. In such a case, a ban on the use of mobile phones in college does not seem right at all," Ms Daga said.

Ananya Shankar, another student, said, "Most students are already adults when they enter college and the use of mobile phones cannot be dictated by authorities. The choice should be left to the students. One of the reasons cited was safety of girls but even with the ban in many colleges, girls face problems."

30 COMMENTS Prof M Andrew Sesuraj, assistant professor, Department of Social Work, Loyola College called the order an intrusion into powers of colleges. He added, "I personally allow my students to use Google during my class. I train them to use camera mobiles to document short films. I help them to go live with the department programmes and lectures through Facebook. Instead of teaching the students to responsibly use the modern gadgets, this order will create hurdles for creativity."

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi Headline: IIT alumni to help students get job ready

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The Hans India Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi Headline: IIT-alumni body launches skill development programmes URL: http://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/Hans/2018-08-20/IIT-alumni-body-launches-skill- development-programmes-/406620

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: Business Standard Edition: Delhi / Mumbai / Bangalore / Kolkata Page No: 10 Journalist: Sneha Bhattacharjee Alumni: Pavan Reddy Headline: IIT Madras students develop made-in-India air purifier to combat pollution URL: https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/iit-madras-students-develop-made-in- india-air-purifier-to-combat-pollution-118081800616_1.html

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: Business Standard Edition: Delhi / Mumbai / Bangalore / Kolkata Page No: 1 Journalist: Bibhu Ranjan Mishra & Debasis Mohapatra Alumni: M D Ranganath Headline: Infosys CFO Ranganath quits; move may impact firm's stabilisation efforts URL: https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/infosys-cfo-ranganath-quits-move-may- impact-firm-s-stabilisation-efforts-118081800408_1.html

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: Deccan Chronicle Edition: Bangalore / Hyderabad / Chennai Page No: 13 Journalist: Senjam Raj Sekhar Headline: Fundamentals

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The Statesman Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Registration for GATE 2019 to starts on September 1 | check gate.iitm.ac.in URL: https://www.thestatesman.com/books-education/registration-gate-2019-start-off-september-1- check-gate-iitm-ac-1502674970.html

Registration for GATE 2019 to starts on September 1 | check gate.iitm.ac.in

GATE is administered jointly by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore and seven Indian Institutes of Technology (namely, IITs at Bombay, Delhi, Guwahati, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Madras and Roorkee).

SNS Web | New Delhi | August 19, 2018 12:26 pm

The registration process for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) will begin from September 1. A major change is the inclusion of Statistics paper in the entrance exam.

Candidates who wish to join master’s and direct doctoral programmes in engineering, technology, architecture and in other branches of science at various Indian Institute of Science and IITs are required to clear GATE 2019. Interested candidates need to apply from the official website.

This year, the exam will be conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras. Candidates can submit the application forms last by September 21.

GATE 2019 will be held in the morning and evening slots on February 2, 3 and February 9, 10.

The exam will be conducted in 24 subjects including Aerospace Engineering, Agricultural Engineering, Architecture and Planning, Biotechnology, Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Instrumentation Engineering, Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering among other subjects.

A candidate is allowed to appear in only one paper in any one session.

GATE is administered jointly by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore and seven Indian Institutes of Technology (namely, IITs at Bombay, Delhi, Guwahati, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Madras and Roorkee).

Important dates:

The application process starts: September 1, 2018 Last date to apply: September 21 Extended Closing Date for Submission of (Online) Application: October 1 Last Date for the change of examination City (an additional fee will be applicable): November 16 Admit cards: January 4, 2018 GATE 2018 exam date: February 2,3 and February 9, 10, 2018 (9 am to 12 pm and 2 pm to 5 pm) Result declaration: March 16, 2018

The application fee for unreserved candidates is Rs. 1500, for women and SC/ST/PwD is Rs. 750, and for international candidates is $ 50.

There is no age limit for GATE 2019.

Date: 19th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Delhi / Chennai Page No: 3 Journalist: Swatantra Balamurugan Alumni: Venkatesh Athreya Headline: Other side of the classroom URL: https://www.thehindu.com/education/other-side-of-the-classroom/article24723469.ece

Date: 20th August 2018 Publication: Dinakaran (Clip Attached) Edition: Chennai Page No: 3 Journalist: NA Headline: தேவை埍埁ம் அேிகமான இன்ஜினிய쏍கவை உ쏁ைா埍埁ைோல் தைவைைாய்ப்ꯁ பிர母வனயாக உள்ை鏁: அ迍ணா பல்கவை. 鏁வண தைந்ே쏍 毂ரப்பா தப母毁 (Producing more engineers than required is causing problems of unemployability: Anna University V-C Prof Surappa) URL: http://www.dinakaran.com/News_Detail.asp?Nid=429137

தேவைக்埁ம் அேிகமான இன்ஜினியர்கவை உ쏁ைாக்埁ைோல் தைவைைாய்ப்ꯁ பிரச்வனயாக உள்ை鏁: அண்ணா பல்கவை. 鏁வண தைந்ேர் 毂ரப்பா தபச்毁

சென்வன: தேவைக்埁ம் அேிகமான இன்ஜினியர்கவை உ쏁ைாக்埁ைோல் தைவைைாய்ப்ꯁ சப쏁ம் பிரச்வனயாக உள்ை鏁 என்쟁 அண்ணா பல்கவைக்கழக 鏁வண தைந்ேர் 毂ரப்பா தபெினார்.சென்வன ஐஐ羿யில் பான் ஐஐ羿 லீடர்ஷிப் ெீ쏀 இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் மாணைர்க쿁க்கான அறிைியல், சோழில்ꏁட்ப ேிறன் தபாட்羿கள் தேற்쟁 சோடங்கிய鏁. இேன்鏁ைக்க ைிழா ேிகழ்ச்ெியில் அண்ணா பல்கவைக்கழக 鏁வண தைந்ேர் 毂ரப்பா ெிறப்ꯁ ைி쏁ந்ேினராக கைந்鏁சகாண்டார். ேிகழ்ச்ெியில் அைர் தபெியோை鏁: இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿கள் சோடங்க ேனியா쏁க்埁 அங்கீகாரம் ைழங்கப்பட்翁ள்ை鏁. 埁றிப்பாக, மாேிை பல்கவைக்கழகங்கைின்கீழ் ேனியார் இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿கள் செயல்பட அꟁமேிக்கப்பட்翁ள்ை鏁.இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்ைி செயல்믁வறயில் பல்தை쟁 பிரச்வனகள் உள்ைன. தபா鏁மான அைퟁ ஆெி쎿யர்கள் இல்வை, அவ்ைா쟁 ஆெி쎿யர்கள் இ쏁ந்ோ쯁ம் தபா鏁மான கல்ைித்ே埁ேி சபற்றி쏁ப்பேில்வ ை. உள்கட்டவமப்ꯁ ைெேிகள் இல்வை.இந்ே இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿 ேி쟁ைனங்கள் எவ்ைா쟁 ஐஐ羿 தபான்ற ெிறந்ே சோழில்ꏁட்ப கல்ைி ேி쟁ைனமாக இ쏁க்க 믁羿뿁ம். இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்ைி ேி쟁ைனங்கைின் சப쏁க்கம், இேில் 믁க்கிய பங்埁 ைகிக்கிற鏁. தேவைக்埁ம் அேிகமாகதை ோம் இன்ஜினியர்கவை உ쏁ைாக்கி ை쏁கிதறாம். இ鏁 அரெின் சகாள்வக 믁羿ퟁ ொர்ந்ே鏁. அரெின்கீழ் செயல்ப翁ம் எந்ே ேி쟁ைன믁ம் இேில் ேவையிட 믁羿யாே 毂ழல் உள்ை鏁. கண்믂羿த்ேனமாக இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿கவை ேிறக்க அꟁமேி சகா翁த்ேதே இேற்埁 காரணம். 10 ைட்ெத்鏁க்埁ம் அேிகமான இன்ஜினியர்கள் ப羿த்鏁 믁羿த்鏁ைிட்翁 சைைிதய ை쏁கிறார்கள். ேம்믁வடய சபா쏁ைாோர ைைர்ச்ெியில், சோழிற்鏁வறகைால் எல்ைா இன்ஜினிய쎿க쿁க்埁ம் தைவைைாய்ப்ꯁ ைழங்க 믁羿யைில்வை. இந்ே இன்ஜினியர்கவை ேம் சபா쏁ைாோரத்வே தமம்ப翁த்鏁ம் ைவகயில் ேயார்ப்ப翁த்鏁ம் ேிவையில் ோம் இல்வை.

அர毁ம், இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿க்埁 அꟁமேி ைழங்埁ம் அவமப்ꯁக쿁க்埁 இ鏁சோடர்பாக எச்ெ쎿க்கைில்வை. 2003ம் ஆண்翁 அல்ை鏁 அேற்埁பின் 뿁.ஆர்.ராவ் கமிட்羿 அரவெ எச்ெ쎿த்ே鏁. 埁வறந்ேபட்ெம் 5 ஆண்翁க쿁க்காை鏁 இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿க쿁க்埁 இவணퟁ ைழங்埁ைவே ேி쟁த்ே அறிퟁ쟁த்ேிய鏁. அத்鏁டன் ஒ쏁 ைட்ெம் இந்ேியர்கைில் 15 தபர் இன்ஜினியர்கள் என்쟁ம் எச்ெ쎿த்ே鏁. ேமக்埁 எவ்ைைퟁ இன்ஜினியர்கள் தேவை என்쟁 ேமக்埁 சே쎿யா鏁. சோழில்鏁வறயின் பல்தை쟁 பி쎿ퟁகைில் எவ்ைைퟁ தபர் தைவைக்埁 தேவை என்பவே கண்டறிய ெர்தை ஏ鏁ம் ேடத்ேப்படைில்வை. அதேதபால், ஒவ்சைா쏁 இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் 鏁வறயி쯁ம் எவ்ைைퟁ தைவைைாய்ப்ꯁ உ쏁ைாகிற鏁 என்쟁ம் சே쎿யா鏁.ஆனால் அவேத்சோடர்ந்鏁 2014ம் ஆண்翁 ைவர இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿கள் எண்ணிக்வக뿁ம், அங்埁 ப羿த்鏁ைிட்翁 சைைிதய ை쏁ம் மாணைர்கைின் எண்ணிக்வக뿁ம் தைகமாக அேிக쎿த்ே鏁. ஆனால் கடந்ே 4 ஆண்翁கைில், ஏற்கனதை ப羿த்ேைர்க쿁க்埁 தைவைைாய்ப்ꯁ இல்ைாேோல் இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿கைில் தபா鏁மான மாணைர்கள் தெரைில்வை. பை இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿கள் 믂டப்பட்翁ள்ைன. இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் ப羿த்ே ேம் மாணைர்க쿁க்埁 தைவைைாய்ப்ꯁ சப쏁ம் பிரச்வனயாக உள்ை鏁.

இந்ே இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿கைில் ப羿த்鏁ைிட்翁 ை쏁ம் மாணைர்க쿁க்埁, தபா鏁மான பணித்ேிறன் இ쏁க்埁மா என்ப鏁 தகள்ைிக்埁றிதய. இந்ே இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்쯂쎿கைில் ப羿த்ே மாணைர்கள் தை쟁 கல்쯂쎿யில் எம்.இ அல்ை鏁 எம்.சடக் ப羿த்鏁 ைிட்翁 ஆெி쎿யர்கைாக ை쏁கிறார்கள். அைர்கள் இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் பாடத்ேிட்டவே சொல்ைித்ே쏁ைேற்埁 தபா鏁மான ே埁ேி뿁வடயைர்கைாகퟁம் இ쏁ப்பேில்வை.அதே தபால், பாடத்ேிட்டத்ேவே தமம்ப翁த்ே தைண்翁ம் என்쟁 அரெியல்ைாேிகள், அேிகா쎿கள், கல்ைியாைர்கள் பை 鏁வறவய தெர்ந்ேைர்க쿁ம் தப毁கிறார்கள். அைர்கள் சொல்ை鏁தபால் ஒவ்சைா쏁 ஆண்翁ம் பாடத்ேிட்டத்வே மாற்ற 믁羿யா鏁. அ羿ப்பவட இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்ைிக்கான பாடங்கவை எப்தபா鏁ம் மாற்ற 믁羿யா鏁.இப்ப羿ப்பட்ட 毂ழைில் இ쏁ந்鏁 மாற்றி சோழில்鏁வறக்埁 தேவையான ே埁ேிகள் உள்ை மாணைர்கவை உ쏁ைாக்埁ம் ைவகயில் ேம் இன்ஜினிய쎿ங் கல்ைிவய கட்டவமக்க தைண்翁ம். இவ்ைா쟁 毂ரப்பா தபெினார்.

Date: 20th August 2018 Publication: Financial Chronicle Edition: Delhi / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Chennai Page No: 10 Journalist: NA Headline: Intel trained 99K people in AI since April 2017

Date: 20th August 2018 Publication: India Today Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi Headline: Decision on JEE (Advanced) reform to be announced tomorrow at IIT Council meeting URL: https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/news/story/decision-on-jee-advanced-reform-to-be- announced-tomorrow-at-iit-council-meeting-1318853-2018-08-20

Decision on JEE (Advanced) reform to be announced tomorrow at IIT Council meeting

Decision on JEE (Advanced) reform to come out tomorrow at IIT Council meeting Representative Image With inadequate number of students qualifying the engineering entrance exam, the government has recently proposed to set up a committee who will suggest changes to the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Advanced.

IIT-Madras director to head the JEE (Advanced) panel: As per the latest information, the government has planned to set up a five-member committee. It is said that the committee will be headed by the IIT-Madras director Bhaskar Ramamurthy.

(Read: IIT JEE Advanced 2018: While 800 seats are reserved for female candidates, only 14 girls made in the top 500)

Other proposed members in the committee: Abhay Karandikar, director of IIT-Kanpur Vineet Joshi, director general of National Testing Agency Professor Kannan Moudgalya of IIT-Bombay Decision on JEE (Advanced) at IIT Council meet: The meet will be organised by the Ministry of HRD on August 21.

According to an Indian Express report of June 23, the matter of JEE Advanced and its difficulty level is expected to be discussed.

About IIT Council: The IIT Council is the governing body responsible for all of the Indian Institutes of Technology.

The IIT Council comprises the minister-in-charge of technical education in the Union Government (as Chairman), three Members of Parliament, chairmen of all IITs, directors of all IITs, Chairman of the University Grants Commission, Director General of CSIR, the Chairman of IISc, Director of IISc, Joint Council Secretary of Ministry of Human Resource and Development and three appointees each of the Union Government, AICTE (All India Council for Technical Education).

31,980 candidates qualify for JEE Advanced extended merit list: This year, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur announced an extended merit list for JEE Advanced 2018 following the directions of HRD Ministry to issue a supplementary merit list for the exam After the extended merit list was released, about 31,980 candidates qualified in JEE Advanced 2018 Over 1, 60,000 students appeared for the JEE Advanced exam this year. Read: IIT JEE Advanced Result 2018 out: Pranav Goyal from Roorkee zone secures AIR 1

About JEE Advanced Exam 2018: Joint Entrance Examination Advanced (JEE-Advanced), formerly the Indian Institutes of Technology-Joint Entrance Examination (IIT-JEE), is an annual engineering college entrance examination in India.

It is conducted by one of the seven zonal IITs (IIT Roorkee, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Delhi, IIT Kanpur, IIT Bombay, IIT Madras, and IIT Guwahati) under the guidance of the Joint Admission Board.

Read: IIT JEE Advanced Result 2018 out: Pranav Goyal from Roorkee zone secure AIR 1

Read: This Delhiite with AIR 6 is the topper in girls' category in IIT JEE Advanced Result 2018

Date: 21st August 2018 Publication: The Indian express Edition: Delhi / Mumbai/Kolkata Page No: 10 Journalist: NA Headline: JEE (Advanced): IITs reject govt proposal to set up panel for changes to exam URL: https://indianexpress.com/article/education/jee-advanced-iits-reject-govt-proposal-to-set-up- panel-for-changes-to-exam-5316537/

Date: 21st August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: Car seat sensors may soon wake up drowsy drivers URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/car-seat-sensors-may-soon-wake-up-drowsy- drivers/articleshow/65480421.cms

Date: 20th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 3 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Arun Menon Headline: Heritage city choultry to be museum URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/choultry-at-central-to-be- museum/articleshow/65479669.cms

Date: 20th August 2018 Publication: The Logical Indian Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Tamil Nadu: Govt Order Plans To Prohibit Students From Using Cellphones In College Premises URL: https://thelogicalindian.com/news/cell-phone-ban/

Tamil Nadu: Govt Order Plans To Prohibit Students From Using Cellphones In College Premises

The Logical Indian Crew Tamil Nadu

Cell Phone Ban

As per a circular issued by the Directorate of Collegiate Education (DCE), cell phones will soon be banned across all arts, science and other colleges in Tamil Nadu that come under DCE’s purview. The circular, which was reportedly issued earlier this month prohibits college-goers from using their mobile phones within the college premises.

Cell phone ban in Tamil Nadu colleges

According to The Hindu, the circular was issued by R. Sarumathi, the director of DCE which has been sent to all Regional Joint Directors of Collegiate Education (RJD). It states that the ban applies to all government, government-aided and self-financing institutions. The circular also states that decision was taken as per the advice of the Higher Education Secretary (in charge).

An official quoted by the daily said, “In co-education colleges, we have received complaints that boys were taking videos and pictures of girl students. Mobile phones are also occasionally used for malpractices during examinations.” However, IIT Madras is exempted from this new imposition of restricting the use of mobile phones. The official said that unlike students in other colleges, the IIT Madras students know how to use mobile phones in a reasonable manner.

In 2005, a similar ban was introduced by Anna University in its campus, however, after facing opposition from students, the varsity decided to relax the rules by restricting the usage of mobile phones in classrooms only. A senior official said that since restricting the use of mobile phones in classrooms will be difficult, they expect the students to not carry cell phones at all.

A debate over the cell phone

However, this ban has started a debate over the need for a move like this, considering the fact that mobile phones have become an integral part of our lives. A student of Journalism quoted by NDTV said, “Most of our work is done via phones. We have to use the internet for almost everything. In such a case, a ban on the use of mobile phones in college does not seem right at all.” Similarly, some professors said that students who are in colleges are adults and they should be taught to use technology in a responsible manner. M Andrew Sesuraj, an assistant professor at Loyola College, told NDTV, “I personally allow my students to use Google during my class. I train them to use camera mobiles to document short films. I help them to go live with the department programmes and lectures through Facebook. Instead of teaching the students to responsibly use the modern gadgets, this order will create hurdles for creativity.”

Parents also raised their concerns over the ban as mobiles phones are an effective way of communication between guardians and the students who often travel long distances for going to their colleges. S Arumainathan of Tamil Nadu Students’ Parents Welfare Association told the Times Of India, “With cell phones, students can inform their parents of their whereabouts or any delays. Parents will now have to wait anxiously till their wards get home. The government can regulate their usage in classrooms, labs and other areas in such a way that there is no disturbance.”

While the circular has not mentioned a deadline for the imposition of the ban across Tamil Nadu colleges, DCE officials have said that colleges will have to comply as soon as they receive the communication from the Regional Joint Directors. Date: 21st August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Kolkata / Chennai Page No: 2 Journalist: N Ramakrishnan Alumni: Dhinesh Kanagaraj Headline: Making material change to fabrication tech URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/specials/emerging-entrepreneurs/making-material- change-to-fabrication-tech/article24738528.ece

Date: 21st August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: ‘RISC-V seeing open ISA momentum’ URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-telangana/risc-v-seeing-open-isa- momentum/article24741250.ece

Date: 21st August 2018 Publication: The Telegraph Edition: Online Journalist: Lalmohan Patnaik Headline: Experts inspect temple URL: https://www.telegraphindia.com/states/odisha/experts-inspect-temple-253441 Experts inspect temple LALMOHAN PATNAIK Aug 21, 2018 00:00 IST

The Jagannath temple in Puri. Telegraph pciture Cuttack: Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) informed the Orissa High Court on Monday that "a team of experts" had started inspecting the interior of the natmandap (dancing hall) of the Jagannath temple in Puri.

On July 30, the court had directed the ASI to submit a progress report on the conservation work of natmandap.

In his affidavit, ASI (Bhubaneswar circle) superintending archaeologist Arun Malik said the team of experts had started the inspection on Monday and would continue for three consecutive days. The ASI's core committee had advised "a three-day continuous unhindered technical and scientific inspection of the natmandap interior".

Accordingly, the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration had made the natmandap available for thorough examination for three days - August 20 to 22.

"A team of experts from the ASI core committee, IIT Madras and IIT Kharagpur are inspecting the natmandap interiors to finalise the course of conservation measures," Malik said in his affidavit.

"Taking note of the affidavit, the division bench of Chief Justice K.S. Jhaveri and Justice B.R. Sarangi posted the matter to September 10 for further monitoring of progress of repair work of natmandap," central government counsel Chandrakanta Pradhan said.

The bench directed the ASI to submit a progress report by way of an affidavit when the case is taken up next on September 10.

The court has been monitoring the repair work of natmandap after amicus curiae N.K. Mohanty submitted a report pointing out that condition of roof above the Garuda Stamba inside it needed urgent attention.

Date: 20th August 2018 Publication: Aglasem Edition: Online Journalist: Mamona Majumder Professor: Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi Headline: Government Suggests A Panel To Reform JEE Advanced Exam URL: https://news.aglasem.com/panel-for-jee-advanced/ GOVERNMENT SUGGESTS A PANEL TO REFORM JEE ADVANCED EXAM This panel will aim at resolving the issue of the record drops in the number of qualifying candidates in JEE Advanced.

By Mamona Majumder - August 20, 2018

On one hand, there are proposals on scrapping JEE Advanced, on the other hand, now the Government is suggesting a Panel which would discuss and resolve issues on why the number of students qualifying for JEE Advanced is dipping year after year. This will be 5 member panel which will be headed by IIT Madras Director, Bhaskar Ramamurthy. The other suggested members of this panel are Abhay Karandikar, director of IIT-Kanpur, Vineet Joshi, director general of National Testing Agency, and Professor Kannan Moudgalya of IIT-Bombay.

This proposal of creation of the panel will be discussed at the IIT Council meeting on August 21, 2018. IIT Council is the highest decision-making body of all the IITs.

The issue because of which this panel is suggested by the Government is that there is a very less number of candidates who are qualifying JEE Advanced. Actually, this number is dropping year after year. This year in the JEE Advanced only 18,138 candidates were there. This is the smallest pool of qualified candidates since 2012.

As per a news report, since 2013, when IIT JEE was renamed JEE Advanced, the number of candidates who qualified had always been at least twice the number of seats on offer. But this year it was only 1.6 times the total seats.

As a result, as per the last minute order by the MHRD, IIT Kanpur the organising IIT of JEE Advanced 2018, added another 8,954 general candidates, 3,824 OBC candidates, 771 SCs and 293 from ST category to the merit list, taking the total up to 31,980 candidates – a list of candidates which was twice the number of seats in each discipline and category, strictly as per merit.

This was never done before. Thus, to avoid such an embarrassing situation in the future, the Government wants to construct this 5 member Panel. The aim of this Panel will be to develop a robust and scientifically designed entrance exam system to test the potential of the candidates as well as to reduce their dependence on coaching institutes.

This proposal of creating a panel is connected with another proposal that has suggested by few of the IITs to let the qualifying candidates select the IIT of their choice and not the engineering branch. According to the suggestion, the student should be allocated an engineering branch only in the second year, based on the aptitude exhibited in the first year.

Now other proposals of scrapping JEE Advanced, making JEE Main the only exam for IIT admissions and doing away with the B.Tech courses at the IITs are also to be discussed at the IIT Council meeting. However, the Governments proposal to form a Panel to reform JEE Advanced examination blurs the former proposals. Thus, on August 21, after the IIT council meeting, the fate of the JEE Advanced examination will be finalised.

Date: 20th August 2018 Publication: Telangana Today (clip attached) Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 13 Journalist: NA Headline: Open architecture to boost India's electronics sector URL: https://telanganatoday.com/risc-v-to-help-indias-electronics-sector

Date: 21st August 2018 Publication: Silicon India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Alumni Body (PALS) Launches 2018-19 Programs to Make Engineering College Students Industry Ready URL: https://jobs.siliconindia.com/career-news/IIT-Alumni-Body-PALS-Launches-201819-Programs-to- Make-Engineering-College-Students-Industry-Ready-nid-205277.html

IIT Alumni Body (PALS) Launches 2018-19 Programs to Make Engineering College Students Industry Ready

Pan IIT Alumni Leadership Series (PALS), a unique professional body comprising of alumni from various Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) launched its 2018-19 annual activities with the aim to make engineering college students ‘Industry Ready’. PALS, in support wth IIT Alumni Industry Interaction Centre (IITAIIC) and IIT Madras Alumni Charitable Trust (IITMACT), offers a year-long program with various activities for students, faculty and management of Engineering Institutions across Tamil Nadu.

Prof. M. K. Surappa, Vice Chancellor, Anna University, says, “The number of engineering colleges has increased exponentially in recent years. However, some of these affiliated institutions have difficulty in imparting engineering education at the same level as some of the top institutions. In the last four years, many engineering colleges have had trouble attracting students and have closed down. Perhaps, a body like PALS can prevent this from happening by focusing on elevating the quality of education.”

The main objective of PALS is to enhance the quality of engineering education and make graduates from these institutions ‘industry ready’. In order to fulfill this, PALS has tapped into the vast pool of expertise available. Till 2017-18, PALS has helped more than 15,000 students and 5,000 faculties across member colleges in Chennai, Trichy, Madurai, Coimbatore and Salem achieve a holistic technical knowledge. Its student centric programs like campus lectures, internships, workshops and industry projects and faculty centric programs like research park visits, development programs, workshops and industry visits help gain an overall expertise. Furthermore, the management is facilitated with inaugural events, valedictions, educational excellence summit and many more.

Mohan Narayanan, Chairperson, PALS, says, “We now strongly believe an intelligent concoction of a supportive anchor institute, dedicated alumni network and industry can re-create this model anywhere else in our geographical educational ecosystem. PALS on its part will be more than happy to work with such dedicated groups and mentor them to create similar impactful models.”

Established in 2011, PALS’s vision is to provide a unique experience in the sphere of engineering education to all its partner institutes, nurturing a holistic evolution of their teaching fraternity and student community. It organizes several events that enhance job opportunities for the students by increasing their awareness of the job market and practical skills. These opportunities will help the students and faculty with the rich experience shared by the IIT alumni. Hence, inputs from the faculty coordinators of the Partner Institutes and enthusiasm of the student participants help them get the proper guidance.

Date: 21st August 2018 Publication: Odisha Tv Edition: Online Journalist: Bikram Keshari Jena Headline: ASI Team Inspects Water Leakage In Puri Srimandir’s Jagamohan URL: https://odishatv.in/odisha/asi-team-inspects-water-leakage-in-puri-srimandirs-jagamohan-316787

ASI Team Inspects Water Leakage In Puri Srimandir’s Jagamohan

Edited By Bikram Keshari Jena | Published By Pradeep Singh Last updated Aug 20, 2018 - 22:10:22 Share

Puri: Following complaints of leakage in the roof of Jagamohan, the hall facing the sanctum sanctorum of Puri Jagannath Temple (Srimandir), a team of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) on Monday visited the temple for inspection.

While the inspection will continue for three days till August 23, professors from IIT Chennai and IIT Kharaghpur are all set to visit the Puri temple on Tuesday to assist in the inspection process.

Dharma Prasad Mishra, member of the ASI core committee, said, “During the three-day inspection, the entire structure of Srimandir, especially Nata Mandap, Jagamohan and Bhoga Mandap will be inspected and the leakages will be fixed.”

Experts from IIT Kharaghpur and IIT Chennai will visit the temple and carry out inspection and submit a report following which the repair work will begin. During the entire process, the Srimandir administration will extend all support to them, said advocate Ashok Mohapatra.

An affidavit related to Jagamohan repair has been submitted in the Orissa High Court with details of inspection of Mausima and Gundicha temples. Besides, an affidavit related to the renovation work of six temples on the outer premises of the Srimandir has also been submitted.

Meanwhile, the HC has directed the ASI to submit a status report on the repair work. The next hearing on the matter will be held on September 10.

Date: 21st August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT alumni to organise skill training URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/iit-alumni-to-organise-skill- training/article24741909.ece

IIT alumni to organise skill training

Will include workshops and conclaves The Pan IIT Alumni Leadership Series (PALS) has come forward to provide its expertise and training to engineering students.

This year’s PALS programme will include residential workshop for students of engineering colleges. The year-long events include campus lectures, visit to IIT-M’s research park, industry visits and projects, internships and competitions such as innoWAH! and RuTAG workshop.

Date: 21st August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Kolkata Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT council rejects reform call in JEE (Adv) URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/iits-to-continue-btech-programmes- no-changes-in-jee-advanced/articleshow/65482468.cms

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Good response to quiz programme URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/good-response-to-quiz- programme/article24748892.ece

Good response to quiz programme SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT SALEM, AUGUST 22, 2018 00:00 IST UPDATED: AUGUST 22, 2018 03:55 IST SHARE ARTICLE PRINT A A A

The Salem regional edition of the Spark junior quiz for school students, the flagship event of IIT Madras- Shaastra 2019, held in the city on Sunday evoked overwhelming response.

As many 123 students from classes VIII to XII participated in the quiz competition held at Jairam Public School.

After the completion of the quiz competition, the students participated in the discussion on the answers of the question posed at the quiz.

S. Sumathi and C. Punitha, teachers of Jairam Public School, gave away medals and certificates to the top three teams.

The first place was bagged by Harshinie Priyaa and S. Aishwarya S (class X) of Emerald Valley Public School.

A. R. Sakthive and V. Vikraman (class XII) of Shevaroys Valley School finished runner up, while the third place went to D. John Paul and S. Santhosh (XII) of Jairam Higher Secondary School.

Top 25 teams

The top five teams from this round are qualified for the national screening round and the top 25 teams from the screening round will participate in the finals.

Tarakram Ramgopal, a second year student of IIT Madras, conducted the quiz.

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: Your Story Edition: Online Journalist: Vishal Krishna Headline: IIT-M incubated startup Cygni Energy raises $6.4 M URL: https://yourstory.com/2018/08/iit-m-incubated-startup-cygni-energy-raises-6-4-m/

IIT-M incubated startup Cygni Energy raises $6.4 M

Vishal Krishna posted on 21st August 2018 Cygni provides a wide range of solar solutions and plans to utilise the capital for business evolution and capacity enhancement.

Hyderabad-based Cygni Energy Private Limited, an innovative Solar-DC solutions startup has announced a fundraise of $6.4 million through a combination of equity and debt funding.

The equity funding is led by Endiya Partners, a leading early-stage venture capital firm that invests in product startups and the debt by IndusInd Bank, a leading private bank in India.

The funds will help the startup in expanding capacity, strengthening R&D capabilities, and increasing market reach.

Venkat Rajaraman, CEO, Cygni Energy Cygni manufactures efficient solar controllers and had raised its first seed round in 2014. It was also the first company to be recognised under the Startup India programme. The company has since boosted its leadership team and roped in Paramjit Singh as Chief Operating Officer, who had earlier served as Circle Chief Technology Officer with Airtel.

The startup has also received a grant from the Millennium Alliance (FICCI in partnership with USAID, TDB, and World Bank) for developing Solar-DC microgrid systems. The company posted annual revenues of $ 7.8 million for the financial year 2018 and is looking at a growth of 300-400 percent in the next fiscal.

The startup ensures there is no AC to DC conversion. Its IOT-enabled solar micro grid reduces energy consumption and increases the value of your air-conditioner, lights and other power consuming appliances. India today has a solar installed capacity of 23GW and will take the capacity to 200GW in five years. India has an installed capacity of 300GW of which only 15 percent is through renewable energy sources. So the opportunity is very large for Cygni.

Venkat Rajaraman, CEO, Cygni Energy says, “This round of funding will help us strengthen our product offering and enhance customer experience. It will enable us to achieve our mission of building great products that will facilitate rural development and electrification in our country and other parts of the world.”

Cygni’s mission is to “Power a Billion Dreams” by venturing into new solar solutions based on technology and innovation. The company focuses on creating more efficient power and brighter future by providing green solar energy and DC power at a reasonable cost advantage.

Currently, Cygni has deployed its products in more than 20,000 homes changing the lives of over 100,000 people across India. It provides various Solar DC and micro-grid solutions which are energy efficient and reliable offering for today’s power needs.

Sateesh Andra of Endiya Partners says, “The company’s rapid growth demonstrates a strong demand for easy, affordable access to renewable energy in our country.”

Academia has a role to play in the success of Cigni. Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Professor at IITM says, “IITM has worked closely with Cygni to develop Inverterless technology. This product was built ground up with high efficiency and affordability in mind. We are confident that this product will play a pivotal role in eliminating poverty and provide an efficient solution for developing economies.”

An incubatee of the Rural Technology Business Incubator (RTBI) at IIT Madras. Venkat Rajaraman, a Stanford graduate, developed the idea of Cygni Energy. While it provides various Direct Current (DC) solutions to its clients, the startup has a wide range of experience in managing grid connected, rooftop and decentralised PV systems. A key product of Cygni is its inverter-less solar power backup which promises 40 per cent savings in energy through intelligent use of solar, battery and energy-efficient DC equipment.

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: Vccirlcle Edition: Online Journalist: Keshav Sunkara Professor: Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala Headline: Endiya Partners makes Series A investment in solar power solutions firm Cygni URL: https://www.vccircle.com/endiya-indusind-bank-pump-6-4-mn-in-solar-power-solutions-firm- cygni-energy

Endiya Partners makes Series A investment in solar power solutions firm Cygni By Keshav Sunkara 21 August, 2018 Endiya Partners makes Series A investment in solar power solutions firm Cygni

Cygni Energy has raised Rs 45 crore ($6.4 million) from early-stage venture capital firm Endiya Partners and private-sector lender IndusInd Bank, a top executive of the solar direct-current (DC) solutions company told VCCircle.

The fresh capital, a mix of equity and debt, will be used to expand capacity, strengthen research and development, and increase market reach.

The Hyderabad-based company raised Rs 30 crore ($4.3 million) as debt from IndusInd Bank and Rs 15 crore ($2.1 million) as Series A money from Endiya, Cygni founder and CEO Venkat Rajaraman told VCCircle.

“IIT-Madras has worked closely with Cygni to develop its inverter-less technology,” said Ashok Jhunjhunwala, professor at IIT-Madras. Cygni was incubated at IIT Madras Incubation Cell and IIT Madras’ Rural Technology Business Incubator.

Incorporated in 2014, the company is primarily engaged in providing solar direct-current (DC) and micro- grid solutions. In DC, the electric charge or current flows only in one direction. In alternating current (AC), electric charge changes direction periodically. The firm specialises in inverter-less technology and rooftop solar solutions.

The company’s total income increased more than five times to Rs 28.4 crore for the year ended March 2017, according to VCCEdge, the data intelligence platform of News Corp VCCircle.

Rajaraman said the company’s total income stood at Rs 55 crore for the year through March 2018.

The company had raised Rs 10 crore from Atyant Capital MD Rahul Saraogi as pre-Series A investment in 2016, Rajaraman added.

Endiya Partners

Early-stage venture capital firm Endiya Partners had made the final close of its debut fund at Rs 175 crore (around $26 million) in January last year.

The venture capital fund invests in technology, healthcare and consumer services.

Earlier this month, Endiya made a follow-on investment in Hansel Software Pvt. Ltd, which operates a mobile app management platform.

In July, Endiya invested in Steradian Semiconductors Pvt. Ltd, a deep-tech startup that is developing sensors for autonomous vehicles.

In June, Endiya made a follow-on investment in medical startup SigTuple Technologies.

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: Manash Pratim Gohain | Professor: Prof Bhaskar Ramamurthi Headline: IITs to continue BTech programmes; no changes in JEE (Advanced) URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/iits-to-continue-btech-programmes- no-changes-in-jee-advanced/articleshow/65482468.cms

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala Headline: Cygni Energy raises $6.4 million URL: https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/cygni-energy-raises-64- million/article24747448.ece

Cygni Energy raises $6.4 million

The start-up is into solar-DC solutions

Cygni Energy, a Hyderabad-based start-up working in the solar energy solutions space, has raised $6.4 million through a combination of equity and debt.

Early stage venture capital firm Endiya Partners led the equity funding, while the debt is from IndusInd Bank, the company said on Tuesday. The equity component is $2.1 million and the remaining $ 4.3 million debt. For Cygni, which manufactures solar controllers and provides microgrid solutions, the funds would help expand capacity, strengthen research and development (R&D) capabilities and increase market reach.

CEO Venkat Rajaraman said the latest round of funding would help the company strengthen product offering and enhance customer experience. One of the first to be recognised under the Startup India programme, the solar-DC solutions firm had raised an initial funding in 2014. It had received a grant from Millennium Alliance (FICCI in partnership with USAID, TDB, and World Bank) for developing solar- DC microgrid systems.

It had revenues of $7.8 million in 2017-18 and eyeing a 300% to 400% growth next fiscal. The company and IIT-Madras had worked closely to develop inverterless technology. “This product was built ground up with high efficiency and affordability in mind,” IIT-M professor Ashok Jhunjhunwala said.

Boosting leadership

The release said the company is also boosting its leadership team. It has roped in Paramjit Singh as Chief Operating Officer, who earlier was Circle Chief Technology Officer with Airtel.

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: Metrorail News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Arun Menon Headline: Chennai Metro | CMRL plans a Metro rail museum at Choultry at Central URL: https://www.metrorailnews.in/chennai-metro-cmrl-plans-a-metro-rail-museum-at-choultry-at- central/

Chennai Metro | CMRL plans a Metro rail museum at Choultry at Central

Chennai: The Chennai Metro Rail Ltd (CMRL) in a bid to preserve heritage will soon convert structure opposite Chennai Central Railway Station into a metro rail museum. So those walking inside the 230- year-old Sir Ramasamy Mudaliar choultry, they will walk straight into history. They will get to see how the heritage blends with modern cities.

This will happen the doors are open of the 230-year-old Sir Ramasamy Mudaliar Choultry.

The hi-tech museum is part of the Rs 400 crore Central Square project on Poonamallee High Road. Visitors will get a 360-degree tour of the cutting-edge technology that has been employed in making the city’s modern transit system.

Metro official shares that an agency will take care of preliminary work. This includes inviting tenders for the museum after Central Metro becomes completely running by near the beginning of 2019.

The building will be restored to the original shape before setting up a museum. But all this work will only begin once construction of Central Metro work is finished.

The lower deck at Central Metro linking Washermenpet with the airport and the entrance structures to the metro station are still being constructed. The station will get fully operational alongside with the Anna Salai line, which is expected to be completed by end of this year or in the first half of 2019.

CMRL will have an interesting display at the museum like the built tunnels, metro train models and models of tunnel boring machines and major components of machine cutter heads that penetrate through the soil. Visitors will get a glimpse of construction that took place over the years.

The Metro officials want to give an overall picture of what goes into building a metro rail network. They want to highlight the challenges, hardships, and processes involved in bringing the metro line into a city.

Arun Menon, assistant professor, civil engineering department from IIT Madras sharing his views said that worldwide, it is an acknowledged standard in heritage conservation for adaptive reuse of old structures. Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: Business World Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: There Is A Need For Identifying Capability Voids: Ajay Kumar URL: http://www.businessworld.in/article/There-Is-A-Need-For-Identifying-Capability-Voids-Ajay- Kumar/21-08-2018-158253/

There Is A Need For Identifying Capability Voids: Ajay Kumar

Manish Kumar Jha caught up with Ajay Kumar, Secretary, Department of Defence Production, MoD to an overview on the new initiatives at DDP

PM Modi recently announced the establishment of two defence corridors and set an ambitious defence export target of Rs 35,000 crore by 2025. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is gearing up to address the challenges and fine tune the policies that provide impetus to defence production in India. Manish Kumar Jha caught up with Ajay Kumar, Secretary, Department of Defence Production, MoD to an overview on the new initiatives at DDP.

Excerpts:

The Draft Defence Production (DDP) Policy 2018 envisions India as one of the world’s top 5 defence producers by 2025. It also sets a defence export target of Rs 35,000 crore ($5 billion) by 2025. How realistic is the vision?

The value of production from OFB (Ordnance Factories Board) and DPSUs (Defence Public Sector Undertakings) put together is currently approximately Rs 55,000 crore ($8 billion). Nearly 65 per cent of the parts/components/subsystems have been delicensed and as a rough estimate, approximately $3 billion worth of defence items are being manufactured in the private sector. Thus, presently defence prouction would stand at around $11 billion.

This policy envisages adding another $14 billion worth of production in seven years, which translates to CAGR of 15 per cent approximately. With the opening up of the sector and the thrust being given to the private sector, DDP believes that these numbers are attainable.

The DDP policy is expected to spur private investments in defence sector. Elaborate measures have also been proposed for export promotion. The targets are kept on the higher side as moderate ‘incrementalism’ will not have the desired effect.

The announcement of two Defence Industrial Corridors presupposes a robust ecosystem of defence manufacturing by Indian and foreign OEMs. Can you apprise us of the development? How much does the government plan to invest?

Subsequent to the announcement of setting up of two Defence Production Corridors, the government has decided to set up these corridors in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. For the Tamil Nadu corridor, five nodal points – Hosur, Salem, Trichy, Coimbatore and Chennai – were identified. For the UP corridor, six nodal points – Agra, Aligarh, Chitrakoot, Lucknow, Kanpur and Jhansi – have been identified.

Soon after the announcement of these corridors industry interaction with all the stakeholders were held in both the States.

The government is in the process of appointing consultants for preparing detailed project report (DPR) on the corridors. The DPR would recommend the steps — policy initiatives, financial investment, infrastructure upgradation that would be required in each of the nodal points to facilitate the defence industry not only to meet the demands of the Indian armed forces but also to integrate themselves into the global supply chain of defence related items. These steps would also attract a sizeable number of foreign OEMs to set up their production units in these locations. The recommendations would be considered and acted upon by the government. Once these are finalised the quantum of investment required would be known.

In your statement, you have heavily emphasised the ‘structural changes’ in the defence procurement process and that is going to speed up the processes. Could you elaborate on these specific elements?

The Simplified Make-II process of Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) 2016 has been introduced and is being further streamlined to make it easier for industry to enter in defence production sector. More than 26 projects have been approved in principle and may proposal have been submitted suo moto by the industry.

Despite commendable performances by some, defence public sector units are still looked upon as laggards for their slow pace of delivery and turnaround time. How are you driving away the perceived malaise?

Our endeavour is to build on the existing strengths of the public sector but the thrust is towards moving defence production for bigger investments to come from the private sector.

The Draft Defence Production Policy envisages infusion of new technology/machineries in OFB/DPSUs to enable them take up advanced manufacturing/development of futuristic weapons and equipment. In any industry, investment in continuous modernisation is utmost essential otherwise the investment already made in the industry will go waste because of technological obsolescence.

We are also encouraging OFB/DPSUs to increase productivity and timely execution of orders. Greater use of IT-based systems including systems for supply chain management customer relationship management, data analytics, etc., is also being encouraged.

Disinvestment of minority stake in DPSUs is being pursued to introduce, competition and market discipline thereby releasing large amount of public resources both tangible as well as intangible. DPSUs/OFB are also encouraged to explore partnerships so as to avoid duplication of production facilities and idling of existing facilities. In DefExpo 2018, PM Modi announced the launch of Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) which envisioned defence innovation hubs throughout the country. How many centres/hub are being planned?

We have introduced iDEX, which aims at creation of an ecosystem to foster innovation and technology development in defence and aerospace by engaging industries including MSMEs, start-ups, individual innovators, R&D institutes and academia and provide them grants/funding and other support to carry out R&D development if they have good potential for future adoption for Indian defence and aerospace needs.

We are looking at collaborating with five incubators (IIT Bombay SINE, IIM-A, CIIE, T-Hub/Hydera- bad, Forge/Coimbatore, IIT Chennai) and setting up two defence innovation hubs (Codissia-Coimbatore and IIT Kanpur) and enter into partnership to run programmes such as acce- lerators, long-duration incubation, piloting and prototype investments.

Through iDEX, is the MoD also planning to spur collaborations with universities/research institutes across India to support innovation and research in the defence sector? Also, what are the missing links in our innovation index as far as many critical technologies are concerned in the area of defence production?

There is a need for identifying capability voids and defining critical technologies required for indigenous research/manufacturing in consultation with industry and academia. They will provide advice regarding technology platforms/equipment/systems, which should be developed in the country in the medium and long term. Wherever required, the government will provide support for development of such platforms/equipment/systems.

R&D capability mapping would have to be done to identify defence related technologies. This mapping should cover DRDO labs, other public sector laboratories, academic institutions and industry.

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: NDTV Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Tamil Nadu Bans Mobile Phones In Colleges, Students Say "Regressive" Move URL: https://www.ndtv.com/tamil-nadu-news/tamil-nadu-bans-mobile-phones-in-colleges-students- say-regressive-move-1902867 Tamil Nadu Bans Mobile Phones In Colleges, Students Say "Regressive" Move READ IN Some students agree that the use of mobile phones can be restricted during classes, but a complete ban does not make sense, said others Tamil Nadu | Written by J Sam Daniel Stalin | Updated: August 19, 2018 20:59 IST by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Watching him suffer is the worst feeling, please save him. (Ketto) Sobha's Finest Apartments Near Velachery, Chennai. Starts @1.2 Cr (sobha.com)

SHARE EMAIL PRINT 30 COMMENTS Tamil Nadu Bans Mobile Phones In Colleges, Students Say 'Regressive' Move The directive will not apply to centre-run institutions such as IIT Madras.

CHENNAI: College students will no longer be allowed to carry cellphones as their use has been banned on campuses across Tamil Nadu. A circular issued by the Directorate of Collegiate Education, accessed by NDTV, directs all regional joint directors to inform all government, aided and self-financing colleges about the order. However, the directive will not apply to centre-run institutions such as IIT Madras. A principal of a private college in Chennai, who did not wish to be named, blamed it on the misuse of camera phones. She said, "Students film women faculty members in embarrassing positions and share videos on social media."

She added, "In co-educational institutions, women students are filmed in the company of their male friends, the videos are later misused."

Another principal said that over the last few years, they have banned use of mobile phones on campus. "But considering the need to have connectivity, we have allowed use of phones in the cafeteria and outside the campus. They can keep their phones in their bag during other times."

The students call it a regressive move. D Elizabeth, a literature student, said, "We boast of digital India, but see what we are doing."

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Shalini Daga, a journalism student, suggests a measured approach. She agrees that the use of mobile phones can be restricted during classes, but a complete ban does not make sense.

"Most of our work is done via phones. We have to use internet for almost everything. In such a case, a ban on the use of mobile phones in college does not seem right at all," Ms Daga said.

Ananya Shankar, another student, said, "Most students are already adults when they enter college and the use of mobile phones cannot be dictated by authorities. The choice should be left to the students. One of the reasons cited was safety of girls but even with the ban in many colleges, girls face problems."

30 COMMENTS Prof M Andrew Sesuraj, assistant professor, Department of Social Work, Loyola College called the order an intrusion into powers of colleges. He added, "I personally allow my students to use Google during my class. I train them to use camera mobiles to document short films. I help them to go live with the department programmes and lectures through Facebook. Instead of teaching the students to responsibly use the modern gadgets, this order will create hurdles for creativity."

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: Hindustan Times Edition: Mumbai Page No: 9 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT alumni offer industry course for techies

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 15 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala Headline: Cygni Energy raises $6.4 mn to fuel growth URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/cygni-energy-raises-usd-6-4-million- to-drive-growth-expansion/articleshow/65488893.cms

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: Telangana Today Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 11 Journalist: NA Headline: Cygni plans new unit URL: https://telanganatoday.com/cygni-energy-raises-rs-crore-expansion

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Alumni body launches programs for engg students URL: https://www.dtnext.in/News/City/2018/08/22001957/1085289/IIT-Alumni-body-launches- programs-for-engineering-.vpf

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: Trinity Mirror Edition: Chennai Page No: 9 Journalist: NA Headline: DST announces winners of Innovation Growth Programme

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: Hindustan Times Edition: Delhi / Faridabad / Gurgaon / Noida Page No: 15 Journalist: Anirban Sen Headline: Flipkart acquires speech recognition firm Liv.ai eyes more tech buyouts

Date: 23rd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Shaastra 2019 at Hubballi URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/shaastra-2019-at- hubballi/article24756455.ece

Shaastra 2019 at Hubballi

Shaastra 2019, a quiz event for school students by IIT Madras, will be held here on Saturday. According to a release, the three-tier event will be conducted across the country and the prelims will be held at 20 cities across the country. The winners of the prelims will get a chance to compete with others at IIT Madras.

The Hubballi prelims of the quiz event will be held at Lions English Medium School, Vijay Nagar here on Saturday on the topics of Science, Mathematics, Technology, General Knowledge and Logic.

Students of classes 8 to 12 are eligible to participate in teams of two.

Those interested can register at spark.shaastra.tech and there is no registration fee. There will be an option of on-spot registration (limited, subject to availability) between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. and the contest will begin at 2 p.m.

Date: 23rd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Music Club, IIT MADRAS URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/23-08-18-city- cinema/article24756186.ece

MUSIC DANCE DRAMA ABBAS/BK/ROSHINI

August Attagasam! 24th, 25th & 26th @ YGP Hall, PSBB School, T.Nagar - 3 in 1 Jumbo Combo offer! Enjoy 3 best plays at 1 ticket price! Friday, 24th - Crazy Mohan and Madhu Balaji in CPL(Rib tickling comedy). Saturday, 25th - Y.Gee. in 3G (Hilarious political satire).Sunday, 26th - Kutti & team in RAMAYANAM (Homely Mythology). Bkg : 9710 633633. Bookmyshow.com.

BRAHMA GANA SABHA & SRI PARTHASARATHY SWAMI SABHA

Today 6.45 p.m. at TAG Mylapore Fine Arts Club, Musiri subramanyam road Mylapore, NALLI AADI NAATAKA VIZHA 2018. Augusto Creations Presents NAAGAMMAL PAADA SALAI by Augusto. Tomorrow 6.45 p.m. DHARMASPATHIRI by Muthukumar. All Are Welcome. Sponsored by NALLI CHINNASAMI CHETTY.

Lakshmi Kuppuswami Trust & Chandilyan Memorial Trust Anniversary Celebration

TRS Day Today 6.15 p.m. "Melodic & Rhythmic Expressions in Carnatic & Hindustani Music" A Lec Dem by Dr. SRIRAM PARASURAM. Ragasudha Hall.

Music Club, IIT MADRAS

Nadhaswaram recital by Mylai Karthikeyan and party, today, 6:30 P.M, CLT, IIT M Campus.

Sri Sumukhi Rajasekharan Foundation, 9382698811

"The Mylapore Trio" & Sugathan (Kalakshetra Alumni & Cultural Ambassadors of Mylapore) and Members conduct 151st Month "Kala Poshakam". Today Carnatic Music Concerts - Violin 5.30 p.m. & Vocal 6.45 p.m. Narada Gana Sabha (Mini Hall). All are Welcome preferably in Traditional Attire. www.srimylaporetrio. blogspot.in

THEJAS BALA NATYOTSAV

Today Bharatanatyam Recitals, 5.45 p.m: J.Atulya Disciple of Sasirekha Rammohan, INAUGURATION at 6.25 p.m. by Y.G. MADHUVANTHI, Theatre Actor Dancer, 6.45 pm: S.Advaitha Disciple of Vijaya Mukundan & Mukundan, 7.30 p.m. P.V. Saptharishi Disciple of Sheela Unnikrishnan, 8.20 p.m. Neha Asuri Disciple of Akila Subramanyam. Venue: Tag PS Dakshinamurthi Auditorium 215, RK Mutt Road, Mylapore. ALL ARE WELCOME.

MISCELLANEOUS

Tattvaloka Auditorium,

76, Eldams Road, Chennai-18.

Tel: 24328124 / 25 /26

Talk by Dr. Chithra Madhavan on Historical Temples around Chennai, August 23, 2018, 6.00 p.m.. All are Welcome.

Date: 23rd August 2018 Publication: The New Indian express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Experts to draw blueprint for repair of Natamandap URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/odisha/2018/aug/23/experts-to-draw-blueprint-for- repair-of-natamandap-1861605.html

Experts to draw blueprint for repair of Natamandap

AN expert team found cracks in a beam holding Natamandap roof in Jagannath temple on Wednesday.

PURI: AN expert team found cracks in a beam holding Natamandap roof in Jagannath temple on Wednesday. They suggested immediate repair of the beam after providing temporary support to the Natmandap roof.

The team comprising experts of IIT-Kharagpur, IIT-Madras, Structural Engineering College of Roorkee and members of temple repair monitoring committee conducted a joint inspection of Natamandap, Jagamohan and Bhogamandap. They informed that there was no imminent structural threat to the 12th century temple.

The experts, who are planning to make the entire temple leak proof, have decided to keep the temple under observation for a period of three months. After this period, a blue print of the repair works would be drawn and sent to the Director-General of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

Earlier on Monday, an eight-member experts committee began inspecting structural damage in the temple. Following allegations of water seepage from Jagamohan, Natamandap and Bhogamandap, the team members, led by Anandpran Gupta, examined the structures.

ASI experts examined strength of the stones used in the joints and found cracks. They further noticed that forged iron beams used to hold alignment of two structures have weakened.Apart from Gupta, engineers NC Pal, Bindheswar Patra, DP Mishra and AK Mullik - superintending engineer of ASI Bhubaneswar circle - were part of the team. Date: 23rd August 2018 Publication: Patrika Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: ए啍िीडᴂ絍ि को रोकने के सिए आईआईटी मद्राि URL: https://www.patrika.com/car-news/iit-madras-invented-amazing-seat-sensor-to-control-accidents- 3294015/

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: Air & Cosmos Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: HAL demonstrates rotary wing UAV URL: http://www.aircosmosinternational.com/hal-demonstrates-rotary-wing-uav-114171

HAL demonstrates rotary wing UAV Hindustan Aeronautics reports the successful demonstration flight of a 10kg rotary wing UAV developed in cooperation with academia.

Hindustan Aeronautics reports the successful demonstration flight of a 10kg rotary wing unmanned aerial vehicle (RUAV) in Bangalore.

The RUAV — being developed for defence and paramilitary forces and homeland security applications — features a two-stroke petrol engine, twin-blade main rotor and tail rotor, payload capability of 2.5kg and a live-stream video camera. Range is 8-10km with an endurance of one hour.

The flight lasted for about ten minutes during which the Attitude Control Attitude Hold (ACAH) mode, Position Control, Position Hold mode (autonomous hover), low speed flight in forward, backward and sideward directions, were demonstrated.

The video feed from onboard the helicopter was streamed live and shown on the dedicated video receiver. The status of the helicopter, its parameters and its real-time position on the map were also shown.

To achieve self-reliance in the aviation field and to enhance its R&D efforts, HAL is working closely with academia and has established chairs at Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) (Madras, Roorkee, Kharagpur, Bombay, Kanpur) and the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore.

The RUAV is being developed in association with IIT Kanpur and is the first outcome of HAL’s tie-ups with academia.

HAL says the RUAV demonstrates the capability of its Rotary Wing R&D Centre (RWR&DC) to undertake development of larger UAVs capable of carrying weapons payloads.

According to HAL, the programme has led to successful development of control laws, a Fly By Wire system for helicopters and other associated technologies like autonomous navigation system, ground control system etc.

Date: 22nd August 2018 Publication: UNI Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Experts found major cracks in 12th century Jagannath temple URL: http://www.uniindia.com/~/experts-found-major-cracks-in-12th-century-jagannath- temple/States/news/1327884.html

Date: 23rd August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Hyderabad Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: Cygni Energy raises $6.4 m URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-telangana/cygni-energy-raises-64- m/article24756467.ece

Date: 23rd August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 1 Headline: NASA to launch micro satellite built by TN students on Friday URL: https://www.dtnext.in/News/TamilNadu/2018/08/23004812/1085437/NASA-to-launch-micro- satellite-built-by-TN-students-.vpf

Date: 23rd August 2018 Publication: Political and Business Daily Edition: Kolkata Page No: 6 Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Amlan Sengupta Headline: ASI team concludes Nata Mandap roof inspection in Puri temple

Date: 24th August 2018 Publication: Jagran Josh Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Venkatesh Balasubramanian Headline: कार चिाते व啍त अगर आती है नींद तो िीट िᴂिर करेगा आपको अिटट, जाननये(If you sleep while driving the car, then seat sensor will alert you, know) URL: https://www.jagran.com/automobile/latest-news-iit-madras-scientists-makes-car-seat-sensor-to- alarm-drowsy-drivers-18343276.html

कार चिाते व啍त अगर आती है नींद तो ये िᴂिर करेगा आपको ऐिे अिटट, जाननये

का चिाते व啍त अग आती है िींि तो ये सᴂस क ेगा आपको ऐसे अिटा, जानिये

अग का चिाते समय ड्राइव को िींि की झपकी आये या वह सु त होिे िगे तो ऐसी आशंका प अिामा अपिे आप बजिे िगेगा। यह एक त ह से वेक अप कॉि अिामा की त ह काम क ेगा।

िई टि쥍िी (ऑटो डेक)। अ啍स का चिाते समय ड्राइव को िींि आ जाती है जजसकी वजह से कई बड़े हािसᴂ हो

जाते हℂ। िेफकि अब इस त ह प्रॉ녍िम का हि लमि गया है औ इस प काब ू फकया जा सकता है। आपको बता िᴂ फक IIT मद्रास के कु छ वैज्ञानिकⴂ िे एक ऐसा का सीट सᴂस बिाया है जो ड्राइव की ह ऐज啍टववटीज प िज खेगा। मसिि अग का चिाते समय ड्राइव को िींि की झपकी आये या वह सु त होिे िगे तो ऐसी आशंका प अिामा अपिे आप बजिे िगेगा। यह एक त ह से वेक अप कॉि अिामा की त ह काम क ेगा।

अिामा क ता है ऐसे काम: यह का सीट सᴂस ड्राइव के टिि मᴂ चििे वािी electromotive ऐज啍टववटीज प पैिी िज खेगा इसे कैपेलसटटव इिे啍रोकाडडायोग्रािी भी कहते हℂ। इि सᴂससा मᴂ इिे啍रोड िहीं हⴂगे औ इिको जकि मᴂ िगाए खिे की भी ज셂 त िहीं पड़ेगी। ऐसे मᴂ सᴂससा को का सीट के अन्ि िगाया जाएगा। इस बा े मᴂ IIT मद्रास के

इंजीनियर ंग डडजाइि डडपाटामᴂट के प्रोिेस वᴂकटेश बािासब्रु म赍यि के अिसु ा इंसाि टिमाग की ह गनतववधर् के बा े मᴂ जाििे के लिए ECG सबसे आसाि त ीका है। आपको बता िᴂ फक इंसाि की जागिे की गनतववधर् उसके िींि िेिे की गनतववधर् से अिग होती है।

ये 3 िई का ᴂ इस महीिे हⴂगी िॉन्च, जानिये खबू बया ं यह भी पढᴂ

आंकड़ो के मतु ाबबक: होम डडपाटामᴂट के आंकड़ⴂ की मािे तो इस साि जिव ी से जूि के बीच 33,026 ोड ए啍सीडᴂट

ा煍य मᴂ हुए। जजिमᴂ से 6,510 िोगⴂ की जाि गई है जबफक 3,044 िोग घायि हुए हℂ।

आपको बता िᴂ फक मलसाडीज अपिी कासा मᴂ भी इस त ह का िीच िेखिे को लमिता है, का चिाते समय अग

ड्राइव सु तािे िगे औ उसे िींि आिे िगे तो टेयर ंग की मिि

Date: 24th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Online Journalist: S ronendra Singh Headline: Steering Committee sets action plans for 5G roadmap in India URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/info-tech/steering-committee-sets-action-plans-for-5g- roadmap-in-india/article24760115.ece Steering Committee sets action plans for 5G roadmap in India Government may announce its policy by December 31, the committee suggested. - Reuters To promote trials, BIF sets up 5G committee

Submits its report ‘Making India 5G Ready’ to Telecom Secretary NEW DELHI, AUG 23

The Steering Committee constituted for identifying the 5G deployment roadmap for India has on Thursday submitted its 5G high level forum report titled 'Making India 5G Ready' to Telecom Secretary, Aruna Sundararajan.

The key recommendations and action plan for the report include spectrum policy; regulatory policy; education and awareness promotion; application and use case labs; participation in international standards; development of application layer standards; and major 5G trials.

The committee has suggested that government may announce its policy by December 31 and issue necessary notifications. It has also asked for setting up a Standing Committee with five-year term to advice on building Spectrum Technology Infrastructure.

For education and awareness promotion, it has suggested for appointing a full time Senior Programme Coordinators (SPC) with TDSI. It has suggested for appointment of a full time SPC within IIT-Madras to implement recommendations of Task Force.

Action plan

The steering committee was constituted last year to articulate the vision for 5G in India and to recommend policy initiatives and action plans to realise this vision. It has prioritised three action plans for 5G in India -- Deployment, Technology and Manufacturing.

Under Deployment, it has talked about rolling out early, efficient and pervasive 5G networks to maximise the value offered bybthus new technology. In technology, it has suggested for building India's industrial and R&D capacity in the design and IP dimensions of 5G. Under manufacturing, it suggested for expanding the manufacturing base in 5G for both semiconductor fabrication as well as assembly and test plants.

The High Level Forum focussed on Deployment as the initial thrust area and a Steering Committee was constituted with Professor AJ Paulraj as Chair. Seven task forces were set up to study -- spectrum policy, regulatory policy, education and awareness promotion programme, application and use case labs, development of application layer standards, major trials and ; demonstration and participation in international standards.

Asked about how soon 5G can be rolled out in India, Paulraj said, “In India, my guess will be 2020. Actions will take place by end of this year and commercial launch may happen first in the US by end of this year or latest by Q1 next year.”

Date: 24th August 2018 Publication: Manila tImes Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Bridging innovation gap URL: https://www.manilatimes.net/bridging-innovation-gap/433931/

Bridging innovation gap 0

In my previous treatise, I discoursed the lackluster state of innovation in the country based on the 2018 Global Innovation Index (GII) which ranked the Philippines 73rd out of 126 economies, which was steady from a year ago.

The key weaknesses were likewise highlighted in human capital and research index as determined by expenditure on education, pupil-teacher ratio, global research and development companies’ expenditure, and ease of doing business – positioning the Philippines as ‘below average’ in regional innovation ranking.

The European countries dominate the top 10 innovative countries list, with Switzerland placing first. The only Asian country Singapore placing fifth, and the United States moving two notches down to sixth.

We somehow already know why they are in this place. These countries scored high in their innovation performance based both on each country’s innovation inputs (such as regulatory environment, higher education, R&D and infrastructure) and its innovation outputs (such as online creativity and knowledge creation).

How can our country inch closer to the top?

At the root of it all is the state of our educational system which needs massive change. Reforms in policy, pedagogy, infrastructure and educational technology are all critical and urgent especially in the public-school system. These involve increasing teachers’ pay, eliminating, if not reducing corruption in the Department of Education, transforming the pedagogy from rote memorization to reflective learning, building the much-needed classrooms, and extending internet connectivity to schools in the boondocks and provinces.

This is a mouthful but in the long-run, a progressive educational system will fuel sustainable growth.

From a regulatory standpoint, its laudable that our government recently signed into law the much- awaited Ease of Doing Business Act. While it’s being implemented in Quezon City, its nationwide rollout remains unclear, specially there’s still no technology blueprint in place to enable automation of government processes. It’s urgent that the right technology platform that’s future-proof, flexible, and well-integrated is implemented to enable starups and new foreign entrants to start business in the country.

Another laudable move by the Department of Science and Technology through the Technology Application and Promotion Institute (DOST-TAPI) is to help inventors and scientists from various organizations nationwide in their business planning for commercialization activities.

On industry level, there’s a need for local and even multinational companies to invest in research and development (R&D) and collaborate well with universities to produce an economy where innovation is high on the agenda. A couple of universities have just ventured into “innovation hubs” to bring together corporations and startups. But this should be operationalized and institutionalized to make it sustainable.

One country we can emulate is India, which has consistently been climbing up its Global Innovation Index (GII) rankings since 2015; and last year climbed three spots to 57th.

As an example, in Chennai, India you will be awe-struck to see the sprawling 1.2 million sq ft, Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M), Research Park, which houses almost 100 entities – research companies, innovation arms of large corporates, start-ups and incubators – and has already facilitated filing of over 60 patents.

It created a sustainable bridge between innovations created in the classroom and industry and produced a culture and ecosystem of technology research and industry-academia interaction.

On the organization level, companies need to understand and embrace innovation – not just lip service but a true culture of innovation. The problem with the topic of innovation is that it’s a hazy subject that business owners think it’s all about coming up with new products or services.

In our country where 99 percent of companies are small and medium enterprises, and most of them still run by first generation founders, the resistance to innovate is just deeply ingrained.

In my survey among executives and employees of various companies, there’s a culture of conservatism and status-quo that pervades in local organizations that stunts innovative thinking. It’s here where second-generation owners should come in and assert their world view about the impeding 4th Industrial Revolution.

Innovation is a discipline and a culture. It starts with a change in our mindsets and facilitating its spread and growth in our organizations.

The opinions expressed here are the views of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of FINEX. The author may be emailed at [email protected]. The author is President & CEO of Hungry Workhorse Consultancy Inc, a digital and culture transformation firm. He is the Chairman of the ICT Committee of the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX). He teaches strategic management in the MBA Program of De La Salle University.

Date: 24th August 2018 Publication: Sentinelassam Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Cracks found in Jagannath temple mandap URL: https://www.sentinelassam.com/news/cracks-found-in-jagannath-temple-mandap/ Cracks found in Jagannath temple mandap

Bhubaneswar, Aug 22: An inspection team of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) on Wednesday found cracks in the column capital of Jagannath temple’s Nata Mandap in Puri. The team, which also includes officials of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Chennai and IIT Kharagpur, found the cracks during an inspection of the 12th century shrine.

“One of the four central beams has cracks. We don’t see any imminent danger but at the same time it cannot be left unattended. We have decided to monitor the performance of that beam,” said A.P. Gupta, a member of the team. The roofing and central beam performances will be monitored by IIT- Chennai and IIT-Kharagpur, he added. Besides, water seepage from the ceiling was also detected in the Nata Mandap. (IANS)

Date: 24th August 2018 Publication: Ani News Edition: Online Journalist: NA Professor: Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala Headline: Cygni Energy raises USD 6.4 Mn to power growth, expansion URL: https://www.aninews.in/news/energy/power/cygni-energy-raises-usd-64-mn-to-power-growth- expansion201808231308350003/

Cygni Energy raises USD 6.4 Mn to power growth, expansion

New Delhi [India], Aug 23 (ANI): Cygni Energy, an innovative Solar-DC solutions startup, has announced raising funds worth USD 6.4 million through a combination of equity and debt. The equity funding, which is led by Endiya Partners, a leading early stage venture capital firm that invests in product startups and the debt by IndusInd Bank, a leading Private Bank in India, will enable Cygni in expanding capacity, strengthening R&D capabilities and increasing market reach. The company focuses on creating more efficient power and brighter future by providing green solar energy and DC power at a reasonable cost advantage. Cygni has deployed its products in more than 20,000 homes changing the lives of over 100,000 people across India. It provides various Solar DC and microgrid solutions which are energy efficient and reliable offering for today's power needs. "We are excited to welcome Endiya Partners as a new Investor and mentor. Their investment not only validates our belief in the technology but also gives us the push to accelerate and achieve our dreams," said CEO Cygni Energy, Venkat Rajaraman. "We see Cygni take a unique position to revolutionize the way energy is stored and consumed by using technology to provide affordable clean energy to consumers. The company's rapid growth demonstrates the strong demand for easy, affordable access to renewable energy in our country," said Sateesh Andra of Endiya Partners. Adding to this Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Professor at IITM added that the product offered will play a pivotal role in eliminating energy poverty and provide an efficient solution for developing economies.

Date: 25th August 2018 Publication: Statelines Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT Madras offers internship to SMVDU scholar URL: http://news.statetimes.in/iit-madras-offers-internship-to-smvdu-scholar/

IIT Madras offers internship to SMVDU scholar

KATRA: Ayushi, a research scholar of School of Languages and Literature at Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University has been offered an internship from IIT, Madras. Notably, Ayushi has been working with Dr. Amitabh V. Dwivedi, and has performed outstanding while earning a gold medal in an NPTEL course, titled ‘Language and Mind’ offered by Prof. Rajesh Kumar, IIT (Madras) during Jan-Apr 2018. The IIT internship will be between two and eight weeks, depending upon the performance of the research student. After the successful completion of the internship programme, the candidate will be awarded with a stipend and certificate. Further, the research candidate has been working on field linguistics, and planning to conduct research on the Punchi language, spoken in Jammu and Kashmir. Dr. Sanjeev Jain, Vice-Chancellor, SMVDU, congratulated the candidate, and wished her a success in her future endeavours.

Date: 25th August 2018 Publication: Umid Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: GATE 2019: Important Dates From Application Form to Result URL: http://www.ummid.com/news/2018/August/24.08.2018/gate-2019-important-dates-from- application-form-to-result.html

GATE 2019: Important Dates From Application Form to Result

Chennai: The online registration for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) 2019 to be organised by Indian Instititue of Technology (IIT) Madras will begin on Septmebr 01, 2018 whereas GATE 2019 will be held from Februray 02 to February 10, 2019, according to GATE 2019 Schedule.

Candidate should note that last date to apply for GATE 2019 is September 21, 2019.

GATE 2019 Registration Go to the official website: gate.iitm.ac.in Click on "GATE 2019 Online Registration". Follow the instruction to complete registration. Pay the fees and take a printout. About GATE 2019 The Graduate Aptitude Test Engineering 2019 (GATE 2019) is a National Level Entrance Test of Engineering conducted every year by the IIScs and IITs, Bangalore on a rotation basis. Through this entrance test, the qualified candidates are able to take admission into Masters and direct doctoral programmes in various relevant branches of science.

Also, many Publis Sector Units (PSUs) directly recruit the candidates on the basis of their GATE scores.

The GATE 2019 this year will be managed by IIT Madras as the examination authority. Candidates can fill their application form by visiting the official website. The complete dates of GATES 2019 are announced by the IIT Madras.

GATE 2019 Important Dates GATE 2019 Schedule

The registration of GATE 2019 will start from 1st September 2018. Candidates can fill their application form online through the official portal. Last date to submit the application form is September 21, 2018. As per the reports, the authority this year will also provide an opportunity to submit the application form after the due date. Last date to register for the test with the late fee is 1st October 2018.

GATE 2019 FEES The application fee to be submitted with the application is: For General candidates - Rs. 1500/- For PWD/ ST/SC and female candidates - Rs. 750/-

GATE 2019 Admit Card Download After the successful registration and application fee submission, all registered candidates will be issued Admit Cards bu IIT Madras. The Admit Card will be issued to the candidates on January 04, 2019. Candidates have to enter their enrollment ID and password to download their GATE 2019 Admit Card.

GATE 2019 Exam Pattern The entrance test of GATE 2019 will be held in two sessions in various exam centers on 2nd, 3rd, 9th and 10th February 2019. This year, one more new paper of Statistics is added by the council authority. The entrance exam will be held for total 24 papers and candidates are allowed to appear in only one paper in any of the session.

Date: 25th August 2018 Publication: Odisha TV Edition: Online Journalist: Priya Abraham and Saswat Singh Headline: Coastline Erosion along Puri Sea Beach Raises Concern URL: https://odishatv.in/odisha/coastline-erosion-along-puri-sea-beach-raises-concern-317529

Coastline Erosion Along Puri Sea Beach Raises Concern Edited By Priya Abraham | Published By Saswat Singhdeo Last updated Aug 24, 2018 - 16:02:06 Share

Puri: The eroded shoreline near Swargadwar in Puri swallowed by tidal waves has left the district administration and locals worried. This has affected the livelihood of many shopkeepers who line up on the beach with their make-shift outlets.

Though erosion is a natural occurrence near shores, a 200-feet erosion spotted recently near the Chaitanya square to Swargadwar coastline, has raised concern. Following the erosion, the district administration has ‘red flagged’ many spots restricting the entry of tourists. Vendors on the beach have also been directed to shift out from the place.

A similar erosion had taken place near Swargadwar in August 2016 following which a team of experts from IIT Madras had come for inspection of the shoreline.

The experts had attributed the erosion to formation of current in the Sea due to non-release of water into rivers.

Date: 25th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: Rajasekhran Headline: Central institute to find soloution to dispose hazardous mixed salt in dyeing cluster URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/coimbatore/central-institute-finds-solution-to-dispose-of- hazardous-mixed-salt-in-dyeing-cluster/articleshow/65536467.cms

Date: 25th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Page No:8 Journalist: Dennis S. Jesudasan Headline: Disaster management authority expanded URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/disaster-management-body- expanded/article24776002.ece

Date: 26th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Boon or bane? URL: https://www.thehindu.com/education/boon-or-bane/article24779379.ece

Boon or bane?

The recent ban on mobile phones by the Tamil Nadu government on all colleges under its purview has evoked reactions.

Boon or bane? Ankitha Krishnamoorthy, I, BTech, Computer Science, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Coimbatore I never thought I would say this, but studying in a private university has finally paid off because we are not the victims of the cell phone ban.This wasn’t the best decision made by the government of Tamil Nadu because smart phones have become an integral part of a student’s life. How are students to share notes, access university portals online, get informed about where and when their next class is in case of any switch, know where their faculty are, check if the administrative blocks are functioning and even simply find their way around the campus? Cell phones are definitely a lifeline to the outside world and banning them is almost foolish! Students will have a hard time commuting due to lack of communication with their drivers and no information in case of road blocks.

Boon or bane? S. Shashank, V, B.A.LLB (Hons.), Tamil Nadu National Law School, Tiruchi While it is definitely at the discretion of the teacher to allow or disallow mobiles in classrooms, a blanket ban on its use is definitely retrograde. The reasons for imposing the ban, such as inappropriate filming of women students and malpractice in exams, must be addressed through other punitive measures and not by banning of phones. The benefits of mobiles far outweigh any harms associated with its usage. What is also dubious about the ban is the exemption of central institutions in Tamil Nadu such as IIT Madras due to the ‘knowledge of students there to use phones reasonably’. Is this based on a presumption that students from other institutions do not know how to use phones reasonably? The policy lacks sound reasoning and one can expect considerable backlash from both students and teachers. Boon or bane? Kavinesh Mohanasundaram, II, Mechanical Engineering, VSB Engineering College, Karur The advertising brochure of my college proudly talks about the Wi-Fi enabled campus. However, a prohibition of smart phones inside it seems quite contradictory. One of the principle points raised against mobile phones is that the device would be misleading, diverting and a disturbance in class. Smart phones aren’t that bad. Sharing through a less time consuming means would beat the conventional time taken and definitely help students.

Boon or bane? Richa Sara Vinod, II, BA Corporate Economics, Women’s Christian College, Chennai Every coin has two sides, and mobile phones too are a boon and a bane. It depends on how we make use of it. While there are tremendous advantages, there are just as many drawbacks. When mobile phones have a constitutive role in today’s world, it is irrational to ask students not to use them. Reasonable restrictions are understandable, for reasons such as causing disturbances inside classrooms or to other students. If college students are seen as adults, then it is only fair that we are treated as such and are trusted that we know how to use mobile phones reasonably. At the same time, we as students also need to be more responsible when it comes to how we use our mobile phones. After all it is ‘you’ and ‘I’ who decide what the pros and cons of it are.

Date: 26th August 2018 Publication: The Week Edition: Online Journalist: NA Student: Sarvesh Agarwal Headline: Minister asks AICTE to explore internship opportunities in agriculture allied fields URL: https://www.theweek.in/wire-updates/national/2018/08/25/des6-dl-aicte-internship.html

Minister asks AICTE to explore internship opportunities in agriculture allied fields PTI August 25, 2018

New Delhi, Aug 25 (PTI) Laying emphasis on the need to create more job opportunities and enhance employability of the youth, junior HRD Minister Satyapal Singh today suggested the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to explore internship opportunities in varied fields including agriculture.

Recent initiatives of the AICTE will help students of technical institutes learn new skills in coming years, he said at an event at the council headquarters here.

"The country needs development in other fields besides industry. Internships in agriculture and other such fields could help train a large number of youths in the country. Efforts should be made to start internships in these fields besides technical and professional subjects," he said.

The Minister of State for Human Resource Development (HRD) lamented that overemphasis on getting degrees and diplomas has lowered the standard of education in the country.

"With all efforts focussed on getting degrees and diplomas, the entire education system geared up to meet this need. This system has lowered standard of education," he said.

The minister presented awards to technical institutes with best record of internship in 2018 at the event.

The top three institutes with the best internship records were Manipal Institute of Technology, Maharaja Agrasen Institute Of Technology, and Chandigarh University.

The event was organised to acknowledge the institutes for their efforts in helping students secure internships during the April-July period this year.

Over 8,000 students from more than 1,500 colleges and institutes affiliated to the AICTE landed internships through 'Internshala' in the summer of 2018.

The AICTE has signed agreements with platforms such as Internshala to provide internship opportunities to students of colleges and institutes affiliated to it, said AICTE chairman Anil Sahasrabudhe.

Internshala founded by IIT-Madras graduate Sarvesh Agarwal is an internship and training platform used by a large number of students and organisations in the country. Date: 26th August 2018 Publication: Indian Express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Student: Sarvesh Agarwal Headline: AICTE should explore internship opportunities in varied fields of agriculture: Junior HRD Minister URL: https://indianexpress.com/article/education/aicte-should-explore-internship-opportunities-in- varied-fields-of-agriculture-junior-hrd-minister-5324347/

AICTE should explore internship opportunities in varied fields of agriculture: Junior HRD Minister

Recent initiatives of the AICTE will help students of technical institutes learn new skills in coming years, the minister said at an event.

AICTE has signed agreements with platforms such as Internshala to provide internship opportunities to students.

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Laying emphasis on the need to create more job opportunities and enhance employability of the youth, junior HRD Minister Satyapal Singh today suggested the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to explore internship opportunities in varied fields including agriculture.

Recent initiatives of the AICTE will help students of technical institutes learn new skills in coming years, he said at an event at the council headquarters here.

“The country needs development in other fields besides industry. Internships in agriculture and other such fields could help train a large number of youths in the country. Efforts should be made to start internships in these fields besides technical and professional subjects,” he said.

The Minister of State for Human Resource Development (HRD) lamented that overemphasis on getting degrees and diplomas has lowered the standard of education in the country.

“With all efforts focussed on getting degrees and diplomas, the entire education system geared up to meet this need. This system has lowered standard of education,” he said. The minister presented awards to technical institutes with best record of internship in 2018 at the event. The top three institutes with the best internship records were Manipal Institute of Technology, Maharaja Agrasen Institute Of Technology, and Chandigarh University.

The event was organised to acknowledge the institutes for their efforts in helping students secure internships during the April-July period this year. Over 8,000 students from more than 1,500 colleges and institutes affiliated to the AICTE landed internships through ‘Internshala’ in the summer of 2018.

The AICTE has signed agreements with platforms such as Internshala to provide internship opportunities to students of colleges and institutes affiliated to it, said AICTE chairman Anil Sahasrabudhe.

Internshala founded by IIT-Madras graduate Sarvesh Agarwal is an internship and training platform used by a large number of students and organisations in the country. Date: 26th August 2018 Publication: Mena Fn Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: India's top auditing agency says no dam break analysis was carried out for any of the 61 dams in Kerala URL: https://menafn.com/1097343885/Indias-top-auditing-agency-says-no-dam-break-analysis-was- carried-out-for-any-of-the-61-dams-in-Kerala India's top auditing agency says no dam break analysis was carried out for any of the 61 dams in Kerala

Date

8/26/2018 1:27:07 AM

Tweet on Twitter (MENAFN - NewsIn.Asia) By Himanshu Upadhyaya/www.downtoearth.com

Bengaluru, August 25: More than 350 people have already died in Kerala—the state that is battling one of the worst floods in the recent history. Experts have suggested that this latest deluge is not entirely of nature's making, putting the blame on faulty dam management. The state threw open dozens of dams when water reached danger levels, flooding the nearby regions at a much faster rate than expected. Questions have been raised as to why did the authorities wait till the last moment and then open all the gates at one go.

While the state now turns its focus on rescue operations and rehabilitation drives as the water level recedes, it is imperative to check if the mistakes that landed the state in such distress were few or several and recent or repetitive.

Here are a set of questions, the answers to which will tell us how prepared was Kerala, in fact, the entire country, when it comes to dam safety or floods. This analysis is based on audit reports prepared by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).

How much did we allocate and spend on dam safety?

Last year's CAG audit said that 'a central sector scheme, namely 'Dam Safety Studies and Planning', was introduced during XIth Plan with a total provision of Rs 10 crore, which was subsequently revised to Rs 6 crore'. Against this allocation, the CAG audit tells us that 'expenditure of Rs 4.22 crore was incurred during the XIth Plan'.

Subsequently, this scheme was subsumed in another scheme titled Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP), which was a state scheme with a central component being implemented in the Central Water Commission (CWC).

DRIP envisaged rehabilitation of 223 existing dams and institutional strengthening on the front of dam safety in four states, namely Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Tamil Nadu. The Dame Safety Rehabilitation Directorate within Dam Safety Organisation of CWC was tasked with the overall responsibility for the project oversight and coordination of DRIP.

How committed were state governments in preparing Emergency Action Plan?

'As per Crisis Management Plan for Dam Failures (March 2011) prepared by National Committee on Dam Safety of the Union Ministry, several state governments were asked to come out with Emergency Action Plan for each of its large dams,' said a CAG audit report.

It's also shocking that CWC had prepared the guidelines for 'Development and Implementation of EAPs for Dams' in May 2006 and had circulated it to state governments for action. So this communication dated March 2011 as per Crisis Management Plan for Dam Failures, suggests that five long years lapsed between May 2006 and March 2011, without state governments taking much action on preparing EAP.

Were EAP and Operation & Maintenance (O & M) Manuals prepared for dams in Kerala?

A table in the performance audit report shows that out of 61 dams, none had Emergency Action Plan or O & M Manuals. Kerala had also stated, in response to audit query from CAG of India, 'No dam-break analysis was conducted in respect to any of the 61 dams in the state.'

What is the extent of flood-prone area in Kerala?

The Rashtriya Barh Aayog (RBA) had estimated 8.70 lakh hectares as flood prone area out of 38.90 lakh hectares of geographical area in Kerala. The CAG report also says that Kerala was among those six states whose estimation of flood prone areas was taken up by regional committees for scientific assessment.

Why didn't the Central Water Commission establish a single flood forecasting station in Kerala?

'The CWC has not established any flood forecasting stations in 15 states and union territories. The list included: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dam and Diu, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan and Sikkim,' said the auditors.

The fact that those agencies which are responsible for disaster preparedness only indulge in the blame game again puts a question mark on if we should believe the statement of an unnamed official of CWC in this news story . How much central assistance did Kerala get under the Flood Management Programme?

During the XIth Plan period, four FMP were approved in Kerala, with an estimated cost of Rs 279.74 crore, and against this Rs 63.68 crore were released during the XIth Plan and another Rs 55.22 crore during the XIIth Plan. So, Kerala got Rs 118.90 crore as against the estimated cost of Rs 279.74 crore.

Were there deficiencies in project proposals for Flood Management Programme in Kerala?

CAG auditors note that they didn't come across any specific project proposals for FMP, KEL-1, KEL-2, KEL-3 and KEL-4. The audited entity tried to justify this on the ground that DPRs were prepared in 2009 and 2010 based on the recommendation from the study report of M S Swaminathan Research Foundation for another project approved in principle by Government of India in July 2008.

Representing the audited entity's view, the CAG report states, 'Detailed Project Reports were prepared based on hydrological survey, meteorological data collection and engineering surveys including total station surveys and scientific study reports furnished by joint team of IIT, Chennai, and Centre for Water Resources and Development Management, Kozhikode. The Water Resources Department, Kerala also stated, in a reply, dated June 2016 that 'the soil investigation for project KEL-2 was conducted by Kerala Engineering Research Institute, Peechi'.

Having taken on record the reply by audited entity, CAG audit report goes on to say, 'We, however, found that the above said study was conducted for another project for which final reports were submitted to Government of Kerala in December 2011, after the DPRs for the projects KEL-1, KEL-2, KEL- 3 and KEL-4 had already been prepared (2009/2010). Further, the study report on soil investigation was also submitted only in December 2012 after preparation of DPRs'.

And then comes a concluding statement in the audit paragraph, 'As such, the methodology for preparation of DPRs could not be verified'.

Were quality checks carried out by monitoring agencies with respect to FMP in Kerala?

The CAG audit observed that the prescribed quality checks were not conducted by monitoring agencies in 77 projects of seven states examined. This observation was applicable to all four projects in Kerala Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian express Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Plan for Happy Cities Summit; ensure speed, quality of capital construction URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/vijayawada/2018/aug/27/plan-for-happy-cities-summit- ensure--speed-quality-of-capital-construction-1863279.html

Plan for Happy Cities Summit; ensure speed, quality of capital construction In a teleconference on Sunday, the Chief Minister told the authority to seek people’s opinion during the second edition on how to make Amaravati one of the happiest cities in the world.

Published: 27th August 2018 04:45 AM | Last Updated: 27th August 2018 04:45 AM | A+A A- Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Naidu | PTI Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu. (File | PTI) By Express News Service VIJAYAWADA: After the success of the first edition of Happy Cities Summit last year, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has directed officials to prepare the plan for hosting the second edition of the annual event in Amaravati. He told the officials concerned to hold the summit either in January or February next year, and instructed them to submit the plan in the next AP Capital Region Development Authority (APCRDA) weekly review meeting.

In a teleconference on Sunday, the Chief Minister told the authority to seek people’s opinion during the second edition on how to make Amaravati one of the happiest cities in the world. “Andhra Pradesh is the only state in the country which considers happiness an index of people’s satisfaction. Besides inviting global experts for thematic panel discussions, we should take into consideration the opinion of our own people and make Amaravati a people’s capital in the real sense,” he said.

Exhorting the officials concerned to maintain speed in the capital construction works, the Chief Minister stated that quality should not be compromised. “We have to maintain credibility by doing justice to people’s aspirations. As the capital will play a major role in attracting investments, the construction works should take a proper shape by December-end,” he said.

Speaking on the occasion, principal secretary (CRDA) Ajay Jain and CRDA Commissioner Cherukuri Sreedhar informed CM Naidu that the authority was engaging the Centre for Urbanization Buildings and Environment (CUBE), a center of excellence of IIT Madras and Government of Tamil Nadu, for providing a third-party quality control services for multistoried apartments in Amaravati.

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Chennai / Delhi / Mumbai / Pune / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Kolkata / Kochi / Ahmedabad / Chandigarh Page No: 15 Journalist: NA Headline: In the sordid world of high finance URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/books/in-the-sordid-world-of-high- finance/article24785934.ec

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Delhi / Hyderabad / Kochi / Ahmedabad/ Mumbai / Pune Page No: 1 Journalist: Chandandeep Kour Headline: Are old IITs still a preferred choice URL: https://www.educationtimes.com/article/11/2018082720180825135221265ab178e87

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Delhi Page No: 3 Journalist: Shivangi Mishra Headline: Dual or integrated degree what to choose

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Mumbai / Chennai / Kolkata / Ahmedabad/Pune Page No: 13 Journalist: Shilpa Phadnis Headline: Did Infy CFO exit over fin strategy differences? URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/did-infosys-cfo-exit-over-financial- strategy-differences/articleshow/65556186.cms

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: The Economic Times Edition: Pune/Hyderabad/Kolkata Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: In Volte-Face IIT Directors Say Coaching Not Bad URL: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/education/in-volte-face-iit-directors-say- coaching-not-bad/articleshow/65556009.cms

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Chennai Page No: 1 Journalist: NA Headline: Boon or bane?

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: Hindustan Times Edition: Delhi / Mumbai Page No: 1 Journalist: NA Headline: No googling for answers URL: https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/20-years-of-google-when-information-was-not-just- a-click-away/story-aIDWzxXMQd10ShuhL62vcI.html

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: DNA Edition: Delhi Page No: 3 Journalist: NA Headline: ‘Explore work scope in agri related fields

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: Trinity Mirror Edition: Chennai Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Headline: SiFive Open-Silicon announce design contest

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: Political and Business Daily Edition: Kolkata Page No: 2 Journalist: NA Headline: Minister asks AICTE to explore internship opportunities in agriculture & allied fields

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: First Post Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT JAM 2019: Examination scheduled for 10 February, registration to begin from 1 September on jam.iitkgp.ac.in URL: https://www.firstpost.com/india/iit-jam-2019-examination-scheduled-for-10-february-registration- to-begin-from-1-september-on-jam-iitkgp-ac-in-5056411.html

IIT JAM 2019: Examination scheduled for 10 February, registration to begin from 1 September on jam.iitkgp.ac.in

India FP Staff Aug 27, 2018 19:35:30 IST

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur has scheduled the Joint Admission Test (JAM) for Master of Science (MSc) for 10 February, 2019. As per a notification released on Sunday on the official website jam.iitkgp.ac.in, the online application form for IIT JAM 2019 will be available from 1 September to 10 October, 2018.

The application fees for women across all categories is Rs 750 for one test paper, and Rs 1050 for two test papers. The application fees for the general and OBC category is Rs 1500 for one, and Rs 2100 for two test papers. The fee can differ depending on whether a candidate wishes to add or change any test paper. Applicants can find more information under the "How to Apply" tab on the official website.

Candidates can access their admit cards starting 4 January, 2019. A link for a mock examination will be released on the website on 10 January. Results for the examination will be released on 20 March, 2019.

Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Chennai / Delhi / Mumbai / Pune / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Kolkata / Kochi / Ahmedabad / Chandigarh Page No: 18 Journalist: NA Headline: ISB comes up trumps in Mumbai semi-finals URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/education/isb-comes-up-trumps-in-mumbai-semi- finals/article24794963.ece

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: Digital Learning Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: IIT JAM 2019 registration to begin from September 1, Exam on February 10, 2019 URL: http://digitallearning.eletsonline.com/2018/08/centre-of-excellence-in-bio-tech-to-be-set-up-in- tnau/

Centre of Excellence in Bio-Tech to be set up in TNAU Views: 584 Bio-Tech SHARE TWEET SHARE Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) is going to set up a Centre of Excellence in Biotechnology to promote research related to the stream in the State.

According to an official release by the university, developing Centres of Excellence is among the key areas of to make Tamil Nadu a knowledge capital, innovation hub and a preferred destination for global investors. The State Government has allocated a budget of Rs 430 crore for the centre.

It will be a joint venture between the State Government, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), TNAU, private industries and philanthropists. It will have a world-class infrastructure for research and development in biotechnology and allied areas to strengthen biotechnology research, education, skill development among others, the release said.

The proposed Centre of Excellence will act as a hub for high-quality research by interlinking TNAU and other academic and research institutes of Tamil Nadu with International collaborations.

Five such centres with all necessary infrastructure and equipment are likely to be set up in different parts of the Tamil Nadu.

Date: 27th August 2018 Publication: Deccan Herald Edition: Online Journalist: T R Sathish Kumar Headline: RS Centre of Excellence opens today URL: https://www.deccanherald.com/state/cm-inaugurate-rs-centre-689697.html

Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 5 Journalist: NA Headline: Mobile Ban A wrong call ?

Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 5 Journalist: NA Headline: Collegians Give their best shot

Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: Trinity Mirror Edition: Chennai Page No: 9 Journalist: NA Headline: Semiconductor giants announce design contest

Date: 28th August 2018 Publication: DT Next Edition: Chennai Page No: 15 Journalist: NA Headline: Plan Ahead

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: Chandandeep Kour Headline: Are old IITs still a preferred choice of students over the n .. URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/are-old-iits-still-a-preferred-choice-of- students-over-the-new-ones/articleshow/65578600.cms

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The New Indian Express Edition: Chennai Page No: 7 Journalist: NA Headline: Divers assess Kollidam regulator stability URL: http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil-nadu/2018/aug/29/divers-assess-kollidam- regulator-stability-1864309.html

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: Purnima Sah Student: Hari Ramachandran Headline: Mobile ban: A wrong call? URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/mobile-ban-a-wrong- call/articleshow/65573920.cms

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Architecture students offer low-cost housing solutions URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/thiruvananthapuram/architecture-students-offer-low- cost-housing-solutions/articleshow/65585040.cms

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Business Line Edition: Chennai / Delhi / Mumbai / Pune / Bangalore / Hyderabad / Kolkata / Kochi / Ahmedabad / Chandigarh Page No: 2 Journalist: M Ramesh Headline: Two, three....Go! URL: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/specials/clean-tech/promoting-electric-vehicles-in-india- start-with-two-wheelers-and-three-wheelers/article24803573.ece

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Autocar Professional Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Heavy Industries ministry clears funding for 130 e-buses URL: http://www.autocarpro.in/news-national/heavy-industries-ministry-clears-funding-for-130-ebuses- 40533

Heavy Industries ministry clears funding for 130 e-buses

Union minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises inaugurating the e-charging stations in Udyog Bhavan The union minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Anant G Geete today inaugurated two charging stations – fast charging (DC) and slow charging (AC) – in Udyog Bhawan, New Delhi, as part of the Swachhta Pakhwada celebrations of the Department of Heavy Industry.

Currently, eight charging stations have been installed in the premises of for facilitating charging of EVs, of the eight charging stations, two fast-charging stations have been installed by BHEL and six slow charging stations have been installed by Energy Efficiency Services (EESL).

The AC charger consists of three outlets, which can charge three cars at the same time in 6-8 hour, while the DC charger consists of a single outlet, that can charge one car at a time in a 1.5 hour.

The ministry says as a part of Swachh Bharat Mission and to continue with the government’s sustained effort to promote electric mobility in the country, the Department of Heavy Industry has allocated 455 electric buses to selected cities and special category states, through Expression of Interest (EoI). Additionally, the ministry has also approved funding of 130 electric buses to Ahmedabad, Himachal Pradesh and Navi Mumbai.

The union ministry also informed the project for 25 charging stations in Bangalore is being funded by the central government under the aegis of Public Fast Charging Infrastructure Network for electric vehicles. The government has also funded solar-based charging infrastructure for EVs by BHEL. The DC 001 fast chargers have been supplied and commissioned by BHEL and the company is also in advanced stages of offering indigenously developed end-to-end e-mobility solutions.

The proposal of setting-up 200 charging stations and putting up of Solar Based Charging Infrastructure for EVs by Rajasthan Electronics & Instruments (REIL) is also being funded by the Department of Heavy Industry. REIL has already installed three solar hybrid chargers in Jaipur. The other locations where EV charging stations have been installed are:

· 18 AC chargers installed at Metro Station, Dwarka, Sector 10, Delhi under DMRC.

· 2 DC chargers installed at Shram Shakti Bhawan, Delhi.

· 15 AC chargers installed at various sites under Jaipur Metro Railway Corporation (JMRC).

· Installation of 9 EV chargers (4 DC & 5 AC) and 2 EV chargers (1 DC & 1 AC) at various sites of South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) and BSES Rajdhani Power (BRPL), Delhi is under process.

The ministry is also funding some technology projects including finalisation of specifications and draft standards of xEVs by ARAI, Pune; development of charging infrastructure management system By IIT, Madras; design and development of AC-DC combined public charging stations by ARAI and development of indigenous chargers (AC/DC/Solar) by AMU.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Devdiscourse Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Union Minister inaugurates charging stations for e-vehicles in Udyog Bhawan URL: https://www.devdiscourse.com/Article/138176-union-minister-inaugurates-charging-stations-for- e-vehicles-in-udyog-bhawan

Union Minister inaugurates charging stations for e-vehicles in Udyog Bhawan

Eight charging stations have been installed in the premises of Udyog Bhawan for facilitating charging of e-vehicles. Devdiscourse News Desk 28 Aug 2018, 06:25 PM India Union Minister of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises, Anant G. Geete inaugurated two charging stations, one for fast charging (DC) and the other for slow charging (AC), in Udyog Bhawan, New Delhi today. (Image Credit: Twitter) Union Minister of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises, Anant G. Geete inaugurated two charging stations, one for fast charging (DC) and the other for slow charging (AC), in Udyog Bhawan, New Delhi today. This is part of the Swachhta Pakhwada celebrations of the Department of Heavy Industry. Eight charging stations have been installed in the premises of Udyog Bhawan for facilitating charging of e- vehicles. Of the eight charging stations, two fast-charging stations have been installed by BHEL and six slow charging stations have been installed by Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL).

AC charger consists of 3 outlets, charging 3 cars at the same time with the charging time from 6-8 hours. DC charger consists of a single outlet, charging one car at a time with the charging time of 1.5 hours.

As a part of Swachh Bharat Mission and to continue with the Government of India’s sustained effort to promote electric mobility in the country, the Department of Heavy Industry has allocated 455 electric buses to selected cities and special category states, through Expression of Interest (EoI) recently. Further, the Department has also approved funding of 130 electric buses to Ahmedabad, Himachal Pradesh, and Navi Mumbai.

The project for 25 charging stations in Bangalore is being funded by the Government of India under the Public Fast Charging Infrastructure Network for Electric Vehicles. The government has also fundedSolar Based Charging Infrastructure for EVs byBHEL.The DC 001 fast chargers have been supplied and commissioned by BHEL and the Company is also in advanced stages of offering indigenously developed end-to-end e-mobility solutions.

Proposal of setting-up 200 charging stations and putting up of Solar Based Charging Infrastructure for EVs by Rajasthan Electronics & Instruments Ltd. (REIL) is also funded by the Department of Heavy Industry. REIL has already installed 3 solar hybrid chargers in Jaipur. The other locations where EV charging stations have been installed are:

18 AC chargers installed at Metro Station, Dwarka, Sector 10, Delhi under DMRC. 2 DC chargers installed at Shram Shakti Bhawan, Delhi. 15 AC chargers installed at various sites under Jaipur Metro Railway Corporation (JMRC). Installation of 9 EV chargers (4 DC & 5 AC) & 2 EV chargers (1 DC & 1 AC) at various sites of South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) and BSES Rajdhani Power Limited (BRPL), Delhi is under process. Some technology projects including finalization of specifications and draft standards of xEVs by ARAI, Pune, Development of Charging Infrastructure Management System By IIT, Madras, Design & Development of AC-DC Combined Public Charging Stations by ARAI, Development of Indigenous Chargers (AC/DC/Solar) by AMU are also being supported by the Department.

Recognizing the immediate need for reduction in pollution levels and for making cities cleaner and environment-friendly, the Government is working on FAME-II Scheme having a focus on mass & shared public transportation based on the electric power-train. The necessity for the development of charging infrastructure for the smooth roll-out of electric mobility in the country is being addressed in the Phase- II of FAME Scheme. To reduce dependence on fossil fuel and for encouraging cleaner environment, the Department has notified FAME India Scheme in the year 2015 under National Electric Mobility Mission Plan of the Government. The Phase-1 of this scheme is being implemented through four focus areas namely Demand Creation, Pilot Projects, Charging Infrastructure and Technology Platform and R&D. Under Demand Creation component of the scheme, the incentive is available to buyers of electric and hybrid vehicles (xEVs) in the form of an upfront reduced purchase price to enable wider adoption. Specific projects under Pilot Projects, R&D and Technology Development and Public Charging Infrastructure components are approved for extending grant under the different focus areas of the scheme.

Secretary Department of Heavy Industry, chairmen of BHEL and EES Land senior officers of the Department were also present on this occasion.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: Digital Journal Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Microgrid Market Global Recent Trends, Competitive Landscape, Industry Size, Segments, Emerging Technologies and Growth Analysis by Forecast to 2023 URL: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/3913614

Microgrid Market Global Recent Trends, Competitive Landscape, Industry Size, Segments, Emerging Technologies and Growth Analysis by Forecast to 2023

Microgrid Global Market Estimated to Perceive Accrued Value with a Staggering CAGR; MRFR Unleashes Industry Insights Up To 2023

A microgrid system is a type of discrete energy systems that includes appropriated energy sources, and power loads and provides power to residential, commercial, industrial & government consumers. The main purpose of microgrid is to provide affordable energy for rural and urban areas during emergency. The microgrid can be charged through batteries, distributed generator, and renewable source of energy. The microgrid systems are the compact version of traditional power grid as it provides efficient power and can be integrated with renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind, geothermal, and others. The microgrid even operates independently during the time of the primary grid failure.

The advantages of Microgrid Market system over conventional power grid system includes power quality, dependability and security for end user, improves the coordination of distributed and renewable power sources, limit carbon footprints, and generate clean energy without affecting the environment, reduces the greenhouse gas emission. This is one of the major factors that is driving the microgrid market globally. Similarly, rising awareness among the consumer about the renewable sources of energy is also fuelling the market growth. The increase in the pollution is a major challenge faced by many countries. To reduce these challenges, governments of different nations are taking initiative to generate power through renewable source of energy such as utilization of solar panels to convert solar energy into electricity and reduce the pollution caused by production through conventional technique. This will eventually reduce the pollution to a certain level caused due to traditional power grid. According to Victoria State Government, it will contribute USD 10 million to develop and implement projects utilizing microgrid models, the project will be completed by the year 2021. This will result to provide more reliable source of power. However, high cost for installation of microgrid and economic constraints is projected to hinder the growth of microgrid market.

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Microgrid Key Companies Analyzed Are:

The prominent players in the market of microgrid market is – Lockheed Martin Corporation (US), ABB, Ltd. (US), Anbaric (US), S&C Electric Company (US), Homer Energy LLC (US), Microgrid Energy LLC (US), Power Analytics Corporation (US), Siemens AG (Germany), Eaton Corporation PLC (Ireland), General Electric Company (US) and others.

Microgrid - Segmentation

Based on type, the market is segmented into off grid, smart grid, hybrid grid, others On the basis on end users, the market is segmented into healthcare, education, industrial, military & defense, electric utility, and others

Based on Region, the market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC), and Rest of the World

Microgrid - Regional Analysis:

The regional analysis of global microgrid market is being studied for region such as Asia–Pacific, North America, Europe and rest of the world. North America dominates the global microgrid market during the forecast period. US among other countries in North America hold the largest market share for microgrid product due expanding microgrid limit among other provincial economies. Additionally, the developing industrialization and necessity of viable jolt in the area is fuelling North America predominance in the microgrid market. In Europe, with increasing investment by government & key companies to improve energy security and reliability is one of the factor for the growth for microgrid market in the region. Similarly, Asia-pacific is the fastest growing region due to presence of economies such as China, Japan, India, South Korea and others. The Asia-Pacific region is growing due to growing government initiatives for creating awareness about renewable energy sources among the consumers and high demand of microgrid machines in military & defense sector is fuelling the market.

Industry News:

In November 2016, Siemens and the US-based LO3 Energy formed a strategic alliance

The US-based LO3 Energy and Siemens formed a strategic alliance for the development of microgrid. The primary intention of this partnership is to develop microgrid that permits energy trading by block- chain technology.

In November 2016, ABB Ltd. and IIT Madras formed a strategic partnership

For enhancing the performance of microgrid and its consumption for increasing electricity supply to remote areas ABB Ltd. and IIT Madras formed a strategic alliance. This initiative is expected to play a significant role in increasing the usage of the product in isolated locations of India over the next eight years. The formation of strategic partnerships with research institutes is expected to remain a key critical success factor over the next eight years.

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Target Audience:

- Raw material providers - Microgrid system manufacturers - Energy storage providers - Hardware providers - Research & consultancy - Government & utilities - End-user sectors - Technology investors

About Market Research Future At Market Research Future (MRFR), we enable our customers to unravel the complexity of various industries through our Cooked Research Report (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous-Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services.

Date: 29th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Kochi Page No: 3 Journalist: N Headline: Architecture students offer low-cost housing solutions URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/thiruvananthapuram/architecture-students-offer-low- cost-housing-solutions/articleshow/65585040.cms

Date: 30th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: Shivangi Mishra Professor: Prof Jagdeesh Kumar Headline: How to decide between Dual and Integrated degrees URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/how-to-decide-between-dual-and- integrated-degrees/articleshow/65590079.cms

Date: 30th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Chennai Page No: 4 Journalist: Pushpa Narayan Headline: Why 8o’clock- 4o’clock is safest for hoghway driving URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/why-8oclock-4oclock-is-safest-for-highway- driving/articleshow/65601725.cms

Date: 30th August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: NIT-C students working on houses resistant to disaster URL: https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-kerala/nit-c-students-working-on-houses- resistant-to-disaster/article24815243.ece

NIT-C students working on houses resistant to disaster

Focus on one-bedroom houses for fishermen Architecture students and faculty of the National Institute of Technology, Calicut, (NIT-C), have proposed to take up research on developing cost-effective and disaster-resistant dwelling units as discussions are now focussed on the repair and reconstruction of flood-battered buildings in the State.

Deepthi Bendi, NIT-C assistant professor, told The Hindu that the pilot study would focus on building one-bedroom houses for fishermen whose contribution in flood rescue operations was monumental.

“Our primary effort will be to find out if their settlements in the coastal belt could be improved. The current status of their settlements will be studied, their priorities identified and the dwellings will be designed accordingly,” she said.

Talks are also on with other agencies and foreign universities to utilise their manpower and expertise for designing disaster-resistant buildings, Ms. Bendi said. On a long-term basis, similar models could be adopted for uplifting the quality of life in slums too, she added.

A. Arvind, secretary of the Architecture Students Association, NIT-C, said that glass fibre-reinforced gypsum (GFRG) panels had been proposed as an alternative material for constructing what they call “permanent resilient” dwelling units.

In this technology, gypsum is combined with glass fibre to manufacture lightweight pre-fab building panels and the use of clay bricks could be avoided.

“The material for construction of houses in Kerala traditionally has been laterite stones, which are comparatively costlier. Using GFRG panels is expected to reduce the cost of construction by 40% compared to a normal dwelling unit of the same area. They are sustainable too,” Mr. Arvind said.

It could be used for buildings floors, walls, roofs, and even stairs considering the need for mass production of houses in flood-hit places. These panels have been approved by the Building Materials and Technology Promotion Council of the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

The Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, had also approved its earthquake resistance under different loading conditions.

Kochi-based Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore Ltd and Mumbai-based Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilzers Ltd have a joint venture company in Kochi, FACT-RCF Building Products Ltd, to manufacture gypsum-based building products such as GFRG panels.

Date: 30th August 2018 Publication: Orissa Post Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: 50-feet coastline erosion near Swargadwar raises concern URL: http://www.orissapost.com/50-feet-coastline-erosion-near-swargadwar-raises-concern/

50-feet coastline erosion near Swargadwar raises concern

Puri: The shoreline erosion near Swargadwar in Puri has raised alarm after high tidal waves caused a 50- feet erosion Tuesday.

Following the erosion, the district authorities have ‘red flagged’ many spots restricting the entry of tourists. Vendors on the beach have also been directed to move from the place.

A team comprising irrigation department chief engineer and Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project (ICZMP) experts are expected to visit the spot Wednesday.

A few days ago, a 200-feet erosion was spotted near the Chaitanya square to Swargadwar coastline.

Similar erosion had taken place near Swargadwar in August 2016 following which a team of experts from IIT Madras had inspected the shoreline.

Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Maheswar Mohanty said incidents of coastline erosion were spotted earlier as well. After inspection, the experts said the erosion was a natural occurrence.

Date: 30th August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Lack of resources restrict third generation IITs from mentoring local engineering colleges URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/lack-of-resources-restrict-third- generation-iits-from-mentoring-local-engineering-colleges/articleshow/65587696.cms

Date: 31st August 2018 Publication: India Education Diary Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: CollegeSearch.in announced the winners of “Students’ Choice Awards” for colleges and universities URL: http://indiaeducationdiary.in/collegesearch-announced-winners-students-choice-awards-colleges- universities/

CollegeSearch.in announced the winners of “Students’ Choice Awards” for colleges and universities

New Delhi: CollegeSearch.in, India’s leading college selection and admission website, has announced the winners of “Students’ Choice Awards” for colleges and universities, based exclusively on reviews by students and alumni. The reviews are meticulously scrutinized by the CollegeSearch team before determining the winners. Constituting of 2730 nominations and participation from thousand universities and colleges, nearly 10,000 enthusiastic students from across the country gave their feedback.

According to the reviews, IITs, NITs, NIFTs, Delhi University and Banaras Hindu University have been rated highly whereas private universities such as Symbiosis and Manipal University have also made a mark.

The award this year was conducted across 17 categories such as Best Faculty, Best Infrastructure, Best Canteen to mention a few. To widen the spectrum, 9 new categories were introduced this year, namely Best Commerce Colleges, Best Hotel Management Colleges, Best Engineering Colleges, Best B-Schools, Best Science Colleges, Best Architecture Colleges, Best Humanities & Arts Colleges, Best Law School and Best Private Universities. The universities and colleges were rated on a scale of 10 by students and alumni who also shared details about the institute’s offerings.

The detailed reviews are published on respective college profiles at CollegeSearch.in.

College of Engineering- Pune (COEP), one of the oldest colleges of Asia, has been awarded under the “Best Infrastructure” category. University Institute of Engineering & Technology, Chandigarh, Asansol Engineering College and Delhi Technical University have also been recognized under the same category.

IIT Delhi, IIT Madras, MNNIT Allahabad, NIT Trichy along with Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai continue to be favored as having the best faculties all over the country.

Apart from IITs and NITs, VIT Vellore, Harcourt Butler Technical Institute (Kanpur) and PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore are rated the most preferred amongst the “Best Engineering college” category.

Banasthali University and University of Delhi won the award for Most Popular Clubs and Societies having associations across academics, fine arts, culture and community for fostering students who are all- rounders.

Notable Students’ Choice Winners excluding the above, with their respective winning categories are mentioned below:

– Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani awarded as College with Best Infrastructure, College with Best Dorms, College with Best Sports Facilities, College with Best Industry Exposure, Best Engineering Colleges.

– Sharda University (SU), Greater Noida awarded as College with Best Canteen, College with Best Dorm, Most Fashionable College, College with Best Industry Exposure, Best Private University – 2018.

– University of Delhi, Delhi awarded as Most Fashionable College, University with Best Sports Facilities, and for most Popular Clubs and Societies in the College – 2018.

In addition to honoring colleges and universities across relevant categories, the Students’ Choice Awards recognize ‘students’ right to voice their opinion’ about their institutions, eliciting feedback that would help millions of other students in making an informed decision regarding their future course and college. While numerous rankings and awards are given to colleges every year, there is no other award in higher education that acknowledges colleges based on students’ opinions.

Date: 31st August 2018 Publication: Open PR Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Banasthali Alumni Alma mater Connect - Dr Anu Brookins CISCO USA Talks on Data Analytics URL: https://www.openpr.com/news/1212472/Banasthali-Alumni-Alma-mater-Connect-Dr-Anu- Brookins-CISCO-USA-Talks-on-Data-Analytics.html

Banasthali Alumni Alma mater Connect - Dr Anu Brookins CISCO USA Talks on Data Analytics

It is an undeniable fact that Alumni Affairs divisions of most institutions reach out to their alums with the sole goal of donations forgetting the fact that the time value of alumni is much more than the time value of money they donate.

Human capital is just as beneficial to the sustained vitality of a university and can be just as important, if not more, than purely financial support. Alumni can offer to mentor current students, volunteer to speak at events, share experiences, arrange internship opportunities, placement help, engage with Alma mater on social media, fill out alumni surveys, continue rapport with clubs at Alma mater, counsel prospective students.

Since the days of print newsletters and magazines are over, Universities should have an open mind to reach out their alums through social media which is undeniably the most popular way to reach out to people across various latitudes and longitudes and also be willing to work out technology based lecture delivery using Zoom video communications etc.

While the ivy league institutions Oxford, Cambridge, Stanford, Harvard, Columbia, UCLA, Purdue, MIT Insead, LSE, etc are well known for their high degree of alumni Alma mater connectivity, some of the high profile examples of alumni connectivity with Alma mater in India include Birla Institute of Technology and Science - BITS Pilani, ISB, Hyderabad, IIT Bombay, IIT Madras, IIM Ahmedabad and last but not the least Banasthali which happens to be the World’s largest fully residential women’s University.

Leader, Digital Process Continuous Improvement Center of Excellence at Cisco USA, Dr Anu Brookins who did her schooling from Banasthali is also an adjunct professor for her alma mater. On 19 Aug 2018, despite her busy schedule, she gave her time to give a talk on Data Analytics for the Computer Science students of Banasthali. The lecture theatre was packed with over 250 students. Her talk covered introduction to data analytics, different types of analytics, maturity levels of companies in analytics, and different career options within data analytics - from data collection and wrangling to customers’ behavioral analytics, social media analytics. When she explained how data analytics has matured from older statistical analytical techniques to more modern Data Science and Neural Network analysis, there was a thunderous round of applause. The lecture ended with a lively question answer session. Prof Sarla Pareek and Prof Manisha Jailia coordinated and anchored the lecture proceedings.

It is worth mentioning that Dr Anu Brookins in December 2017 had contributed USD 5001 for installing a scholarship in the name of her mother Smt Sudha Narayanan who was a founding pillar of the Home Science Department of Banasthali and another in her own name Anupama Narayanan. As per the scheme of this scholarship, the topper of BSc Home Science every year would get Rs 10,000/- and the topper from Banasthali School who had taken up Mathematics would get Rs 5000/-.

When it comes to alumni Alma mater connect, Banasthali is always a notch ahead of others.

For more details about Banasthali see www.banasthali.org/

About Banasthali: Established in 1935, the Institution which is also the largest fully residential women’s university in the world has played a big role in revolutionizing women’s education and empowerment in India for the last eight decades. Banasthali has scripted numerous success stories in a wide range of fields, and stands tall among the citadels of learning in India today. . Proud to be Banasthali alumni who call themselves as Banasthalites can be found in all latitudes, longitudes and altitudes in all walks of life across the globe. Banasthali has the pride of being chosen as a Faculty Development Centre under the MHRD Govt of India Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya National Mission on Teachers and Teaching (PMMMNMTT) as well as for hosting Atal Incubation Centre (AIC) by NITI Aayog. Banasthali also has Quacquarelli Symonds QS Four Star Ranking and Diamond Status.

Date: 31st August 2018 Publication: Business Analyst Edition: Online Journalist: NA Headline: Wave and Tidal Energy Market – Competition To Intensify With Further Investments From Manufacturers URL: https://businessanalyst24.com/266990/wave-and-tidal-energy-market/

Wave And Tidal Energy Market – Competition To Intensify With Further Investments From Manufacturers

The development of new renewable energy sources is increasing, leading to reduction in the carbon emissions. Wave and tidal energy is one of such alternative sources of renewable energy satisfying the increasing energy demand. Tides and waves are two different natural occurrences of water, their ability to generate energy differs with regards to power, generation and reliability. Reducing dependency on non-renewable energy sources and advancing technologies for energy generation are explored having minimal effect on environments. The aim of development of wave and tidal energy is to reduce the carbon footprint in emerging countries and increasing government initiatives and funds is also expected to drive the market. Main factors fuelling the market growth includes the decrease of conventional power resources such as oil, coal and natural resources and rising concern regarding highly polluting nature of energy generation techniques that involve fossil fuels.

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The key opportunities for wave and tidal energy market include reduced carbon, secure electricity supply using renewable and green sources, which would result in large amount of energy creation and regional & economic development. Furthermore, increasing investments, and supportive government regulations are also expected to fuel the market growth. Growing funding from private and public sectors majorly for increasing employment generation, energy securities, economic positioning and also addressing changing climatic conditions. Key restraints, hindering the market growth are high cost of plant installation, high investment in R&D and the tidal time. The increased focus of developing countries is on power generation techniques based on eco-friendly and sustainable energy sources such as solar system, wave and tidal energy, which are appropriate non-renewable source solutions.

The global wave and tidal market is segmented on the basis of type, technology, end user and region. On the basis of type, the market is segmented as wave energy and tidal energy. The wave energy is created due to transportation of surface of ocean wave, while the tidal energy is created by universal gravitational effect of heavenly bodies such as sun and the moon on the earth. Based on the technology, the market is divided as tidal stream generator, pendulor device, oscillating water columns, barrage and others. The tidal stream generator is referred to as tidal energy converter, which is a machine that extracts energy from moving masses of water whereas pendulor device is used for running an electric generator, while oscillating water column uses a large amount of water moving in a cylinder as a piston. A big barrage is a kind of low-head rectified dam made of large gates that can be opened or closed, which control the amount of water passing through. Based on the end users, the market is segmented as residential, commercial and industrial. Industries have been involved in development of wave and tidal energy, since new design as well as manufacturing process are helping to satisfy the rising demand for clean energy Commercial as well as residential end- users mainly include the electricity generation and other operations of electric appliances.

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Geographically, wave and tidal market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America and Middle East and Africa. Asia pacific region is one of the fastest growing markets for wave and tidal energy, owing to the increasing population in the countries such as China and India. Moreover, the market is gaining traction in the region due to growing economy and rising demand for clean energy. According to tidal energy estimates projected by the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) and IIT- Madras, in India the highest levels of tidal energy were measured at Sunderbans in West Bengal, as well as at the Gulf of Khambat and the Gulf of Kutch in Gujarat. Adding these six sites together, the tidal energy potential generated measures to 12.5GW during 2015.The prominent players in the wave and tidal energy market are Ocean Renewable Power Company LLC, Murine Current Turbines Ltd, Atlantis Resources Ltd, AquaGen Technologies, Biopower System, Kepler Energy Ltd, Maco Tidal Turbines Nova Innovation Ltd, Carnegie Wave Energy Ltd, and Tenax Energy. Other players in the market are involved into partnership with companies, merger and acquisition in an attempt to widen their technologies and advancements through research and development.

Date: 31st August 2018 Publication: The Times of India Edition: Delhi/ Mumbai / Hyderabad Page No: 8 Journalist: NA Headline: Why ‘8 oclock - 4 oclock is safest for highway driving URL: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/why-8-oclock-4-oclock-is-safest-for-highway- driving/articleshow/65615883.cms

Date: 31st August 2018 Publication: The Hindu Edition: Chennai Page No: 4 Journalist: NA Headline: The big bang theory URL: https://www.thehindu.com/education/start-ups-infinite-engineers-and-vaayusastra-jazz-up- science-education-with-all-the-pizzazz-of-theatre/article24820549.ece