BLAZING BRILLIANCE When the Best Brains of the Country Come to ICT

The

SPIRITVOL 1 - ISSUE 4 - JANUARY 2007 FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION ONLY

BLAZING BRILLIANCE When the best brains of the country come to ICT... Findind out more on 44

ICT ROCKS REVIEWS TEXSUMMIT 2007 Mood ICT Guns of Navrone International Conference Page 3 Page 7 Page 5

ICTICT NEWSNEWSLETTELETTERR India: Friday to Friday! EDITORIAL idden deep inside our hearts, there’s a wants to have a sports car in his garage Bollywood hero in all of us. An aawara and a helipad in his yard. And after more 2 RajH Kapoor, a romantic Rajesh Khanna, or than a decade into economic reforms and an angry Amitabh; you will surely find free global markets, we Indians do know someone down there. Most of the times he that it is achievable. In fact, the case is far lies in solitude and makes his presence felt more interesting when you consider recent only in dreams. But at times, it is impossi- times. Few years back, everyone wanted to ble to ignore him and have a green card and settle abroad, our he shows up even films were quick to catch the trend (Chopra through most uninten- and Johar clan was right on the front seat). tional actions. We are With NRI’s renewing their bond with India just normal Indians! through dual citizenships and investment True, we don’t see in Indian market, today’s youth feels a amir baap ki betis sense of responsibility towards the nation. Alok Pal falling in love with With movies like Swadesh and Rang De TYCE, is a fantasc singer but poor guys all around us Basanti, we were bang on target again. limits himself to the bath- and certainly the country is not filled with I agree that it is a long way to go before room.. villains who have nothing better to do than Bollywood produces a Schindler’s List or A ruining other people’s love-lives. But when Few Good Men. But though we might not we look at more subtle things we be able to comment on issues, we are realize that within their limits certainly mature enough to acknowl- and burden of being a major pas- edge that the issues exist. There The time of half of Asia, Bollywood seems to be a continuous race be- SPIRIT has reflected our times and ways tween movies and us. Sometimes we January 2007 of thinking in a quite accurate lead and movies follow us, sometimes manner. And even more, it has we follow the movies and make terms portrayed Indian youth and their like Gandhigiri seem so relevant. The team of TheSPIRIT exact feelings towards the nation With the onset of domination of tech- and the system. nology, globalization, merger and acquisi- Patron: Prof JB Joshi (Director, There was a time when every single lead tions and take over bids, I am sure the ICT) character in a Hindi movie used to be a Bollywood will fol- BA/MA graduate, searching for jobs which low. I do not know Editorial Board: were already taken away by relatives of who will be the people in high positions. When you think of hero in our mind Convener & Design Editor: it, you will realize that it’s more than just a then! Akshat Rathi coincidence or lack of imagination. Getting Finally, hun- a job was a great deal then and people dreds of Hindi Editor for this issue: Alok Patil wouldn’t even dream of switching or hop- movies are made ping jobs. We live in a different world today every year and Editorial Assistance: and today’s bollywood actors surely do not many of them are Madhuvanti Kale, Sukant Goel, roam around with a black folder on a bad. Many of them V. Nandita, Praveen Kumar, never-ending quest for a job. are overtly emotional and melodramatic. It Manjari Mishal, Suvid Joshi, When Amitabh Bacchan smashed smug- is easy to say that English movies are bet- Rahul Patil glers baddies and bootlegger kingpins in ter and disregard Bollywood. But however 1970’s, a decade of war and India’s darkest they are, they are much closer to us than a Art Editors: political era; he did remind people that foreign movie will ever be. They are the Neeraja Dashaputre, Aarti Patil even a single person can make a difference ones which touch our hearts most. They and one to instigate it can be even a coolie. recognize that we are an emotional bunch Correspondents: At the same time, his image of an ‘anti- of people and reflect us. And that’s exactly Harshad Pathak hero’ urged the youth to stay on the better where Bollywood takes the game away…it side of law. reflects us! After all its always about Mera Volunteers: Today, life is all about dreams. Everyone Gaon Mera Desh!! Vithal Bajaj, Eric Rodrigues

Advisory Board: Convener: Dr. VD Mundale, Dr. AK Sahu, Prof VG Gaikar Special Thanks to (Vice President, TA), Prof SD Samant( Dean - Academic pro- BombAy grams), Prof SR Shukla (Editor, Bombay Technologist) , Mr. Technologist Amogh Lokhande (Librarian) Acknowledgements: Aviral Jain, Abhijeet Jadhav 3 Mood ICT!!! HEN I entered ICT, I was a bit surprised to see enter the competition. During all this, many stu- Priyanka Dhar Wthat our college did not really actively partici- dents came to watch the practices, to give their opin- pate in inter-collegiate fests. But thanks to the enter- ions and words of encouragement. prising TA of the present academic year and Then finally came 26th of Dec, the first day of Mood specially to our cultural secretaries-Sukant Goel and Indigo! ICTians flocked to the huge Powai campus Rubinder Kaur, increasing participation in intercol- during all four days of the cultural festival. There legiate events and the results speak volumes for might be many ways to describe the results but I’ll themselves. Like any other festival, the students of stick to “We came, We participated and We con- ICT were charged to rock MOOD quered”!! In the ballroom dancing Mood I - 2006 I (IIT Bombay) too. event, Amruta Joshi and Sarang was a much bigger As a member of the troupe for emerged victorious while Hitesh and street dance, I got to witness Zenobia came in fourth. In the event than last most of the preparation mania. singing competition Pratyusha took year and I don’t While Amruta and Sarang and home the laurels while Pratibimb, mean for the or- Zenobia and Hitesh slogged to our very own band came in third de- ganizers. It was an get their ballroom dance moves spite Kartik losingvoice. In the street event that show- right, Pratibimb band members dance event our troupe which in- cased the talent were heard practicing their cluded Sandeep Lanjewar, Hitesh songs in the Rec room repeatedly Thakkar, Rohan Uttarwar, Rahul hidden here at till they got it right down to the Patil, Ashok Patel, Zenobia Dhoti- ICT. It proved last note. Our choreographer, Mr. walla, Aarti Patil, Neha Parwekar, that we can excel Raju Patil made sure we had no Smita Birkar and me came in sec- The Champions: Amruta and Sarang in more than just rest, and “Mood I” people could ond as mentioned. chemistry... be seen desperately trying to find some empty room It is said that “Dreams pass into the reality where they might be given permission for “just one of action. From the actions stems the dream more practice”. Tempers flared, arguments erupted, again…” Participating in Mood I stemmed from the TheSPIRIT and there was disappointment about the failed prac- urge of ICTians to prove themselves in a field we sel- tices and jubilations about finally achieving the dom had ventured and from our beginner’s success January 2007 long-wanted perfection. There were a few setbacks comes the dream that with a little more effort and as well-Kartik, the lead singer of Pratibimb lost his initiative, we can do better and go much voice though thankfully he regained it in time to higher…ICT go ahead..rock on!! Manzar Sportsaga ‘07 here is something uncanny about our They don't‘07 say "Size Does Matter" for It is almost a fantasy-feeling, at the mo- Tinstitute that despite the small num- nothing and we don't want to change that. ment, for us, when we imagine you lighten- bers that we have here (as compared to So we shall give you no less. Started, as if a ing up the atmosphere on our campus and other multi-department colleges), the tal- paying guest, Manzar-The Idea, has now the grounds outside during Sportsaga. ent that surfaces each year is amazing. But become a permanent resident of the sky- What when it takes an actual physical what it brings with it, is a scrapers of our form craving for the fulfillment of minds and of those It is an understatement the desires of each of these working uninhibit- that we will need a huge gifted people and hence, a need edly for it The pas- workforce to make our for a magnanimous platform sion is nothing less dream come true. And that to showcase their virtues. than fiery and also workforce is you. Let's not There has been a sustained ef- contagious. We re- tell the cab-walla ,any fur- fort put in by our predecessors to meet this alise that the plans have not yet offcially ther, that we want to go to Khalsa College. need. We, on behalf of the Technological become public but we assure you that once We have something much bigger. We will Association, in no way, want to be spoil- we have presented them to the faculty and show it...Mumbai will see it. sport to the ongoing process. Enter Man- they lend us their support, you will know zar-Funtech 2007 and Sportsaga 2007. all in a jiffy. 4 Cover Story... TheSPIRIT January 2007 ll of us share a thing in common.BL WhenA weZ cameIN toG ICT, BRhancedIL byL theI presenceAN ofC eminentE industrialists like Mr Mukesh Aeveryone told us we were going to the best Institute there Ambani, Mr G S Lakhina and Dr K H Gharda who are amongst ever was. The feeling was great, but we never really understood the best chemical industrialists in the world. For them, it was a the impact of the statement. When you are surrounded by the home-coming; for us – an honour. best of everything all the time, you tend to forget the significance. The theme of the meet was “Innovation, Creativity and Enter- This December, we were reminded of it. It was an honour to prise”, the driving forces of science. The second day was full of ICT, our pleasure and pride. We had the amazing experience of invited lectures by the big names from academia and industry. hosting undoubtedly The lectures were the best people in the fascinating, and field of science and captivated all lis- technology,the crème teners. We fledg- de la crème of the In- lings, were inspired dian scientific soci- to read more and ety.The setting – The know more. 72nd Anniversary The event also Meeting of Indian witnessed an excit- National Science ing and entertain- Academy (INSA). ing cultural INSA is the apex program by the stu- body of Indian scien- dents on the tists representing all evening of the 24th. branches of science This cultural pro- and technology.Its gram was super- objectives encompass Great Minds at Work: (From left) Mukesh Ambani, Dr. Mashelkar, Prof. vised by Prof promotion of science Whitesides, Mrs. Whitesides, Mr. Mokashi, Prof. Joshi. Malshe, Dr (Mrs) in India including its Radha Jayaram, Dr application to national welfare. The academy was (Mrs) Nagarkar and Dr. Rita Doctor, and per- established on 7th January 1935 and has just com- THE INSA MEET formed by a number of undergraduate and post- pleted 72 glorious years of existence and service December ‘06 graduate students. The various facets of to India. performing arts were beautifully displayed in a The preparations were on in full swing. The atmosphere was unique blending of art forms from all parts of the country.Fasci- so laden with excitement and enthusiasm that the very soul of nating classical dances were interspersed with entertaining the campus felt it and was engulfed in it. Everyone enjoyed every songs and dances from hindi films, to entertain one and all. minute of the prepa- It was an amazing dis- rations. The audito- play of talent and organi- rium was renovated, sational skills by students, the campus was and was rewarded with the beautified, carpets greatest honour – a stand- were laid – the ing ovation from the scien- palace was readied tists. The thrill of success to receive the Kings. and happiness of having Sticking to the motto provided quality entertain- of ‘every bit helps’, ment was visible on every students joined in face involved in the pro- wherever they could gram, even as the efforts to do their part. were greatly appreciated Everyone was motivating one another and, of course, the objec- by one and all. tive was the greatest motivation. The third and final day of the meet was marked by an awards The meeting was held on the 23rd, 24th, and the 25th of Decem- gallore, as the formal ceremonies of admission of Fellows into ber in the New Auditorium of the ICT campus. The first day of the Society,presentation of the Young Scientist Medals and the the meet was probably the grandest, one with choicest complicity. Meghnad Saha Medal were carried out by the President of INSA, It was marked by the presentation of the Dhirubhai Ambani Me- Dr. R. A. Mashelkar. morial Award to distinguished Prof George Whitesides of Har- All good things come to an end, and so did this one. The hospi- vard University.Professor Whitesides is also the recipient of tality shown by people at the Institute was appreciated by all many other awards including the Dan David Award for Science. guests. It was a sad moment for us when we had to say goodbye to Professor M M Sharma was also felicitated on this day of the great people who had been our guests. The whole Institute grandeur. Many great academicians like Dr R A Mashelkar (Pres- suddenly seemed lonely.There the sadness of their departure, but ident of INSA), Prof P Balram (Director, IISc Ban- it was coupled with the satisfaction of a job well galore), Prof C N R Rao (Dan David Award done. We feel honoured to be present on this great recipient and former president of INSA) along occasion. The event inspired us to dream big and with many of the same cali- achieve our dreams, through In- Rahul Patil bre graced the occasion. The novation, Creativity and Enter- Suvid Joshi SYCE, is a dance TYCE, was enthusiasm and joy of being prise. enthusiast part of this function was en- born to debate TheSPIRIT January 2007 5 TEXSUMMIT 2007: Texcellence Unleashed BY AARTI PATIL & PRAVEEN KUMAR The 2nd technical session was held after lunch and Mr. Bart Van Kuijk , MD Dystar India Pvt. Ltd was the session n 11th January,2007, the ‘Majestic Hall’ of the Hotel In- chairman .The papers covered were ‘Challenges for the Tex- tercontinental-The Grand witnessed a gamut of “Tex- tile dyer in Today’s Global Environment’; ‘Novel Effects on tilites”,O in the international conference, Texsummit 2007. Garments Employing Specialty Chemicals & Finishes’; The inauguration through an E-lamp, indicated, very early, ‘Lifestyle Finishing Effects’ and ‘Innovations in Textile Pro- that the conference was going to have a feel of ‘Co-existence’ cessing : Beyond Finishing & Beyond Silicones’. which, our Head of the Department himself has felt. Following tea, was the 3rd technical session, and was con- The department of Fibres and Textile Processing Tech- ducted by Mr.Ulhas Nimkar, CEO, Texan lab. The Papers pre- nology,ICT, Organized this sented in this session were: conference with the theme ‘E-confidence in the Textile being ‘Contemporary Pro- Supply Chain’; ‘Awareness cessing of Textiles and Ap- of Consumer Product Safety parels: Challenges & Issues in USA’; ‘Supply Opportunity’. The day long Chain Security Measures conference had eminent In- for Maximizing Trade’ and ternational speakers address- ‘Social Compliance to World ing on diverse topics to over Wide Responsible Apparel 500 senior executive and deci- Production Principles’. sion makers in the Textile & Finally,the conference Apparel industry,coming concluded with the national from various textile clusters Textile World: Honourable dignitaries on the dias anthem followed by the vote throughout the length & of thanks given by Prof. breadth of India. S.R.Shukla and Prof. M.D.Teli. After the inauguration and felicitation of the various dig- Overall the conference was a great success, as was appar- nitaries, Mr. J.N Singh, Textile Commissioner, from the Min- ent by the appreciation received from all the dignitaries istry of Textiles, spoke on Government initiatives & Policy present. The hard work and efforts put on by our H.O.D. and support for intended growth. The 1st technical session all faculty members, along with all the volunteers, indeed evinced which was conducted by Prof M.L.Gulrajani, from paid off and we hope such opportunities come our way in IIT, Delhi. The papers covered were ‘The Quest for Global many years to come. The Texsummit, 2007 really renewed Dominance through Disruptive Innovation in Textile’; ‘Lat- the nation’s vision and determination to showcase the all- est Trends in Continuous Pretreatment ‘, and ‘Enzymatic ap- round capabilities in Textiles and Apparel Industry. proach to Textile Processing’.

sonal interviews of the first 15 rankers NEWS from ICT of T.Y.B.Chem Engg. CAT Crackers The results of CAT 2006 were declared Nostalgia Karate champions this month. The final year students The UAA Annual Day function was The University Karate Championship gave an outstanding performance with held at the Matunga Gymkhana on 22nd was held at in which our college made Aarti Nihalani of B.Chem.Engg, first December. All present were handed a its presence felt in a strong manner ever girl to top CAT, giving nothing copy of ‘The Spirit’ and the ‘Bombay Sanjay Katode - Bronze medal (Heavy away with a 100 percentile score while Technologist’. The students in the hos- weight), Nitesh Acharya (Dyes) - the rest were not far behind. tel got a fair share of the cake too. Bronze medal, Amol Angane (Oils) -5th Viraj Deshpande 99.97 Awards Shooter Sneh Jain 99.94 Akshat Rathi stood 3rd in the ‘Chem- Sandeep Kosaraju of S.Y.Tech stood 5th Sachin Wani 99.90 istry aptitude test’ which was held by in the South Zone Air Rifle Shooting Sunaina 99.47 the ‘Indian Chemical Society’ Competition which was held in Hyder- Ravi Narwani 99.40 abad. Himanshu Dhamankar 99.36 Praveen Kumar and Vithal Bajaj, Anay Chaube 98.50 TYTech Textiles, won the first prize at Should there be holidays in between the Textvision 2007, a national level paper semester exams? presentation competition at D.K.T.E. A. Yes Society’s Textile and Engineering Insti- B. No tute, Ichalkaranji. C. Doesn’t Matter

Purdue Craze Last Time’s The HOD of the chemical engineering Guess the place and win a parker Q department of Purdue University was Last time’s winner for TEASE YOUR here and he selected two students from BRAIN is Divya Menon, SYTech(Pharma) final year chemical engg and took per- 6 TheSPIRIT THE POWER OF SHAKTI January 2007 It all began with one man, John McLaughlin, separate ways into newer progressive fusion projects who in 1971 formed " The Mahavishnu". Best known Bhooshan Gachke like Tabla Beat Science (Zhakir Hussain), The Ma- for their two most popular albums: The Inner Mount- SYTech havishnu Orchestra ,The John McLaughlin Guitar ing Flame (1971) and Birds of Fire (1973), it gave a Trio, Free Spirits (featuring Dennis Chambers on sobriquet to John’s Guru Shri Chinmoy. As the group drums) and many others. After a 25 year hiatus evolved, McLaughlin adopted his trademark double- McLaughlin and Hussain decided to reform the band neck guitar (six and twelve-string), and added a Shakti, the Indian "Remember Shakti". along with T.H. "Vikku" Moog synthesizer, which enabled him to bend notes, Goddess of "absolute Vinayakram (ghatam, mridangam), for an epony- mimicking the phrasing of his master-guitar. mous debut album in 1997. However, McLaughlin But mere "Jazz of a different style" wasn't what control over toiling mor- could not locate Shakti's fourth member, violinist L. John was going to settle for. So he looked ahead to tals", being interpreted Shankar, and replaced him with bansuri player Pt. the other side of the planet to "jam with snake Hariprasad Chaurasia. The band's most recent live charmers" as ridiculed by many! The musicians that as a music genre, has album, 2001's "Saturday Night in Bombay", presents he met were the likes of Ustad Zakir Hussain, then in led to a fan -followed- Remember Shakti augmented by an army of guests, his fervent youth, R Ragavan on Mridangam and T H slavery to the genre , so notably Pt. Shivkumar Sharma (santoor), percussion- Vinayakaram on Ghatam. And thus SHAKTI was ist Taufiq Qureshi who is the brother of Zakir, and formed in mid 1970's. The genre was hardcore fusion complex and technical, Shankar Mahadevan, who has now become Remem- of Western Jazz, Hindustani Classical and Carnatic all-empowering like the ber Shakti's fulltime vocalist. The band has toured Classical. With such maestros at work, their self titled Goddess, yet tranquil, extensively all around the world. eponymous first album, Shakti, had a lasting follow- While both Shakti and Tabla Beat Science can be ing. Their musical style was an unprecedented melodic and serene, ex- filed under fusion they restore more than a modicum blending of genres. The electrified rock sound was hibiting. Her feminine of respect to the genre. If you often find yourself dis- pioneered by Jimi Hendrix. The group's early music regarding boundaries or feel most pinned out, it facets. It is "WORLD was entirely instrumental; while later albums had would be more than rewarding to own this music that tracks featuring R&B or even gospel/hymn styled vo- MUSIC" in the truest explores all forms of human emotions of subtlety, cals. sense! anger, lust, pride, joy and creativity. Where else can After disbanding in late 1970's, SHAKTI went their you find such a "must have" ?

Dear Editor, Dear Anshuman, “Unquotable Quotes” There is unnecessary burning of degradable This is a very valid suggestion and I can as- waste on the playground in front of hostel No. sure you that it will be put forward to the con- “Arre mere daddy to mere bhi 5. It creates a lot of pollution and irritates the cerned through TA. Meanwhile, it has been baap hai..” What can I say...some students around. It would our institute’s policy that the ini- people sure know their ancestry be better if this waste is tiative taken by students for right well! buried in a pit and used as Letters to the Editor reasons must be supported. So I manure. Being a prestigious chemical tech- suggest that you talk to gardeners and your “Break up hone ke liye pehle nology institute, I am sure we can find better fellow students and try to work out a solution ways of disposing waste than this. at the student level itself. All help needed meke up hona chahiye!” aren’t we Anshuman Fuller shall surely be provided by TA. good at relationship stuff? FYCE Editors

“You can talk while you speak.” Multitasking???

Editorial Board special “Chal be! Mere ghar me bhi bungalow hai.”

“Temperatue is hot.” and so is this column. ain’t it?

Our unquotable hero on being asked “What comes after April?”, in a rapid fire round answers, “March!”. He just can’t give up his talent now can he?

“Where do you find Nicotine?”, asks a professor, “Tea!”, answers the lad. He definitely knows why he’s addicted to tea..!! 7 The Guns of Navarone HE first time I heard Gregory Peck) is selected to lead a band of about this Alistair heroes who can destroy the guns and rescue TMacLean title I felt the the soldiers. They are ruthless men who do power it emanated. "The not fear death and are murderers, strategists Guns of Navarone" is set and an expert in explosives (David Niven). up in the World War II The movie has some hair raising moments Period. Most of us bud- which will make your eyeballs pop out and ding engineers are terri- make you dazed in bewilderment. The cast fied by History.But this also includes Anthony Quinn Stanley Baker, movie gets me riveted Abhimanyu Irene Papas and this movie is directed by each time I sit down to Narayanmoorthy Carl foreman (The Bridge on the River Kwai). view it again. With his cavalier attitude towards his life FYCE, is an energetic The story sees 2000 British Tommie's stepping in a no holds bar zone, outwitting trapped on the Greek island of Kheros giving personality the Nazis and deploying shrewd guerilla tac- the allied forces just seven days to rescue tics, Gregory Peck is at his quintessential them as the Nazis were planning a Blitzkrieg leading to best. This classic is a 'must watch', one of those rare oc- execution of the captive allied soldiers. The only hin- casions where you find that adequate justice to book is drance to the rescue operation are the two radar con- done on the celluloid. trolled Guns on the island Of Navarone attacking In a movie like this, you find elements of human anything that entered the Aegean Sea. drama, patriotism, valour, cliff-hanging suspense, re- The Plot revolves around having to destroy these venge and love. What more?? Even those die hard haters guns, if any hopes for the above rescue operations have of 'history' will get their interest perked up about the Eu- to be nurtured. Capt. Mallory (very ably portrayed by rope of mid 20th Century. SEARCH FOR THE GURU LL of us need one person in our lives to help torted ones is to see the lives of their extrava- us achieve whatever we aspire or to elicit gant disciples. Any kind of attachment with theA best in us; an idol. He has kindness of heart, such self proclaimed gurus is noxious. It is well calmness of mind and totality of knowledge. He stated in scriptures that leading a life without a is the source of positive energy, sink of distress guru is many folds better than having associa- and depression. He is the goal, the path; the tions with the pakhandis. How can I receive the shade and the companion too. He makes the lane gift of happiness and satisfaction from a guide free of stones and lights it when it gets dark. He who himself has surfeit of sadness and misery? A A T M A is free from illusions, delusions Hence, search for the right guru ac- G E T S P I R I T u a l and bias. He is filled with love, quires greater significance. I need to compassion and strength. He is discover a guru; one who is free from the truth; he is the bliss. He is the stresses and is an archetype of the cause and the effect too. peace and serenity. Who is this person? A But, what are the impedances in the mother? The almighty? Well, the search for the virtuous guru…our person that we speak of here, is sadguru? Ignorance and sloth are the a ‘GURU’- may be mother, God or two major hindrances in this hunt, if anyone else. we are not fatalistic. Most of us are Aviral Jain Gur Dhobi Sikh Kapda, Saboo nonplussed regarding our ultimate TYCE, manages to Sirjan Har aim, ergo exalting people who can do be hard-working Surti Sila Pur Dhoiye, Nikse us no good. Some others, who have the Jyoti Apaar awareness, yet, maintain the notion and relaxed at the Kabir that a guru is dispensable. If a seeker same time A Guru is like a candle that burns itself to is all geared up and conscientious, then it is not give light to the protégé. A guru, thus, is indis- an arduous task to have a guru’s grace. It’s just pensable and so we all need one jo doobti naiyya like everything in a radio station is perfect and paar karaaye. the only thing left is to match the frequency so TheSPIRIT There are basically three types of teachers. that the output is optimum. The ones who slug it January 2007 The first one teaches us the way to amass means out against ignorance and indolence do unearth of livelihood. The second one enlightens us with an impeccable guru. The guru then provides im- his prowess on how to live life and ultimately get petus for the entire jaunt. the coveted eternal bliss. The third one and A guru who is free from all vices and replete of these days the most applauded one is who we bliss is the need of the hour. Let us all make a call a kuguru or a pakhandi. Those who embel- wholehearted attempt to find the sadguru to put lish the third category are greedy people who an end to the turbulence in our lives. As the have high desire of deification. It’s not too diffi- great kabir wrote, cult to recognize a kuguru. There is profound Guru govind dono khade kaake laagon paaye, discrepancy between their musings, sayings and Balihari guru aapne govind diyo bataaye. actions. And another way to unleash these dis- TheSPIRIT January 2007 Devavrata Golangade TO VOTE OR NOT TO VOTE FYCE typical Mumbaikar on an election day takes the political system. day off from work, and relaxes well. He chats with The argument against voting that politicians are Apeople about the polls, and when asked why he did not corrupt must be preceded by the argument that society vote, disgusts, “What is the point in voting for corrupt, is itself a hotbed of corruption and inefficiency,and non-performing politicians?” Later in the gossip, he that we cannot expect politicians to be efficient and also despairs, “Politics has ruined the nation...” He morally upright against this backdrop. As the old say- does not realize that he himself is responsible for the ing goes, “In a democracy,we the people deserve the sorry state of affairs. government we get.” It is the fundamental responsibility of every A healthy voting culture among the educated citizen, especially the educated, to exercise his is a hallmark of all mature and prosperous right to vote. As the democracies. In the recent J&K polls, people Educated do not vote in large numbers, they battled hostile climate and militancy to log im- are not at all a vote bank for politicians, who in- pressive voter turnouts, because, as one voter stead opt to woo the uneducated, downtrodden put it, “Wasting one’s ballot is a sin in a democ- class which fills the polling booths. Once we start racy.”This determination should rage in the voting, aspiring leaders will have to heed our voice if heart of every Indian. Only then will the world’s they wish to be voted to power. This will make the mis- largest democracy become its very best. use of power more difficult, effectively cleansing our

“Walking Towards Research” – Rural Talent Development Program of MaViPa aViPa or Marathi Vidyanan Parishad is a platform ERS - the ever excited Prafulla Mahajan, the silent for students to learn about frontiers of Science and Supriya Saptarshi, the THINKING guy – Amol Mali and TechnologyM in Maharashtra. The Parishad takes special the ever flamboyant – Parijat Kanetkar… They all went to efforts for the students of rural areas so as to promote different sections of Maharshtra; Amol to Solapur, Science and Technology amongst them. Since, UICT has Supriya to Nagar, Parijat to Pune while Prafulla went to been identified as the Lead Institute in Technology and Dhule. Here is a sampling of the experiences! Engineering, MaViPa approached UICT for help in bring Supriya faced an audience of 1700 people who were up the “SCIENTISTS” from the rural areas. This program thrilled with the performance of the LITTLE LADY. The was thus named Marathi Vidyanan Parishad – UICT Lec- audience awarded her a trophy and rich accolades. Amol ture Series – 2006, under the aegis of “Rural Talent Devel- enjoyed his stay at Solapur (his hometown), so did Pra- opment Program (RTDP)”. fulla at Dhule. Although they did as much as they could, The lecture series was flagged off to initiate a feel for both felt that students of those areas require greater in- research amongst the students from different classes, es- puts to motivate them further. Parijat’s last lecture was in pecially ones from the 10th standard, 12th standard and front of an audience of 800 students out of which 200 B.Sc. in Biological, Chemical and Physical Sciences. To were from the famous CBSE school of Pune – Dnyan the surprise of us all, the teachers also participated ea- Prabhodini School. That lecture was transmitted to four gerly. more villages spread over 90 km, simultaneously. That ex- The initial set of speakers included four research stu- perience of video conferencing… COOL! dents who are pursuing their Ph.D. in Biotechnology Everyone of these four got a great response from the from the Food Engineering and Technology Department students and their teachers. Some questions raised by of UICT. They took up the challenge of preparing and these students from rural areas were indeed thought pro- presenting lectures in front a possible audience of stu- voking. Afterall that was the intention of the whole ef- dents whose background was not well known. These fort. speakers then brainstormed and evolved a theme for Well, that’s of all for now, folks. The rest of the lectur- their presentation – “WALKING TOWARDS RE- ers are still returning from their sojourn. You will have to SEARCH”. The composite theme was a complex of the wait for sometime until they write for you, perhaps in the personalities who evolved it and their passion in meeting next issue of ‘The Spirit’. the task! Allow me to introduce this first set of SPEAK- -Loumont Cransten (The Shadow)

FROM THE CONVENER achieve this. Please send in your suggestions and any kind The Spirit is smaller than before (DEC), 8 pages. For of news, any articl or any thing that makes the Spirit alive every issue the board will decide on the number of pages to [email protected]. We wish to sustain our effort to be published depending on the activities in the institute. and continue to produce this beautiful newsletter, your We apologise for any mistake or ignorance we have support is of utmost importance to us. made in the previous issues.The Spirit is in growing-up We are currently making an effort to lay down a policy phase and we expect a support from every ICTian, students for the Spirit, your involvment is welcome. and faculty alike to direct our efforts. Our work is yet to become a completely efficient endeavour. You can help us - Akshat Rathi, Convener