It was a game-changer Sunday for Birsa Institute of Technology (BIT) in Sindri, near Dhanbad, with more than 20 top professionals from across the globe congregating at their alma mater to discuss ways to transform the state-run cradle into an elite research hub.
The R&D cell of BIT-Sindri Alumni Association met on campus on the concluding day of the two-day annual metallurgy festival, Dhavika, to launch their new portal for promotion of research and development in the presence of dignitaries, including institute director D.K. Singh and chief general manager of BSNL Kishore Kumar Thakur, the latter also a 1977-batch electronics and communication graduate.
A 1984-batch graduate, Ashutosh Kumar, has been named the co-ordinator of the portal www.prayasfoundation18.wixite.com/bitsrnd. Kumar is currently the CEO of Asian Oilfield Services, which specialises in geophysical and seismic guidance to the oil, gas and mining industries.
Besides aiding research, the portal will also help BIT students crack the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE), which is conducted jointly by the Indian Institute of Science and IITs, and whose score is recognised by several international cradles as well.
The Dubai chapter of the alumni outfit further assessed the feasibility of launching an Internet of things (interconnection of computing devices in everyday objects) laboratory at BIT-Sindri for which a preliminary blueprint has been readied.
On the sidelines of the launch, a motivational session for students was conducted by Shashank Shekhar Garuryar, a 1978-batch electronics and communication engineer who is currently a senior vice-president with Polixel Security Systems, a subsidiary of a Polish company based in Gurgaon.
Shedding light on the portal, Garuryar said students could conduct research on emerging topics of science and technology under alumni guidance from across the globe. "We have already loaded a list of 30 projects on which students can seek mentorship from us. After completion of a project, we shall also liaison with the industry concerned to sell the idea and translate it into a start-up," he added.
Secretary of the association Sweta Kumari, who is also deputy sub-registrar in Ramgarh, said seven international alumni chapters and 24 national chapters were ready to do their bit to restore the Sindri cradle's lost glory. "Talks are on for introducing smart classes too," she said.
"Such was the reputation of the institute during our time that students of IIT-Kharagpur came to train at our lab. In student circles, the HT (high tension) lab had earned the sobriquet of 'Guruji ka laboratory'," reminisced Sonalal Datta, a 1971-batch electrical engineer and a management consultant in Delhi.
Rajesh Jha, a 1994 mining graduate who now runs his own start-up Aggregate Innovations, said the visiting alumni conducted an awareness drive at different hostels of BIT-Sindri on Saturday. "We are always happy to help. Our alma mater was the best and will be so," Jha added.
