News Analysis India

Tag: IIT (Kharagpur)

  • IIT Kharagpur student body exhumed for another post-mortem; family alleges institute influencing probe

    By IANS

    GUWAHATI: The family of former IIT Kharagpur student Faizan Ahmed, whose body was exhumed by a special team of officers for a second post-mortem following a court order, alleged that the institute has been trying to influence the investigation.

    Ahmed, a mechanical engineering student was found dead in the hostel of IIT Kharagpur on October 14 last year. The authority of the institute claimed that he died by suicide, while Ahmed’s family alleged that he was killed.

    The family filed a petition in the Calcutta High Court over his unnatural death.

    Ahmed was a resident of Assam’s Dibrugarh district.

    Recently, the Calcutta High Court ordered the exhumation of the body and a second-post-mortem. After his family gave their consent, Faizan Ahmed’s body was exhumed on Tuesday.

    In the presence of a four-member police team from the Kharagpur Town police station in West Bengal, forensics experts from the Assam Medical College and Gauhati Medical College performed the exhumation procedure at the Amolapatty burial place in Dibrugarh town.

    The family of the late student, the local police, and magistrate Gautam Priya Mahanta were also present.

    The corpse was deposited in the mortuary in Dibrugarh for the night.

    On Wednesday, it was taken to Kolkata by the special team officers accompanied by Ahmed’s family.

    Meanwhile, it is learnt that a team from IIT Kharagpur was also insistent to be present during the exhumation process, but the family of the deceased student resisted strongly.

    The family members told reporters, “IIT Kharagpur authorities have been trying to derail the investigation.”

    Notably, the decomposed body of 23-year-old Faizan Ahmed was found in room C-205 of the Lala Lajpat Rai Hall of Residence in the institute premises on October 14 last year.

    Two days later, his body was buried at the Amolapatty burial ground in Dibrugarh town.

    GUWAHATI: The family of former IIT Kharagpur student Faizan Ahmed, whose body was exhumed by a special team of officers for a second post-mortem following a court order, alleged that the institute has been trying to influence the investigation.

    Ahmed, a mechanical engineering student was found dead in the hostel of IIT Kharagpur on October 14 last year. The authority of the institute claimed that he died by suicide, while Ahmed’s family alleged that he was killed.

    The family filed a petition in the Calcutta High Court over his unnatural death.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    Ahmed was a resident of Assam’s Dibrugarh district.

    Recently, the Calcutta High Court ordered the exhumation of the body and a second-post-mortem. After his family gave their consent, Faizan Ahmed’s body was exhumed on Tuesday.

    In the presence of a four-member police team from the Kharagpur Town police station in West Bengal, forensics experts from the Assam Medical College and Gauhati Medical College performed the exhumation procedure at the Amolapatty burial place in Dibrugarh town.

    The family of the late student, the local police, and magistrate Gautam Priya Mahanta were also present.

    The corpse was deposited in the mortuary in Dibrugarh for the night.

    On Wednesday, it was taken to Kolkata by the special team officers accompanied by Ahmed’s family.

    Meanwhile, it is learnt that a team from IIT Kharagpur was also insistent to be present during the exhumation process, but the family of the deceased student resisted strongly.

    The family members told reporters, “IIT Kharagpur authorities have been trying to derail the investigation.”

    Notably, the decomposed body of 23-year-old Faizan Ahmed was found in room C-205 of the Lala Lajpat Rai Hall of Residence in the institute premises on October 14 last year.

    Two days later, his body was buried at the Amolapatty burial ground in Dibrugarh town.

  • Kolkata Diary: All that is happenign in the ‘City of Joy’

    Express News Service

    More IIT-Kharagpur students want online exam, finds survey

    Close to 98 per cent students of IIT Kharagpur, most of whom are present on the campus, have now expressed desire to write the end-semester exams online, said an official. Last week after the institute gave the students, other than those in undergraduate first year, option to choose how they would like to write the end-semester exams following protests over forcing students to write the exams online.

    A total of 7,899 out of 8,069 said they would write the exams online. The IIT decided to give the option after  after an open-house session between institute director V K Tewari and 8,000 odd students on March 21, over the protests which the IIT witnessed.

    Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, BRO ink deal for strategic bridges

    To further its strides in facilitating road development in difficult terrains in India, Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd, (GRSE) has signed an MoU with the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) for the fabrication, supply, erection and launching of first-of-its-kind,  double-lane Class 70 modular steel bridges in border areas.

    The two year contract worth Rs 65 crore was inked by the Director General of the BRO, Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhary and Cmde PR Hari, IN (Retd.), officiating chairman & managing director, of the Miniratna Category 1 Defence PSU.

    These bridges have been designed in-house by GRSE & all components have been manufactured with 100 per cent indigenous raw materials, in line with India’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan.

    254 cancer beds inaugurated at Tata Medical Center

    Kolkata got 254 new cancer beds at the Tata Medical Center in Rajarhat on Saturday. The beds, a percentage of which is reserved for underprivileged patients, are in the Tata Medical Center Phase-II. Indian Oil Corporation is also a part of the second phase development of the hospital.

    Tens of thousands of cancer patients from Bengal go to other states for treatment because Kolkata does not have enough cancer beds and facilities. Data by the ICMR-National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research suggest that in 2020 alone 1.08 lakh new cancer cases were reported in Bengal.

    Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation​ to survey for illegal billboards

    Officials will identify illegal billboards in a survey to be carried out across Salt Lake, places off the VIP Road and parts of Rajarhat to, said sources at the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation. The recently passed budget of the civic body has set a target to mop up around Rs 65 lakh in revenue from outdoor advertisements.

    “These are high visibility areas but our revenue from the billboards from these places has been low. We want to change this,” said an official of the civic body. Once the survey is over, notices will be sent to billboard owners who have not been paying tax.

  • ‘Focus, don’t feel pressure’: Here are the tips of JEE Advanced 2021 topper Mridul Agarwal 

    By Online Desk

    Delhi boy Mridul Agarwal has topped the IIT entrance exam, JEE-Advanced, the results of which were announced on Friday. Agarwal created history by achieving the highest-ever percentile in the IIT entrance test — 96%.

    Agarwal scored 348 out of 360 marks in the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE)-Advanced. A total of 41,862 candidates have qualified in JEE-Advanced this year, of whom 6,452 are female candidates, according to officials.

    “Self-motivation, hard work, approach towards mistakes, and blessings of all are the factors behind my achievement,” said Agarwal. “Like other successful individuals, I too had put up the effort, time, and energy. Achieving the goal gives me a feeling of satisfaction,” Agarwal said while talking to The New Indian Express.

    Agarwal’s next goal is to join B Tech in Computer Science Engineering (CSE) at IIT Bombay and a world-class institute in the future for advanced studies. “I am planning to do B Tech and planning to take admission in the computer science department of IIT Bombay. In the future, I want to go to one of the world’s top universities such as MIT,” he said.

    Sharing his long-term plan, the JEE-Advanced topper said he wants to contribute his time and energy to the tech development and education sector in India “so that the potential of future generations can be utilized in India itself.”

    When asked about his message for the future aspirants, Agarwal said they should always stay focused. “Be focussed, don’t feel any kind of pressure, and have a learning attitude.”

    Among the female candidates, Kavya Chopra from the Delhi zone is the topper with 286 marks out of 360.

    This year, IIT-Kharagpur conducted the exam, which is the qualifying test for admission to the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).

    While the JEE-Mains is conducted for admission to engineering colleges across the country, it is considered as a qualifying test for JEE-Advanced.

  • Mridul Agarwal: Meet the JEE-Advanced 2021 topper who created history 

    By Online Desk

    Delhi boy Mridul Agarwal has topped the IIT entrance exam, JEE-Advanced, the results of which were announced on Friday. Agarwal created history by achieving the highest-ever percentile in the IIT entrance test — 96%. He is also the first in the history of JEE to top both the JEE-Mains and JEE-Advanced.

    Agarwal scored 348 out of 360 marks in the JEE-Advanced. A total of 41,862 candidates have qualified in JEE-Advanced this year, of whom 6,452 are female candidates, according to officials.

    “Self-motivation, hard work, approach towards mistakes, and blessings of all are the factors behind my achievement,” said Agarwal. “Like other successful individuals, I too had put in the effort, time, and energy. Achieving the goal gives me a feeling of satisfaction,” Agarwal said while talking to The New Indian Express.

    Agarwal’s next goal is to join B Tech at IIT Bombay and a world-class institute in the future for advanced studies. “I am planning to do B Tech in the computer science department of IIT Bombay. In the future, I want to go to one of the world’s top universities such as MIT,” he said.

    Sharing his long-term plan, the JEE-Advanced topper said he wants to contribute his time and energy to the tech development and education sector in India “so that the potential of future generations can be utilized in India itself.”

    When asked about his message for future aspirants, Agarwal said they should always stay focused. “Be focused, don’t feel any kind of pressure, and have a learning attitude.”

    Among the female candidates, Kavya Chopra from the Delhi zone is the topper with 286 marks out of 360.

    This year, IIT-Kharagpur conducted the exam, which is the qualifying test for admission to the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).

    While the JEE-Mains is conducted for admission to engineering colleges across the country, it is considered as a qualifying test for JEE-Advanced.

  • IIT-Kharagpur student held for harassing school girls and teachers, uploading morphed pics online

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: A 19-year-old IIT student was arrested from Bihar on Thursday for allegedly stalking girl students and teachers of a reputed school here and uploading their morphed pictures on social media, police said.

    Mahavir, who hails from Patna, is pursuing B.tech from IIT-Kharagpur.

    According to the police, he harassed over 50 girl students and teachers of a reputed school in north Delhi.

    They said Mahavir used apps for fake caller ID and virtual numbers on WhatsApp to contact the victims.

    To hide his identity, he also used a voice changing app.

    ​ALSO READ | Elderly chartered accountant held for raping 24-year-old assistant in Gujarat’s Vadodara

    He posted morphed photos of the victims on fake Instagram profiles created by him in their names, the police said.

    The matter came to light after a complaint was received from the school administration on Wednesday regarding cyber stalking.

    According to the complaint, the accused stalked minor girls on social media and sent them messages on WhatsApp.

    He called the teachers from various international numbers and harassed them.

    The IIT student joined the WhatsApp groups created for online classes and also entered the classes, the complaint stated.

    Several morphed photos of the school students were circulated on social media platforms, it added.

    ​ALSO READ | Teacher sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping student in Rajasthan

    A case was registered under section 354-D (stalking) of Indian Penal Code at Civil Lines police station and the district’s cyber cell unit was roped in for technical assistance and later relevant sections of the POCSO Act and IT Act were added in the case, Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Sagar Singh Kalsi said.

    As part of the investigation, the police questioned the school students, their parents and teachers.

    Police officials said they managed to identify 33 WhatsApp virtual numbers, five Instagram profiles and several calls made using fake caller ID apps by the accused.

    “Our team analysed details of IP logs of WhatsApp, Instagram and fake mail ID used for creating social media accounts and identified the accused as Mahavir. He was then traced to Patna in Bihar from where he was arrested,” Kalsi said.

    While analysing the mobile numbers, the police found out that the accused had contacted one of the victims three years ago and had been stalking and harassing her since then, he said.

    “Mahavir is pursuing B.Tech from one of the IITs. He came in contact with one of the students of the school and started contacting her friends on Instagram and other social media platforms. Since he had good knowledge of apps, he used it to stalk and harass minor girls,” the DCP said.

    Several obscene videos and photographs were also found in the mobile phone of the accused, the police said, adding that his phone and laptop were seized.

  • Scientists devise new technique to detect cyclones earlier than satellites

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: Indian scientists have found a promising technique which can help detect tropical cyclones over the Indian Ocean prior to the satellites.

    Early detection of tropical cyclones has wide socio-economic implications. So far, remote sensing techniques have detected them the earliest. However, this detection was possible only after the system developed as a well-marked low-pressure system over the warm ocean surface. A larger time gap between the detection and the impact of the cyclone could help preparation activities.

    Prior to the formation of a cyclonic system over the warm oceanic environment, the initial atmospheric instability mechanism, as well as the vortex development, is triggered at higher atmospheric levels. These cyclonic eddies are prominent features in the vertical atmospheric column encompassing the disturbance environment with a potential to induce and develop into a well-marked cyclonic depression over the warm ocean surface. They could be used for detection of prediction of cyclones.

    A team of Scientists, including Jiya Albert, Bishnupriya Sahoo, and Prasad K. Bhaskaran from IIT Kharagpur, with support from the Department of Science & Technology, Government of India under the Climate Change Programme (CCP), devised a novel method using eddy detection technique to investigate the formative stages and advance detection time of tropical cyclogenesis in the North Indian Ocean region. The research was published in the journal ‘Atmospheric Research’ recently.

    The method developed by the scientists’ aims to identify initial traces of pre-cyclonic eddy vortices in the atmospheric column and track its spatio-temporal evolution. They used a coarser grid resolution of 27 km for identification and finer resolution of 9 km to evaluate the characteristics of eddy vortices. The study was conducted with cases of four post-monsoon severe cyclones — Phailin (2013), Vardah (2013), Gaja (2018), Madi (2013), — and two pre-monsoon cyclones — Mora (2017) and Aila (2009) — that developed over North Indian Ocean.

    The team observed that the method could bring about the genesis of prediction with a minimum of four days (~ 90 h) lead time for cyclones developed during the pre-and post-monsoon seasons. Initiation mechanisms of genesis of tropical cyclones occur at upper atmospheric levels and are also detected at higher lead time for pre-monsoon cases, unlike the post-monsoon cases. The study made a comprehensive investigation on the behavior of eddies in an atmospheric column for non-developing cases and compared these findings with developing cases.

  • IIT-Kharagpur announces total campus shutdown till May 23 due to COVID-19 pandemic

    By PTI
    KHARAGPUR: IIT-Kharagpur announced on Thursday that its offices will remain shut till May 23 in the wake of the rising COVID-19 cases.

    Except for essential services, no work will be done from the campus, Registrar Tamal Nath said.

    “We have decided to shut down non-essential offices on the campus from Friday till May 23, and the staff will be working from home. This will be the same as online classes being held for the students,” he said.

    Essential services staff will continue to work on the campus, following all COVID protocols, he said.

    The registrar on Wednesday asked research scholars who were staying in the hostels to leave for home due to limited space for isolation facilities and treatment.

    Shops on the campus selling essential commodities will be allowed to open for a stipulated period as per the state government’s directive.

    “Our campus is not located outside West Bengal or India. So, whatever happens in the state and the country, it is bound to be reflected on our campus,” Nath said on the COVID situation at the IIT campus.

    “However, IIT-Kharagpur has adopted every possible steps and kept the situation under control,” he added.

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  • Kolkata diary: Bringing news from the ‘City of Joy’

    Express News Service
    Private hospitals asked to procure jabs from makers

    The state health department has informed the private hospitals in the state that they will have to procure the vaccines from the manufacturers starting from next month. At present, the state government supplies vaccines to private hospitals. This arrangement will come to an end on April 30. Private hospitals now pay Rs 150 a vial. Each vial has 10 doses.

    From May 1, the private hospitals have to shell out more. The Serum Institute of India, which manufactures Covishield, announced that private hospitals have to pay Rs 600 for each dose. Bharat Biotech, which produces Covaxin, has priced its vaccine at Rs 1,200 a dose for private hospitals and Rs 600 for government hospitals.

    Probe into IIT-Kharagpur professor over alleged casteist remark

    The National Commission for Scheduled Castes has taken suo-motu cognizance of alleged casteist remarks made by a professor of IIT-Kharagpur during an online class. The Commission has asked the institute to submit a report on the action taken against the professor within 15 days.

    The class on preparatory English, during which the remarks were made, was attended by a number of students from the SC community. A notice was sent to IIT Kharagpur director, VK Tewari, by the Commission’s Director of administration, Ajit Kumar Sahu.

    The notice says, “Her remarks have hurt the sentiments of many Indians, specifically the SC community.” Sources in the institute said an investigation has been launched.

    St Xavier’s College to wrap up online classes early

    In light of the Covid situation, St Xavier’s College has decided to wrap up classes on May 10, instead of May 29 as originally planned. According to a notice issued by Father Diminic Savio, the principal of the college, “The last day of class for B. Ed semester two is being brought forward to 10th May instead of 29th May.”

    The notice was issued a day after the college put off holding online semester exams given the increasing gravity of the pandemic. The students had complained that they were struggling to prepare for the exams in light of the situation.

    Kolkata’s South Point High School sets up COVID-19 helpline

    The management of Kolkata’s South Point High School has started a “COVID helpline” where parents or staff members can ask for information on the availability of hospital beds, oxygen cylinders, blood plasma donors, etc.

    The school will then post the question to the 25,000 users of the school app. According to a notice issued by the school to all parents and staff members, information could be sought on the availability of medical facilities like hospital beds, ambulances, oxygen, medicines, blood/plasma donors, nursing care services, food supply, and isolation/quarantine centers.

  • Modi warns against dangers of climate change, says disaster- resilient infrastrcture need of the hour

    By PTI
    KHARAGPUR: Warning against the dangers of climate change and natural disasters like the one in Uttarakhand recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday asked the IITs to develop disaster resilient infrastructure that can withstand their effects.

    Addressing the 66th convocation of IIT (Kharagpur), the oldest of Indian Institutes of Technology, he gave the students the mantra of “Self-3” – “self-awareness, self- confidence and selflessness” – in order to become startups for bringing about a change in the lives of people.

    He also spoke of the need for making available safe, affordable and environment-friendly energy to people through initiatives like the International Solar Alliance.

    “Climate change is a major challenge as natural disasters destroy infrastructure. India drew the attention of the world to the issue of disaster management.”

    “You can see what happened recently in Uttarakhand. We should focus on developing disaster resilient infrastructure that can withstand natural disasters,” he said.

    The prime minister referred to the global Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), which he announced at the UN Climate Action Summit in 2019.

    The CDRI envisages partnership of national governments, UN agencies and programmes, multilateral development banks, financing mechanisms, private sector, and knowledge institutions to promote the resilience of new and existing infrastructure systems to climate and disaster risks to ensure sustainable development.

    Modi said, “Disaster management is a subject which the world has looked up to India. During major disasters, along with life, infrastructure is the most affected. Realizing this two years ago, India took the initiative of establishing Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure in the United Nations.”

    He hailed the role played by the IITs in developing technology to battle COVID-19 and said the hallowed institutes should now work fast on finding futuristic solutions to other health care problems.

    “You represent the aspirations of 130 crore people of India,” he said while addressing the convocation virtually.

    Noting that the needs and aspirations of 21st century India have changed, Modi said IITs need to be taken to the next level from Indian Institutes of Technology to Institutes of Indigenous Technologies to meet the changing demands and aspirations of New India.

    “You have to become startups to bring about a change in the lives of people. You have to work on Self 3– self- awareness, self-confidence and selflessness. You should recognise your potential and move forward, move ahead with full confidence, move ahead with selflessness,” he told the students.

    “There is no place for hastiness in the field of science and technology. You may not get complete success in the innovation you are working on. But that failure of yours will also be considered a success because you will learn something from that as well,” he said.

    Underscoring the need for clean and affordable energy, the prime minister said India presented to the world the concept of the International Solar Alliance.

    He said the cost per unit of solar power was very little in India.

    However, it was still a great challenge to take it to people’s homes.

    He added India needs technology that minimises damage to the environment, is durable and user-friendly.

    “Can you do something about reaching solar cookers to homes using ‘chulha’ (earthen ovens),” he asked.

    He said before the coronavirus struck people used to keep only medicines at their homes.

    “Things have changed. They now keep machines that measure blood pressure, machines that measure blood oxygen. A huge market has emerged for personal health care equipment. Technology has to be developed to provide for Personal Healthcare Equipments in India which are affordable and accurate,” he said while speaking about research and innovation in the field.

    Lauding the efforts of IIT Kharagpur in transforming academic research related to Artificial Intelligence at the industrial level, Internet of things and modern construction technology, the prime minister emphasised the need for significant innovation for Industry 4.0.

    He said IIT students can make use of PM Research Fellow Scheme and the Startup India Mission for idea incubation.

    The prime minister spoke about the government liberalising regulations on geospatial data to allow private companies to conduct survey and mapping without prior government approvals and sharing the data for various everyday applications, from logistics and transport to road safety and e-commerce.

    He said the decision will provide a huge impetus to Digital India and was a step forward in the direction of realising the vision ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.

    After Corona, India has emerged as a major global player in the field of Science, Technology, Research and Innovation, he said.