The 20th edition of Shaastra, Indian Institute of Technology-Madras’ technical festival, will be held from January 3 to 6. It will focus on technological innovations in defence and artificial intelligence to develop assistive devices for the visually impaired and the elderly.
The theme for this year is ‘Parsec to Plank’, focusing on creating small-size solutions, keeping in tune with the current technological innovations.
The student-run event has lined up a defence tech summit which includes spotlight lectures by V.K. Saraswat, former director general of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and economist Lord Meghnad Desai.
As many as 40 events and 30 workshops are scheduled, said Pravallika Kollipara, the institute’s co-curricular affairs secretary.
Aeromodellig contest
Boeing’s national aeromodelling competition and Indian drone racing league are events to look forward to. There will be an exhibition featuring student innovations, startups by the visiting teams too.
The students have introduced Assistive Technology makeathon in collaboration with the institute’s TTK Centre for Rehabilitation Research and Device Development (R2D2) that developed the country’s first indigenously designed standing wheelchair.
The makeathon is looking for innovations that would enhance the quality of life for the elderly, adults and children with disabilities. Successful prototypes designed by students could be put to use.
Event run by students
Institute director Bhaskar Ramamurthi said the event is completely run by students and a faculty plays an advisory role.
“Internally, we have an active hub of co-curricular activity for building gadgets. We hve a centre for innovation and a lot of activities are related to Shaastra. They are just part of the institute and connected to Shaastra. Through Shaastra they learn to go beyond the classroom and reach out to a large student community across the country. Everybody benefits, we learn and our students learn along with the visiting students,” he said.
