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Student Achievements

A step above the rest

Students who come to NIIT University (NU) are already motivated; they enter the campus filled with the zeal to prove themselves. Watching them bloom and achieve their goals is the most satisfying feeling for any educator or institute of higher learning. Recognising student achievements is one way of fostering a strong community and inculcating a positive campus culture.

At NU, we believe in holistic development. So, along with challenging their mind, we inspire them to venture outside the comfort zone offered by their immediate peers. Through competitions and inter-college engagements, we provide the perfect means for students to explore their passion and put their skills to test.

Our students have applied their skills towards resolving pressing societal issues or problems faced by humanity at large. Whether it be rural issues or solutions for enhanced business operations, they never fail to come up with creative and practical solutions. NU’s student body also excels in multiple inter-college festivals, where their talent outside the academic arena never fails to impress.

Here at NU, we are proud of the achievements our students have recorded across national and international platforms.

Want to learn more about NUtons’ achievements over the years?

“Life’s most remarkable adventures often unfold unexpectedly,” says NU student Siddhant Goel shooting it straight from the word go! It’s interesting that he stumbled upon the sport about precision by accident. But as he discovered his passion and talent in pistol shooting, there was no looking back, especially when he found support in unexpected places. The BTech CSE Class of 2025 student has now conquered the qualification for pre-nationals and zonal championships, and is on the verge of National glory. He reveals how NU has been a catalyst in the journey that has hit the bullseye!

Recently Siddhant qualified for Haryana States Tournament from amongst 500+ participants with an impressive score of 372 / 400. He then went on to qualify for Zonal and Pre-National in 10 meters Pistol Shooting with a score of 340 / 400, when the threshold was 330 / 400. As he has his eyes set on bigger goals ahead, he looks back at how it all began with a smile. “It was a casual weekend activity when my father enrolled me for a shooting class and it became a life-defining moment for me,” he says.

As Siddhant was captivated by the artistry and discipline the sport demanded, it also unleashed his hidden talent. Interestingly, it was honed and taken to the next level unexpectedly through his association with NU. Here he came across classmate Suryansh Khare, a National Shooting champion who led the club NUMARKSMEN. “His expertise and unwavering support became instrumental in honing my skills. Days turned into hours spent on the NU Pistol Shooting Range, perfecting my aim and technique under the watchful eye of a champion,” he adds.

Another chance encounter through a MSME project he was working on helped Siddhant find his lifelong mentor. Chaitanya, a National Level Champion who lived in a village nearby became his coach and guided him through the next stages. “He shared invaluable insights and lent me his state-of-the-art shooting range, as well as his own pistol and accessories. With his guidance, my progress soared to new heights, and my dreams of competing at the National Level no longer seemed far-fetched,” he says with a twinkle in the eyes that are always on the mark.

“The beauty of a dream lies not only in its pursuit but also in the support we receive along the way,” says Siddhant talking about how NU embraced and nurtured his passion. As he balanced his training with residential semester, he always found the support he needed at NU. “They granted me access to the shooting range, understanding the importance of fostering talent and facilitating growth. The unwavering support of the NU Administration, faculty, and my family further fuelled my determination to reach greater heights,” he states.

Siddhant Goel

Siddhant’s story is that of following one’s passion and rolling with the twists and turns to find support in unforeseen places. His qualification is just another step in him hitting the right spot with his shooting skills. We wish him the best for the Pre-Nationals and the journey to the top.

The immensely talented Sraddha Varanasi from BTech CSE Batch of 2021 has achieved an important milestone in her journey as a Kuchipudi artist by successfully securing a Government Approved Certification in the Kuchipudi Classical Dance Form in 2023.

She had auditioned for the Grade B Artists selections in Kuchipudi dance, conducted by the national broadcasting service, Prasar Bharati – Doordarshan.

She has been shortlisted and approved as a ‘GRADE B DANCE ARTIST’ by the Doordarshan Kendra.

Sraddha aims to secure the next level approved grade artist in the field of Kuchipudi dance by preparing for grade upgradation to “A grade” and “A TOP grades” in the coming years.

Shraddha Varanasi placed in Grade B for 2023 by Doordarshan Kendra, Prasar Bharati
Shraddha Varanasi placed in Grade B for 2023 by Doordarshan Kendra, Prasar Bharati

About Sraddha Varanasi: A Kuchipudi Dancer with a Passion for Tradition

Sraddha Varanasi is a young and talented Kuchipudi dancer who is making a name for herself in the dance world. She began her training under the guidance of Dr Maddali Usha Gayatri Garu for the past 10 years, a renowned Kuchipudi guru. Sraddha has a natural gift for dance and has quickly mastered the complex footwork, graceful movements, and subtle facial expressions that are characteristic of Kuchipudi.

Sraddha’s interest in dance began in the 3rd grade when she first participated in
Kuchipudi as a school activity. She was immediately drawn to the graceful and expressive movements of the dance form. As she continued to train, Sraddha fell in love with Kuchipudi dance.

Sraddha has performed in numerous stage productions, including dance ballets and dramas. She has also performed at prestigious venues such as Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in Calcutta, Ravindra Bharati in Hyderabad, and Nadaneerajanam in Tirumala. In 2023, she presented Kuchipudi dance at the Asian Lens Forum.

She is an approved grade B artist by Doordharshan Kendra in Kuchipudi dance. Sraddha is passionate about Kuchipudi dance and is committed to promoting this beautiful art form. She hopes to inspire others to appreciate and learn Kuchipudi.

Sraddha’s Artistic Style
Sraddha’s artistic style is characterized by its elegance, precision, and expressiveness. She is a master of the four types of expressions (Chatur vidha abhinaya) that are essential to Kuchipudi dance: Angika (physical expressions), Vachika (verbal expressions), Aharya (costumes and makeup), and Sattvika (inner state of mind).

Sraddha’s dancing is also notable for its technical brilliance. She executes complex
footwork and intricate movements with ease and grace. She is also a gifted abhinaya artist, able to convey a wide range of emotions through her facial expressions and gestures.

 

Sraddha’s Guru: Dr Maddali Usha Gayatri
Dr Maddali Usha Gayatri is a highly respected Kuchipudi guru and performer. She is a Hamsa Awardee and has a doctorate degree on Satyabhama Kalapam, a classic Kuchipudi dance drama. Dr Gayatri is known for her rigorous teaching style and her
commitment to preserving and promoting the purity of Kuchipudi dance.

Sraddha is grateful for the opportunity to learn from Dr Gayatri. She credits her guru with instilling in her a deep appreciation for Kuchipudi dance and a strong foundation in its technique and artistry.

Sraddha’s Impact on the Dance Community
Sraddha is still a young dancer, but she is already making a positive impact on the Kuchipudi dance community. She is a role model for other young dancers and her performances inspire audiences of all ages. She is also committed to promoting Kuchipudi dance to a wider audience.

Sraddha is a rising star in the Kuchipudi dance world. She is a talented dancer with
a bright future ahead of her. With her passion, dedication, and artistic talent, she is
sure to continue to inspire and entertain audiences for many years to come.

Basics of Kuchipudi Dance
Kuchipudi is one of the eight major classical dance forms of India. It originated in the
village of Kuchipudi in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kuchipudi is a dance-drama performance, with its roots in the ancient Hindu Sanskrit text of Natya Shastra.

Kuchipudi is characterized by its intricate footwork, graceful movements, and subtle facial expressions. It incorporates both pure dance (Nritta) and expressive dance
(Nritya) elements, as well as storytelling through dance (Natya).

Kuchipudi dancers are typically trained from a young age. The training begins with learning the basic steps and postures. Once the basics are mastered, dancers learn
more complex movements and choreographies. They also learn to express a wide range of emotions through their dancing.

Kuchipudi dance is a beautiful and expressive art form that has been enjoyed for centuries. Sraddha Varanasi is one of the many talented dancers who are helping to keep this tradition alive.

Concluding…
Sraddha’s hard work and dedication have paid off. She is now a highly accomplished Kuchipudi dancer. She has performed on many prestigious stages and has received numerous accolades. Sraddha’s story is an inspiration to all young dancers. It shows that with hard work and dedication, anything is possible.

Shraddha has featured in numerous newspapers and has won several awards.
A few are given below.

India Book of Records – Non-stop Kuchipudi Dance
India Book of Records – Non-stop Kuchipudi Dance
Shraddha Varanasi in Newspapers
Shraddha Varanasi in Newspapers

Her profile and achievements till 2023 can be read here: Sraddha Varanasi Dance Profile 2023

In a category of sport that is traditionally seen as the domain of men, Anushka Kushwaha (B Tech CSE 2022) won the second position in the powerlifting competition held at Bawal on October 16 2022.


NU’s new Powerlifting initiative encourages NUtons to improve their strength through on-campus training and competitions. Anushka also won the 1st position in first powerlifting event held at NU in the Benchpress, Deadlift and Squat categories.

NUtons – Tulika Arun, Kushagra Mishra, Deepak Chauhan, Prabsaran Singh, Adarsh Kumar – from fourth year BTech CSE and Gabrial Weion Falcon from fourth year Integrated MSc – secured the Runner’s Up position at the prestigious annual national event, Smart India Hackathon 2022, organized by the Ministry of Education.

Their team, Incognito 2.0 bagged the position in the National Grand Finale of Smart India Hackathon 2022 event held at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai. The problem statement they worked on was ‘To maintain and enjoy healthy relationships with others’. This interesting problem statement  was provided by NCERT and received around 80 submissions of which 10 were shortlisted for the final round. NU team received the Runner’s Up position.

Look up https://sih.gov.in/sih-2022-senior-final-result for the results and https://sih.gov.in/ for more information about Smart India Hackathon that promotes innovation in the student community by getting them to solve pressing societal challenges.

Mayuri Mane and Trisha Sharma, 4th-year BTech CSE students secure first position in AABtonics, an international GIS competition organised by AABSyS IT in 2021.

The project started out as a research and development project (R&D project) in the sixth semester of BTech Computer Science and Engineering at NIIT University (NU) with the mentorship of Dr Thota Sivasankar. The aim of the project at that stage was to simply build a predictive model for crop classification using Sentinel-2A data. After the completion of the R&D project, the curiosity of the topic and hunger for innovation motivated the team to search for the most suitable machine learning model and optimise it to the best level of accuracy.

The team has two members with a mentor. The first member of the project is Mayuri Mane, a BTech CSE student in the 4th year of her engineering. She is specialised in data science and has been working as the implementer of the project since January 2021. She performed the calculations and numerical simulations. The second member of the project is Trisha Sharma, a BTech CSE student, also in her 4th year of engineering and specialising in data science, who is the shaper of the project. She has been working on the technicals as well as sorting useful and arbitrary details to come up with a big-picture perspective.
Under the aegis of Startup India and MSME, Hillytech Starter runs a unique online hackathon. Students are expected to come up with innovative solutions to the industrial and societal problems faced by people living in hilly areas. The competition covers different themes such as science, technology, networking & business, electronics and even the pandemic. One hundred and twenty teams from across the country participated in Hillytech Hackathon 2020. The criteria for evaluation included the novelty of the idea, feasibility of the implementation, and whether it will sustain in the current market. Prizes ranged from internships to job opportunities, apart from cool gadgets and gift hampers. NU’s Team Bugsmashers comprising Ish Chaudhary, Ankit Gupta, Akshat Joshi, Sahej Anand Singh, Piyush Saklani the first position with their unique ‘Outdoor plant monitoring and tracking system’ that monitored weather, automated irrigation, measured soil quality, organised plant care and sent reminders about fertilisers and pest control.
NASA Space Apps Challenge 2020 was organised by NASA in collaboration with Hacker’s Tribe Foundation. The event saw the participation of over 26,000 people from nearly 150 countries. ‘The Bug Slayers’, Priyanshi Joshi, Anurag Porel, Chirag Chawla, Divyanshi Yadav, G Shalom, Karnanesh Bamanjogi who represented NU, received the Global Award Nominee in the Phase 1 Universal Event. The team proposed a specialised algorithm that suggests sleeping slots and the number of sleeping cycles for a user to work at maximum efficiency. This will help the users rest properly and balance their busy schedules. Further, depending on the user’s entered activity status and programme, the algorithm would also provide a customised daily calorie requirement and proposed carbohydrate, protein and fat intake.
The Hult Prize Foundation is a global learning platform that enables new generations to deliver social change through education and entrepreneurship. The Hult Prize is presented by Hult International Business School in partnership with United Nations Foundation.

An international idea-pitching competition, the Hult Prize competition is a year-long event with multiple phases – the campus round, regionals, an accelerator programme and the final round. The global programme provides an opportunity for students to suggest startup ideas which they believe can bring about social or global change. The theme for the 2020 competition was ‘Food for Good’.

The OnCampus event was organised in NU on 5 December 2020 by a team of NUtons, led by campus director Aman Gupta. Forty students in ten teams participated in the event. NU’s Team BioPure Abhinav Gupta, Somya Gupta, Parnika Jindal, Govind Yadav was the winner, going on to represent NU in the Regional Round, held in various destinations across the globe.

BioPure is a new-gen packaging start up that aims to revolutionise food packaging for Indian farmers. A vast quantity of food is wasted every year due to moisture, rodents and the fragility of packaging.

BioPure’s winning idea was to produce biopolymer food storage packaging based on nanotechnology. The durable, affordable and reusable packaging ensures effective food packaging and storage, reducing overall wastage. At BioPure, all packaging is sourced responsibly, and is designed to be effective and safe throughout its life cycle, thus making it a valuable resource for subsequent generations.
i4C Blogathon, a platform for upcoming writers to showcase their technical writing skills, is jointly created by The Inter Institutional Inclusive Innovations Center (i4C) and Smart India Hackathon. The competition involves writing a technical blog article on one of three suggested themes. It is open to undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral students.

i4C2020 received over 350 entries from all over the country. Anushree’s article, in the Student Innovation category, was based on health care innovation. It secured her the first runner up position in her category.

Please read her article here
Sumili Dey (BTech Biotechnology) received the Certificate of Honour for the Best Paper Presenter for her paper titled ‘Identification of novel dysregulated genes in ovarian cancer using NGS Data Analysis’ at the 7th International Conference on Research in Life-Sciences & Healthcare (ICRLSH) held at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in June 2019. The event brought together participants from all over the world to review and discuss the latest challenges of healthcare and life science and its application.

The ’best paper’ award is given to the best research paper submitted to and presented at the conference. Dey, along with Riddhi Modi, carried out the research as part of the R&D Project Course at NU under Dr Utkarsh Raj, Biotechnology & Bioinformatics area.

Check out the conference details as well as Ms Sumili Dey’s paper abstract
Riddhi Modi, a final year BTech Biotechnology student at NU, published a paper at the 7th ICRLSH 2019, Kuala Lumpur. Her research, ‘Targeting Aminopeptidases of PFA-M1 for Finding Novel Malaria Inhibitors’ – is in the highly critical area of malaria control. Ms Modi worked on the paper under the guidance of Dr Utkarsh Raj, Biotechnology & Bioinformatics.
Smart India Hackathon, a nationwide initiative, provides a platform for students to solve some of the most pressing issues mankind faces in daily life. NU’s SpaghettiCoders worked on ‘Enhancing the online shopping experience by supporting it with augmented reality’, a problem posed by Pepperfry at the event. They won the first runner-up position at an event that saw the best minds competing in a grand finale.
NUtons – Uddalak Bhaduri, Sarthak Tripathi and Shreyas Sanghvi won second prize at ‘Junction 2018’, Europe’s largest hackathon held at Aalto University, Finland. The event saw the attendance of 740 students from 105 countries. The team received €1000 Euros and a six-month funding for their idea at Finland if they decided to continue. They also worked at Espoo City Challenge under the Office of Mayor, Espoo City, Finland.

Hitesh Mittal (BTech CSE), along with ECE Faculty Dr Nitin Bhatia, submitted their paper titled ‘Broadcasting a laser using Bragg grating for free-space optical communication’ to PHOTONICS 2018, the International Conference on Fiber Optics and Photonics.

Their submission was accepted for Poster Presentation at the conference. PHOTONICS 2018 was held at the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi. In their paper, the authors demonstrated a technique for broadcasting a laser source in free space using a Bragg grating. The multiple diffraction orders are used as multiple receiving points. They also show that cascaded gratings would increase the number of receiver points. This method is easy to implement, low-cost and scalable to a large number of receiver points.

BITS, Pilani’s Oasis, is India’s second largest cultural festival and witnesses the participation of over five hundred colleges from across the country. NUtons performed exceptionally well across different events.

  • Shubhra Pandey bagged first prize in Western Solo Singing (Female)
  • Keerthana Reddy bagged the second prize in Indian Classical Singing
  • Sanya Kapoor reached the finals in Western Solo Singing (Female)
  • Muskan Goel reached the finals in Eastern Solo Singing (Female)
  • Yuvraj Singh and Deeptonabho Dutta reached the finals in Solo Guitar Competition
  • Kawal Nain Singh reached the Top 8 in Solo Drums Competition
Oher NUtons who performed equally well in their respective competitions are:

  • Debanshu Majumdar and Shashwat Mishra in Eastern Solo (Male)
  • Sakshi Dhawan in Eastern Solo (Female)
  • Mohini Mehrotra and Harsh Parmar in Indian Classical Singing
  • Ninad Kanchan in Indian Classical Instrumental
  • Gaurav Malhotra in Band Vocalist
HackHarvard is a 36-hour hackathon hosted by students from Harvard University. Shreyas and Sarthak’s project ‘No-BrainR’ secured first place in the ‘Best IoT Hack Using a Qualcomm device’ category. The prizes were awarded by MLH (Major League Hacking). You can read more about it here and here
Rishi Pisipati, now pursuing a master’s degree at Carnegie Mellon University, participated in the HACK THIS. HELP KIDS Hackathon, sponsored by the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Foundation. His team, ‘Thirsty Scholars’, won the top prize of $5,000 for their innovative solution for storing and delivering breast milk. Using a holistic approach to software, hardware and processes, Thirsty Scholars designed a hardware and software solution that ensured infants would receive the correct milk at the right time and at the right temperature. Pisipati had participated in hackathons when he was an undergraduate student at NU.
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