25th National Student Convention of CSI at Coimbatore

The 25th National Student Convention (NSC) of Computer Society of India (CSI) was held at Kumaraguru College of Technology (KCT), Coimbatore on 24th and 25th September, 2009. In keeping with the theme of the Annual Convention this year, the theme of this NSC was “Technology-Led Inclusive Growth” which aims to bring Renaissance and Empowerment through Adaptation and Localization of Information Technology (REAL -IT). The primary aim of the 25th National Student Convention was to put Indian youth in the centre stage of Technology-led inclusive growth to realize Vision 2020. This convention was organized by the CSI Coimbatore chapter, which is also celebrating its silver jubilee year. More than 750 students from 65 colleges from all parts of the country participated in this convention. The highlight of the event was the participation of several teams from other states such as Gujarat, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Pondicherry. Various events such as paper presentation, project presentation and exhibition, code debugging, technical quiz, best manager, web design contests apart from surprise events in logical reasoning were held.

The NSC was inaugurated by Prof. Bipin Mehta, Secretary of CSI on 24th September, 2009. He spoke about the role being played by CSI in disseminating technology and contribution to nation building. Dr. B.K. Krishnaraj Vanavarayar, Co-Chairman of KCT presided over the inaugural function. He highlighted the need of the hour being “Gandhian Engineering” and the importance of today’s youth to embrace core Indian values in their technology journey with a commitment to help fellow citizens, who are not blessed with the IT advantage. Senior functionaries of CSI, Prof. H.R. Vishwakarma, National Student Co-ordinator, Wg Cdr Murugesan, Director- Education and Ms.Mini Ulanat RSC- Region 7 also addressed the gathering. Mr. Ranga Rajagopal, Chairman of CSI Coimbatore chapter gave an overview of the event. Dr. S. Thangasamy, Dean- Computer Science of KCT welcomed the gathering. Senior CSI officials, past Chairmen, patrons of Coimbatore chapter including Mr. T. Mani, Dr. Sabapathy, Mr. O.A. Balasubramaniam, Dr. Nadarajan, Mr. N. Raveendran were supportive by their presence.

In the first keynote session, Mr.Vaidyanathan, Founder & CEO, Classle Knowledge Pvt. Ltd., Chennai spoke on the topic “IT Innovations for Social Transformation”. He highlighted the need to look at innovations to address the education issues facing our country and how the visible part of the effort could be the formation of a Learning Community. Mr. Srikanth Balakrishnan from Essentia, Bangalore delivered a very interactive session on the topic “Green IT” . He spoke on the initiatives being taken across the world for effectively implementing this area of vital significance. In his talk on “Communication Technologies & 11th Five year plan”, Mr. Gopi Krishna Garge, Researcher, ERNET group, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore comprehensively covered the various developments in the communication domain and the future directions. In his concluding lecture, Mr. Ravi Jagannathan, MD and CEO, 3i Infotech Consumer Services Ltd, Bangalore spoke on the topic “Consumer Services in India - Technology Challenges”. He spoke on the Indian population demography and how the tech savvy new generation is keen in using technology for everything resulting in more etransactions. He mentioned about the associated risks this would bring about leading to the need for enhanced Cyber security.

The CSI NSC being one of the oldest and most prestigious computer science events for students in India; there was an overwhelming response. More than 250 technical papers were received and after scrutiny by leading academicians, 120 were presented in 6 tracks. There was also a focused track for research scholars. The highlight of this multi-faceted event was a candlelight pledge administered by Prof. Bipin Mehta for all students to strive for world peace and happiness in keeping with the motto of CSI. The students of KCT were joined by some of the delegates in presenting an entertaining cultural program which was appreciated by all.

In the valedictory function, Mr. S. Ramanathan, RVP -7 spoke on the challenges facing students today and how they could be overcome. Dr. S. Subramanian, Chairman, Div 3-CSI encouraged the students to pursue innovative learning practices by which they could ensure a stable career. Prof. R. Annamalai, Principal, KCT presided over the function. Mr. P. R. Rangaswami, Fellow of CSI offered felicitations. The guests distributed the prizes and certificates to the winners. Mr. A. Sivabalan, Secretary of CSI Coimbatore and Mrs. Latha Suresh of KCT proposed a vote of thanks.

Source: csi-india.org/25th-national-student-convention-csi-coimbatore