IIT Ropar hosts PIWOT Satellite Conference

Bahadurjeet Singh/Rupnagar,January 25,2025

The office of International relations and Alumni affairs at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar hosted the PanIIT World of Technology (PIWOT) Satellite Conference, bringing together distinguished experts from academia, industry, and defense.The conference centered on pivotal themes such as Artificial Intelligence, skilling for Industry 5.0, and defense technology. The key highlights of the event were the panel discussions with experts, signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Wheels Global Foundation and visits to IITs Technology Business Incubator Foundation (TBIF), Central research Facilities and Dr Ranbir Singh Tinkerers’ Lab.

The event began with a traditional Lamp Lighting Ceremony, followed by a welcome address from Prof. Rajeev Ahuja, Director of IIT Ropar. Eminent speakers, including Harpreet Singh Nibber, Head of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), and Dr. Rajnikant S. Shah, Chairman of the Health Council, delivered impactful speeches, highlighting the importance of Engineers and doctors to come together with industry to innovate and make lives in rural areas even better. Dr. Bindukumar, board of director wheels, emphasized the importance of being employers themselves rather than being employees.

The conference featured three insightful sessions which are very relevant to current world scenarios. Session 1 was focused on The AI Revolution in Industry 5.0, moderated by Prof. Neeraj Goel of IIT Ropar, this session explored how Artificial Intelligence is transforming industries. Discussions revolved around how AI is driving innovations in medical science, defense, robotics and its importance on creating impactful, multi-domain technologies. Session 2 was on Bridging the Skilling Gap – Preparing Future-Ready Engineers which was presided over by T.K. Mukherjee, President & CEO, Cybertec and Sanjiv Sethi, Managing Director, Gillard Electronics who emphasized hands-on, project-based learning and the importance of lifelong learning in today’s dynamic industries. Prof. Chandan Chowdhury of Indian School of Business, highlighted how skilling has changed over the years and gave the importance of learning new skills for changing work scenarios. The session also emphasized integrating technical knowledge with critical thinking, problem-solving, teamwork, and also the importance of communication skills in engineering education.

Session 3 was on Role of Academia in Technology Development and Indigenization for a Self-Reliant Armed Forces, which was attended by Lt. Gen. Surinder Singh Mahal (Retd.), and Lt. Gen. Mohit Wadhwa, HQ Western Command, Akshay Singh, Managing Director, Evigway Technologies and T.K. Mukherjee from Cybertec, the Discussions highlighted the Indian Army’s efforts to adopt AI-driven solutions and the importance of collaboration among academia, industry, and defense to achieve technological self-reliance.

The final session comprised of Startup Competition jointly organized by IIT Ropar’s Technology Business Incubator Facility (TBIF) and Wheels Global Foundation, showcased innovative ideas from startups. The first prize was awarded to Easecruit, founded by Deepanshu Sharma and co-founder Kartik, student entrepreneurs incubated at TBIF, IIT Ropar. The second prize went to MlLworkX Pvt. Ltd., founded by Arpit Asthana and co-founder Sourabh Semwal.

Delegates also visited IIT Ropar’s cutting-edge research facilities and the Dr. Ranbir Singh Tinkerers’ Laboratory. Students and faculty get to showcase their latest research through an engaging poster session. The event also saw active participation from IIT Ropar alumni, students from other universities, and industry professionals.

Neha Sardana, the Dean IR&AA, at IIT Ropar said that these kinds of events can enforce the current efforts of industry – academia collaboration and have contributions from paniit alumni association in creating a startup ecosystem and guiding younger generations to work for a better future together.

The PIWOT Satellite Conference reinforced IIT Ropar’s dedication to bridging gaps between academia, industry, and defense. By fostering collaboration, driving innovation, and promoting skill development, the institute is paving the way for transformative progress and a brighter future.