News Category: Alumni in News

When Dreams Take Flight: IIT Bombay Alumnus and NASA Goddard Research Scientist, Dr. Sujay V. Kumar, Wins the Coveted 2022 Arthur S. Flemming Award”

IIT Bombay alumnus, Dr. Sujay V. Kumar (B.Tech., Civil Engineering, 1996) and a NASA Goddard research scientist won the prestigious 2022 Arthur S. Flemming Award. This esteemed recognition is a testament to Dr. Kumar’s research contributions and his position as a trailblazer in his field. The NASA Goddard organization took cognisance of Dr. Kumar’s profound impact on advancing scientific knowledge and remarked, “The award is presented annually to outstanding federal employees in science, technology, engineering, administration, leadership, and law. Dr. Kumar researches Earth remote sensing measurement and modeling within Goddard’s Hydrological Sciences Lab.”

Dr. Kumar’s Academic Background

After graduating with his B. Tech. degree from IIT Bombay, Dr. Kumar received his M.S. in Civil Engineering from North Carolina State University in 1998. He then got his Ph. D. in Computer Aided Engineering from North Carolina State University in 2002. His dissertation topic was, “Vitri- A Generic Framework for Engineering Decision Support Systems on Heterogeneous Computer Networks.”

His research interests include Surface Hydrology, Land Surface Modelling, Data Assimilation, Remote Sensing, High-Performance Computing, Biosphere-Atmosphere Interactions, Climate Variability & Climate Changes; Earth System Modelling, Parallel/Distributed Computing, Mathematical Modelling, Decision Support Systems, and Heuristic Optimization Techniques.

Tracing Dr. Kumar’s Career Trajectory

Dr. Kumar has been with the NASA Goddard Space Flight Centre since 2002.

Dr. Kumar spent his initial years (2002-2008) after his Doctorate working as an Assistant Research Scientist for the Goddard Earth Science Technology Centre, Greenbelt, MD. He was the technical lead for the development of the NASA Land Information System (LIS) for fine-scale land surface modelling and data assimilation. He also successfully led the transition of LIS to operations at the Air Force Weather Agency, NOAA/NCEP, and NOHRSC. He then served as the technical lead for NASA Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) funded projects to develop coupled land-atmosphere modelling system involving LIS and the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model, using interoperable technologies such as the Earth System Modelling Framework (ESMF).

He then became the Senior Scientist (2008-2015) at the Science Applications International Corporation, Greenbelt, MD, where he served as the technical lead for transitioning the award-winning Land Information System (LIS; http://lis.gsfc.nasa.gov) for research and applications with partners at the Air Force Weather Agency, NOAA/NCEP, USACE, USDA, NRL, NWS/OHD, NOHRSC, and USGS/FEWSNET.

In 2015, he moved to the NASA Goddard Space Flight Centre, Greenbelt, MD, as a Research Physical Scientist. He researches on Earth science remote sensing measurement and modelling to understand their impact on land-atmosphere interactions and relationships with human activities through the analysis of data from space, in-situ and airborne instruments. He continues to serve as the technical lead for transitioning the award-winning Land Information System (LIS; http://lis.gsfc.nasa.gov) for research and applications with partners at the Air Force Weather Agency, NOAA/NCEP, USACE, USDA, NRL, NWS/OHD, NCAR, NOHRSC, and USGS/FEWSNET. The targeted use of LIS spans socially relevant applications such as water resources and agricultural management, drought, and flood monitoring, famine early warning and prediction, and weather and climate prediction.

Scientific Achievements and Recognition

Over the years Dr. Kumar has become a member of several prestigious organizations including the American Geophysical Union and the American Meteorological Society. He has received many awards, published over 120 academic papers in prestigious journals, chaired several scientific committees, and is the editor/associate editor of several journals.

For more on Dr. Kumar’s Journey, click the link below:

https://science.gsfc.nasa.gov/sed/bio/sujay.v.kumar

IIT Bombay is delighted at the incredible honour that has been bestowed upon one of its very own. The Institute extends its heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Kumar for winning the prestigious 2022 Arthur S. Flemming Award. His exceptional journey serves as a shining example to our current and future students. As Dr. Kumar continues to push boundaries and contribute to the advancement of scientific research, we wish him continued success in all his endeavours, and we are confident that he will continue to make his alma mater extremely proud.

IIT Bombay Alumnus, Mr. Manan Agarwal, Secures All-India Rank 46 in the UPSC CSE 2022

IIT Bombay is immensely proud of its very young alumnus, Mr. Manan Agrawal (B. Tech., Chemical Engineering, 2020) for securing the All-India Rank 46 in the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Civil Service Exam 2022. As yet another IIT Bombay alumnus rises to the top in one of the toughest entrance exams in the country, our legacy of excellence continues to shine.

Hearty congratulations to Mr. Manan on this momentous accomplishment, even as we extend our heartfelt wishes for his future endeavours.

From IBM to Conexiom: Mr. Ash Abhyankar’s Legacy of Leadership IITB Alumnus, Mr. Ash Abhyankar, Recognised for his Exemplary Service

IIT Bombay alumnus, Mr. Ash Abhyankar (B.Tech., Electrical Engineering, 1965) was recently presented with an Honorary Lifetime Achievement Award by the National Association of Electrical Distributors and Manufacturers (NAED) during their national meeting at Marco Island, FL, USA.

Mr. Abhyankar said he was honoured and humbled at being chosen for this very prestigious award.

Mr. Abhyankar is a Servant Leader at Conexiom and the latter paid tribute to his stellar career in a writeup which said, “Over his 58-year career, Ash Abhyankar spent half of it at IBM and held several senior leadership roles at AT&T, Fujitsu, and other smaller organizations after retiring from 26 years at IBM. During the past 20 years of his responsibilities at Conexiom, Abhyankar has applied his expertise to sales, marketing, business development, finance, HR, and cultivating alliances across the industry. During his past 10-year association with NAED, his Conexiom team has supported more than 60 NAED members in their order-to-cash and procure-to-pay digital transformation initiatives.”

Read the entire article here:

https://conexiom.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/NAED-2023-Award-Ash-single-pages-NO-crops-Misty.pdf

Click here for a video of the award ceremony:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/ash-abhyankar-m-sc-p-eng-3547a_ash-abhyankar-recognised-by-naed-with-the-activity-7067875238927048704-PNIM?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios

IIT Bombay extends its heartfelt congratulations to Mr. Abhyankar for his unwavering dedication and pursuit of excellence throughout his life. The Institute is delighted that NAED recognised his service and presented him with the prestigious Honorary Lifetime Achievement Award.

IITB Distinguished Alumnus, Mr. Ram Kelkar, Delivers the Shashwat Panda Memorial Lecture

IITB distinguished alumnus. Mr. Ram Kelkar (B.Tech., Electrical Engineering, 1980), was the guest speaker at the prestigious Shashwat Panda Memorial Lecture. Mr. Kelkar is the Principal and Managing Director, Capital Markets Group at Milliman Financial Risk Management LLC.

In his lecture, Mr. Kelkar highlighted the critical and relevant skills that are required in building successful careers and drew parallels to the several unique and impactful career paths blazed by IIT Bombay alumni. Mr. Kelkar also shared learnings from his own career experiences as he moved from Silicon Valley to Wall Street and built on the skills and knowledge that he gained at IIT Bombay.

The Institute takes great pride in having Distinguished Alumni such as Mr. Kelkar share his valuable insights with its students and faculty.

Watch Lecture : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB6f-ELQivQ

IITB and SARC Host CEO Connect – Zishaan Hayath, Founder & CEO, Toppr

IIT Bombay and SARC hosted version 3 of their extremely successful CEO Connect with IITB alumnus, Mr. Zishaan Hayath (B.Tech, Civil Engineering, 2005), Founder & CEO, Toppr.

Toppr is India’s leading after-school learning platform that Mr. Hayath founded as a way to make learning fun, personalised, and exciting. And Toppr is currently India’s most advanced and comprehensive learning app for classes 5th-12th. Mr. Hayath discussed key learnings from his life as a student of IITB, his professional and personal highs and lows, mantras for success, and more!

CEO Connect brings back IITB alumni who are in CEO positions back to their alma mater for extensive interaction with students. The Institute is committed to helping students connect with these alumni and learn valuable lessons from their personal and professional trajectories.

IITB Distinguished Alumnus, Mr. Deepak Satwalekar, sets up the ‘Deepak and Maya Satwalekar Design and Making Lab’

IITB Distinguished Alumnus, Mr. Deepak Satwalekar [B.Tech. (Hons)., Mechanical Engineering, 1971)], generously contributed to the setting up of the ‘Deepak and Maya Satwalekar Design and Making Lab’ at the Institute.

The Lab was officially inaugurated on Dec 19, 2022, with a special ceremony held on campus.
This Lab forms an essential part of the Institute’s larger Makerspace program that envisions providing a comprehensive education to first-year students through exposure to hands-on learning that will complement and strengthen theoretical concepts. This first-of-its-kind initiative at the Institute will train students to combat and overcome challenges found in real-world industrial setups, through a multidisciplinary course.

This modern facility comprises advanced equipment, and over 250 workstations and will be accessible to nearly 1,400 first-year engineering students. It will train them in the latest design and manufacturing practices in engineering, similar to those found in real-world industrial setups. Essentially, the bright and curious young minds of IIT Bombay will get to learn the latest design and manufacturing practices at the very beginning of their academic journeys itself.

The Lab is one more step in the Institute taking the lead by introducing newer pedagogical styles.
During the inauguration, Mr. Satwalekar spoke passionately about the need to provide a well-rounded education to students. This was key to his generous donation towards the lab. He also explained the crucial role that hands-on learning plays in helping students create real-world applications for classroom concepts.

The Lab will also allow the Institute to get one step closer to becoming ‘Aatmanirbhar’ in science and technology through indigenous means.

IITB Distinguished Alumnus, Mr. Sharad Sanghi, sets up the ‘Sunita Sanghi Centre of Aging & Neurodegenerative Diseases’ (SCAN)

IITB’s Distinguished Alumnus, Mr. Sharad Sanghi (B. Tech., Electrical Engineering, 1989) generously donated to the Institute to set up the ‘Sunita Sanghi Centre of Aging & Neurodegenerative Diseases’ (SCAN).

SCAN will focus on creating novel tools and biomarkers for the early detection, diagnosis, and prognosis of neurodegenerative disorders. The Centre will pursue research on the onset of molecular, cellular, and biochemical mechanisms and the progression of neurodegenerative diseases. It will also develop novel tools and biomarkers for early detection, diagnosis, and prognosis of diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD).

Speaking during the inauguration of SCAN which was held at IITB campus on January 9, 2023, Prof. Subhasis Chaudhuri, Director, IIT Bombay, said, “Neurodegenerative diseases are likely to rise with the ageing Indian population. Therefore, early detection and decelerating the onset of such disorders is pivotal for effective therapy. This Centre will assist us in meeting this challenge. IIT Bombay is grateful for Sharad’s generous contribution which will play an instrumental role in our endeavour.”

Scholarship set up by IIT Bombay alumnus to support one student per year for 25 years!

IIT Bombay alumnus, Mr. Alok Maskara (B.Tech., Chemical Engineering, 1992) has set up a ‘Diamond Level Scholarship’ which will support the tuition, hostel, and mess fees for one student per year over a period of 25 years.

The scholarship will be named the “Annapurna and Hare Narain Maskara Scholarship” in honour of Mr. Maskara’s parents. It will add to IITB alumni’s rich legacy of supporting student scholarships at the Institute.

Honouring his generosity, IIT Bombay has named Mr. Maskara as a “Leadership Circle Donor” as part of a special ‘Donor Wall’ featured on the #DEANACR website.

Click this link here https://lnkd.in/dBSNJD4u to have a look.

Providing an equitable launchpad for success to meritorious students is one of IIT Bombay’s key priorities. The Institute is grateful to Mr. Maskara for his contribution which will help provide wings to the dreams of India’s deserving youth.