Technex

Technex, IIT (BHU), Varanasi

Duration	3 days
Date	24th - 26th February, 2017
Venue	IIT BHU
Location	Varanasi, India
Coordinates	25°16′07″N 82°59′25″E / 25.26861°N 82.99028°E / 25.26861; 82.99028Coordinates: 25°16′07″N 82°59′25″E / 25.26861°N 82.99028°E / 25.26861; 82.99028
Type	Non-Profit Student Organisation
Theme	Transcendence is cool. Sustainability, better.
Organised by	IIT BHU, Varanasi
Participants	20,000+
Website	www.technex.in

Technex is the annual techno-management festival of Indian Institute of Technology (BHU) Varanasi.^[1] It was launched in 1939, with the aim of providing a competitive platform for innovative young engineers and entrepreneurs, promoting excellence in technical thinking and encouraging collaboration for progress. The festival consists of a number of events, including competitions, workshops and guest lectures from reputed personalities, alongside several social outreach initiatives.

Held annually as a three-day extravaganza in late Feb - early March;^[2] the festival and its organizing team hold a number of activities throughout the year, with a view of developing interest in innovative technology among the masses as well as several social initiatives that intend to implement novel technological solutions to major scientific challenges like resource shortage & climate change to day-to-day problems. Technex witnesses participation from over 400 colleges across India and a footfall of more than 20,000 students.

History

Ever since its inception, Technex has endeavored to celebrate innovation and technological prowess. With evolution in the technical capacities of the nation, the technical festival of the nation’s premier engineering institution has also evolved to reflect the same. Staying true to the ideology of Pt. Madan Mohan Malviya, the founder of the Banaras Hindu University, of which the institution was a part until a few years back; the festival has adopted an inclusive approach, giving even the most deprived, an opportunity to grow and showcase its talent. At the same time, a competitive backbone has kept the festival abuzz with enthusiastic participation from several institutions over the years. Technex has organized several campaigns and drives even as part of the erstwhile IT (BHU), to improve the living conditions of the city of Varanasi.

Organization and Structure

The festival is organized under the patronage of the IIT (BHU), Gymkhana, yet, is an entirely student driven operation. The core organizing team consisting of fifty odd members is assisted by several auxiliary teams, each handling some specific tasks pertaining either to Administration or Event Organization. Administrative portfolios include Finance, Marketing, Publicity, Hospitality, and Public Relations^[2] etc., while Events portfolios include individual event/activity organization, web design, content development etc. The core team is headed by a convener and co-convener, while every event has an event coordinator and all auxiliary teams, have one or two students in-charge. In addition, several student volunteers associate with the teams to assist in the organization and smooth conduct of the festival.

Guest Lectures^[3]

These are one feature of the festival that stand out every year, with eminent personalities from the scientific community gracing the institution with their presence, thoughts and ideas. Audiences flock to attend these lectures which are themed around scientific developments and the impact that technology has had and can have on the society. Students and participants, also get a chance to interact with these guests and these have been some of the best moments of Technex over the years. Some big names that have been a part of the festival are Prof. Bjarne Stroustrup and Prof. Daniela Cerqui in Technex ’15; Dr. H. C. Verma and Dr. Peter Jenni in Technex ’14, and Dr. Jayant V. Narlikar, Dr. Yash Pal, Dr. Prem Chand Pandey, to name a few others.

Events

These are the backbone of the festival, while some are organized in several tiers over a period of several months, others are three night celebrations of excellence and elegance.

• Competitions^[4]: Majority of the events organized by the festival are competitive in nature and encompass several different themes of engineering, with the intention of giving every student a chance to gauge his potential and appreciate the talent of budding prodigies. These competitive events are themed as follows:
  • Robonex: As is evident from the name itself, these are competitive events centered around application of robotics, and are one of the most popular events among student participants. One of the most popular events in this domain has been Robowars, where participants design manually driven to semi-autonomous robots and then are pitted against each other in a survival match. In addition there are events like Hurdle Mania, Xestos, Pixelate, Aqua Mania etc. which all garner a lot of participation. All winners in these events are awarded cash prizes and certificates of excellence.
  • Extreme Engineering: These events are modelled around general engineering principles, from Model Car designs, to Aeromodelling, to Building and Bridge design of and are designed to tax the brains of even the sharpest. Events include La Trajectoire, Axelerate, Bridge-it, Goldberg’s Alley to name a few. Cash Prizes and Certificates are awarded to all winners.
  • Byte the Bits: This is the annual coding challenge of Technex, with several events modelled around programming and advanced computing mathematics. Events are organized in association with online coding partners, and several participants have been awarded internships based on their excellent performance in these challenges. Prominent events include the annual Hackathon, Matheletics and Wizards of Byteland. Cash Prizes and Certificates are awarded to all winners.
  • Riqueza: This is the business, entrepreneurial and management section of the festival. Events are themed around a variety of themes that are of importance to modern day technocrats, from business plans to marketing strategy to online stock market challenges. Brand-Aid, Manthan, Bulls on the Floor, and Spotlight are some of the annual events conducted under this theme. Participation in this theme from management students has been overwhelming. Cash Prizes and Certificates are awarded to all winners.
  • Creatrix: Events under this theme are largely based around animation, design, photography and creative modelling on computers. This theme has been attracting a large number of students over the years, with competitions on minimalist design to animation challenges. Events include Collage, Avant Garde, ISO, Minimize, and Animaze. Cash Prizes and Certificates are awarded to all winners.
  • Supernova: This is the challenge for the astronomy enthusiasts with events like The scientists of Utopia, Astrophotography, AstroQuiz. Cash Prizes and Certificates are awarded to all winners.
  • Clutch: This is the informal computer gaming challenge of the festival, with competitions organized on a large number of popular games open to all participants. Cash Prizes are awarded to all winners.
  • Modex: This is the technological exhibition of the festival which witnesses massive participation from engineering enthusiasts of all fields and branches. Exhibitions are categorized into Open Hardware, Open Software and Open Simulation and has witnessed some remarkable prototypes which are now being funded for business development and patenting.
• Workshops^[5]: Workshops are organized annually as part of the festival throughout the year and in the final three day conclave as well. Themes vary from programming, ethical hacking, to reverse engineering, simulation and training on specialized commercial software packages. Participation is at a nominal fee and witnesses participation from students of the institute and outside. These are usually in collaboration with professional training institutes from around the nation.
• Online Events: Several online events are organized by the festival team throughout the year to keep the students engaged and on their toes about the technical progress around the globe.
• Startup Fair: Since 2016 Startup Fair got a start, which is the biggest national convention for young entrepreneurs being organized by IIT (BHU) Varanasi in association with MCIIE. It features a plethora of events including guest lectures, elevator pitch, workshops, Networking Meet and panel discussions. The mentor list includes persons like Gaurav Kedia, Anupam Raghuwanshi, Sanket shah and so on.

Social Initiatives^[6]

The team at Technex, with the intention of giving back to the society, organizes several awareness campaigns and drives to improve societal understanding of new and improved technologies, and implement schemes and programs that can help people to utilize the benefits of said innovations. In addition, cleanliness drives are organized regularly inside the university campus and in surrounding areas. Awareness about public hygiene is spread through enthusiastic volunteers through visits to schools, and residential colonies. Pollution of the river Ganges has been an issue of utmost importance to the city residents and campaigns to reign in the damage being caused as a result of this have been organized.

Associates and Sponsors^[7]

Technex receives extensive coverage in print, television, digital as well as online media. Technex has had Times of India,^[8] KnowAFest,^[9] twenty19,^[10] and 93.5 RED FM as its media partners. In the past known organisations like UNEP have supported Technex in its endeavours. In terms of industrial association and sponsorship, Technex receives sponsorship from PSUs, Banking, Electronics, Real Estate, Automobile and a wide range of other such sectors. In the past we’ve had association with top firms and startups like Microsoft, Lenskart, Asus, Axis Bank, OYO Rooms, Adani, Tata Steel, UCO Bank, GAIL, Tata Motors, Baskin Robbins, Zest, HackerRank, Moneypot and more such sponsors. Organisations such as Swissnex,^[11] NIIT, Learnix and YuvaPrerna have also partnered with Technex for the promotion of Science & Technology and Entrepreneurship. Social initiatives of Technex have received the support of esteemed NGOs like Natham, HelpAge India, Lotus Petal Foundation, Life Without Plastic, Slum Soccer, Umeed, Lakshyam, DITSA, India Fellow and U&I. With a diverse participation, Technex is a very good place for engaging and interacting with the youth of the country.

References

External links

• Technex'17 http://www.technex.in/