Tag: Mining

IIT Kharagpur calls for 100 Patents in 100 days

Aligning with India’s Semiconductor Mission and with an aim to strengthen the semiconductor facilities in India and to celebrate India’s Techade Vision and Viksit Bharat @2047, IIT Kharagpur conducted an In-house programme on the India’s Semiconductor Mission in the Netaji Auditorium of the institute that involved 650 participants including students, faculty members, and staff members.

Lighting of the Lamp

The programme began with the lighting of the lamp by Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur in the presence of Prof. Amit Patra, Deputy Director; Prof. Rintu Banerjee, Dean, R&D; Prof. Krishna Kumar, Dean, FoS; Prof. T K Bhattacharya, HoD, E&ECE; Prof. A K Singh, President, TSG; Captain Amit Jain (Retd.), Registrar of IIT Kharagpur.


Prof. Rintu Banerjee, Dean R&D addresses the gathering

A brief introduction of the India’s Semi-conductor Mission was addressed by Prof. Rintu Banerjee, Dean R&D, IIT Kharagpur that gave a vivid idea about how semi-conductors are evolving to be the basic ingredient for all our operating and manufacturing devices. Prof. Banerjee highlighted the need of a streamlined applications of ISM that is necessary for Quantum Computing and Quantum Mission. She added that IIT Kharagpur has to take the lead role in ISM and has the adequate resources to support this mission with IP protection and infrastructure development. She also encouraged the war cry for “100 Patents in 100 Days and further towards 100 Patents in 100 Hours.”

Students, Faculty and Staff Members gathered in the Netaji Auditorium

A special drive of Sponsored Research and Industrial Consultancy Cell of IIT Kharagpur, has successfully filed an increase in about 2.5 folds enhanced patent filing in the year 2023 compared to previous year 2022. Similarly, a 4-fold increase in the number of granted patents has been achieved by the Sponsored Research and Industrial Consultancy Cell with the Special initiative taken. A record number of 106 patents have been filed and 71 got granted in 2023 which is more than 4 times compared to 2022. The patents are from different fields viz Aerospace, Agricultural and Food Processing, Chemical, Electrical, Civil, Computer Science, AI and IoT, Cryogenics, Robotics, Rubber Technology, 6G & beyond telecommunication, Energy Science, Industrial and Systems, Metallurgical and Materials, Mining, Nanoscience and Technology, Medical Science and Technology.

Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur addressing the gathering

Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur remarked, “I congratulate all the faculty members, scholars and students for their initiatives and innovations with special thanks to the Sponsored Research and Industrial Consultancy Cell. ‘100 days 100 patents’ drive has a special promotional effect on the entire patent prosecution process. We have also taken special initiative for International patent filings. IIT Kharagpur have produced the national as well as global leaders that dominate the AI and Semi-conductor industry today and the institute has already engaged 10,000 students for AI in Cyber Physical Systems aiming to incubate 20,000 students in the next cohort. The institute is working towards infrastructure development for Assembling and Testing Facility to create the ecosystem to implement ISM successfully and critical mass education at the B.Tech, M.Tech & PhD level along with 35,000 specialized technicians along with global university collaborations for industry-academia participation.”

Live Telecast of Prime Minister’s Address

India’s Semiconductor Mission has been setup by the Government of India to create an end-to-end semiconductor ecosystem to enable the nation to become a significant player in the global semiconductor industry. Therefore, to celebrate India’s Techade Vision, India’s Semi-Conductor Mission and how Viksit Bharat @2047 can be achieved through research and innovation, IIT Kharagpur conducted an In-house programme in the Netaji Auditorium of the institute that involved the participation of the students, faculty members, and staff members. The institute also conducted a Panel Discussion on the Scope & Opportunities of IIT Kharagpur in Indian Semiconductor Mission with the senior faculties of the institute.

Prof. T K Bhattacharya, HoD, Electronics & Electrical Communication Engineering giving his presentation on ISM

Prof. T K Bhattacharya, HoD, Electronics and Electrical Communication Engineering gave a presentation on India Semiconductor Research Centre (ISRC) Vision to drive an innovation roadmap in advanced semiconductor and packaging technologies, coordinate university research and accelerate manufacturing capability across India and the world that includes Academic Research & Development; Industry Research & Development; Volume Manufacturing; India University Innovation Pipeline and Research Collaboration. He amplified the need for foundational research pillars for ISRC that comprises of Advanced Logic; Packaging R&D; Compound/Power Semiconductor and Chop Design & EDA and gave a detailed ideation on mapping R&D Investments. He also emphasized on the need for Academic R&D; Educated Workforce; ISRC Structure and Governance; ISRC indigenously developed agenda for global impact etc.

Prof. Anandaroop Bhattacharya, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering giving a presentation on ISM Packaging

His presentation was followed by Prof. Anandaroop Bhattacharya, Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Kharagpur who presented the need for Design Semiconductor Packaging and Systems (DSPS). He defined Electronic and Integrated System Packaging that are essential commodities required for ISM.

Panel Discussion on Scope & Opportunities of IIT Kharagpur in Indian Semiconductor Mission

After the address of the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, a panel discussion was organized on the topic, “Scope & Opportunities of IIT Kharagpur in the Indian Semiconductor Mission,“ with Prof. Amit Patra, Deputy Director; Prof. T K Bhattacharya, HoD, E&ECE; Prof. D K Goswami, Physics;  Prof. S. Basu Majumdar, HOC, (MSC); Prof. Anandaroop Bhattacharya, ME; Prof. Mrinal Kanti Mandal, E&ECE; Prof. Samit K Ray, Physics; Prof. S S Das, GSSST and Prof. S K Varshney, E&ECE. The entire programme was hosted by Dr. Rajeev Rawat, Hindi Officer, IIT Kharagpur. The programme concluded with a Vote of Thanks by Captain Amit Jain (Retd.), Registrar, IIT Kharagpur.

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By: Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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T. V. Narendran is the new Chairman of Board of Governors of IIT Kharagpur

T. V. Narendran, CEO & Managing Director of Tata Steel Limited is appointed as the New Chairman of Board of Governors of IIT Kharagpur

IIT Kharagpur welcomes Mr. T. V. Narendran as the new Chairman, Board of Governors of the institute. A Mechanical Engineer from the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Trichy and MBA from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Calcutta, Mr. Narendran is the CEO & Managing Director of Tata Steel Limited. Mr. Thachat Viswanath Narendran is the Chairman of Tata Steel Europe and Tata Steel Long Products Limited and oversees the organic and inorganic growth of Tata Steel over the last few years.

Over 34 years of experience in the Mining and Metals industry, Mr. Narendran is a member of the Executive Committee and the Board of the World Steel Association. He was the co-chair of the Mining & Metals Governor Council of the World Economic Forum from 2016 to 2018. A Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering and served as the President of the Indian Institute of Metals from 2021 to 2022, he was also the President of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) from 2021 to 2022. Recipient of Distinguished Alumnus Awards from both NIT Trichy and IIM Calcutta, he is a Chevening Scholar and has also attended the Advanced Management Programme in INSEAD, France.

Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur remarked, “We welcome Mr. T V Narendran as the new Chairperson of the Board of Governors of IIT Kharagpur. As a man beholding technical and industrial supremacy, he understands the need of the society and practical implications of industry-academia amalgamation with a technical institution. We look forward to his able guidance, constructive ideations and supportive encouragement in reshaping this institute for its future aspirations.”

Mr. Narendran joined Tata Steel in 1988 straight after his MBA from IIM Calcutta. He worked in the International Trading Division of Tata Steel from 1988 to 1997 wherein he spent five years in Dubai looking after Tata Steels’ exports to the Middle East. From 1997 to 2001, he spent time in Tata Steels’ marketing and sales division and was involved in market development work for the Cold Rolling Mill Project, Supply Chain Management, Sales Planning, etc. From 2001 to 2003, he was the Chief of Marketing & Sales (Long Products) and played a key role in building the ‘Tata Tiscon” brand and the distribution network for the same.

From 2003 to 2005, he worked with B. Muthuraman, the then Managing Director of Tata Steel, as his Principal Executive Officer. Before being appointed as MD – Tata Steel India and South East Asia, on 1 November 2013, Narendran was the Vice President – Safety & Flat Products Divisions of Tata Steel. He is currently on the Boards of Tata Steel Limited, Tata Steel Europe, CEDEP, XLRI and World Steel Association. He was honoured with the Life Fellow Award 2022 on the occasion of the 68th Convocation of the Institute held on 24th December 2022.

The institute appreciates the excellent services rendered by Dr. R P Singh, Outgoing Chairman, Board of Governors, IIT Kharagpur who emphasized on research that accelerates community outreach and develops societal upgradation with strong industry alliance. His insights, directions and viability will be upheld in the highest of regards.

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Edited By : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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Hult Prize 2023 for Team StrawDeshi of IIT Kharagpur secures a spot in the Global Accelerator

Ideas and creativity are the most important human resources of all. Without ideas and creativity, there would be no progress, and we would be forever repeating the same patterns. Creativity is thinking up new things and innovation is doing new things.  Team StrawDeshi comprising of fourth year students Ayushman Agrawal (Mechanical Engineering), Daivik Agrawal (Mechanical Engineering), Purva Agrawal (Mining) and Tanishq Mittal (Metallurgy) from IIT Kharagpur emerged as winners at the Mumbai Summit of the Hult Prize 2023. StrawDeshi competed among 40 teams in the campus round of the Hult Prize.

Team StrawDeshi’s idea was to use agro-waste rice straw as a raw material and extract its fibre to create winter jacket insulation, replacing down feathers, cotton and polyester filling materials.

The second round consisted of 12 summits worldwide, in which Team StrawDeshi won at t

 

he Mumbai Summit which had 70 teams participating from IITs, IIMs and other colleges, majorly from South Asia. Their extraordinary ideas and commitment have secured them a spot in the Global Accelerator where they would be one of 20 teams across the globe working to improve and launch their product. Finally, six teams will compete in the finals to be held in Paris. For the three consecutive years, teams from IIT Kharagpur are winning in the category of South East Asia Region.

The Hult Prize is an annual, year-long competition that crowdsources ideas from university level students after challenging them to solve a pressing social issue around topics such as food security, water access, energy, and education with a $1 million as the anchor prize. It transforms how young people envision their own possibilities as Leaders of Change in the world around them.

The 2023 Hult Prize Call to Action is about creating a for-profit social venture, in the fashion/clothing industry. Ideas from students must create a measurable positive impact on people and the planet and support the United Nations in meeting its Social Development Goals by 2030.

Inputs by : Mr. Samarth Singh, Student Vice President, Technology Students Gymkhana
Email: samarth2003@kgpian.iitkgp.ac.in

Edited by : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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The Mighty Miner

May tender memories soften your grief,
May fond recollection bring you relief,
And may you find comfort and peace in the thought
Of the joy that knowing your loved one brought…
For time and space can never divide
Or keep your loved one from your side.
When memory paints in colors true,
the happy hours that belonged to you.

Bidding adieu to Prof. Madisetti Anant Ramlu, who served as the founder and first Head of the Department of Mining Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur from 1958 until 1987 and retired as the Deputy Director & Acting Director of IIT Kharagpur. He was a subject matter expert in the area of mine safety, machinery, and open-cast mining and received his BS in Mining & Metallurgy from the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) and his PhD in Mining Engineering from Bergakadamie Clausthal, Germany.

Mr. Arjun Malhotra, Distinguished Alumnus, IIT Kharagpur shared his grief  by quoting, “Deeply saddened to hear the news of the passing earlier this morning of our beloved and revered Professor Madisetti Anant Ramlu. A stalwart and a giant among the IIT KGP Community and the Mining World.  He is survived by his wife Mrs Sarojadevi and sons Vijaykrishna and Avanindra.  He had a wonderful life and he enriched everyone who was connected to him.” 

A pioneer specialist in mining industry, Prof. Ramlu conveyed that IIT Kharagpur is the only IIT that offers a degree in Mining Engineering in India thus contributing to the modern curriculum of mining education by introducing laboratory experiments in collaborations with the industry. For 20 years, he has served in this institute in different roles including the Head of the Mining Department and everything we see today in mining engineering department was his brain child. Even today, people fondly remember Prof. Ramlu’s contributions, affections and support that he has extended to his students, researchers and fellow colleagues.

“I first met Prof. M A Ramlu as a freshman, when I took admission in IIT Kharagpur. I was under his tutelage from 1971 to 1984, first as a student, then as a researcher and finally as a colleague. He was one of the people that influenced me the most, especially during my formative years. He was a rightfully proud man. He personified Simple Living and High thinking and was such a prominent personality in IIT and in the Mining world. Honesty and forthrightness were his hallmarks. It was my honour to be under his supervision and find him as a mentor. During his later years, he became first the Dean of Sponsored Research and Industrial Consultancy and subsequently the Deputy Director and Acting Director at IIT Kharagpur. It was disheartening to hear the passing of such a great man who played crucial role in my life. He retired from IIT Kharagpur in 1987 but until his dying day he remained a living proof that you can take a man out of IIT but you can’t take IIT out of a man..!,” said Sunil Murlidhar Shastri, a dear student of the deceased who paid homage by sharing a eulogy.”

He also served as the Dean of Sponsored Research and Industrial Consultancy (SRIC), Deputy Director, and Acting Director of the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, between 1980 and 1987. After retirement in 1987, he settled in Hyderabad, India, and frequently served as a consultant to the peer industries and government. He received the Prof. S K Bose Memorial Teaching Award in 2009, the Thacker Coal Mining Gold Medal from the Mines, Metals & Geological Institute of India (MMGI), and the Lifetime Achievement Medal from Mining Engineers’ Association of India (MEAI) in 2013. Dr. Ramlu is a renowned author of several books in the area of Mining Engineering and Safety (Mine Disasters and Mine Rescue; Mine Hoisting) which addresses the relevant elucidations in the mining industry in the contemporary times as well and made a whole difference to the community for decades.

Mr. Mukul Mittra, Friend of Prof. M A Ramlu also shared his grief on his demise – “He was the warden of Patel Hall during our years. A very considerate person. May his soul rest in peace.”

The entire IIT Kharagpur fraternity mourns with deepest regret the sudden demise of Prof. M A Ramlu on 6th March, 2023. The news of his sudden passing away was received by all with great shock. He left an ineffable impact on the vision of mining engineering education in India by introducing modern mining technology. The mining community will be eternally grateful for his well-known research in the spontaneous combustion of coal.

Prof. V K Tewari, Director IIT Kharagpur, “I personally went to confer the Lifetime Achievement Award to Prof. M A Ramlu this year, necessitated due to his poor health. Many of his associates and students came in to felicitate the man of prominence, Prof. M A Ramlu who served as the founder and first Head of Department of Mining Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur from 1958 until 1987 and retired as the Deputy Director & Acting Director of IIT KGP. In my brief interactions with him he shared his profound visions that he had when he started off as a novice in the professional field. His prodigious gratitude towards IIT Kharagpur for his longest stint here is full of modest acknowledgements for everyone he has worked with. The institute will bear his legacy as the legendary miner.”

An Institute Chair Professorship Award under the name of Prof.  M A Ramlu and Mrs. Saroja Ramlu Institute Chair Professorship Award was instituted by Prof. Vijay Madisetti, son of Prof. Ramlu and an Alumnus of IIT Kharagpur. The award was established initially for six years, covering two 3-year terms for two incumbents and modified in scope by mutually agreed amendments to the MoU signed between IIT Kharagpur and Prof. Vijay Madisetti on 15th September 2016 under the able leadership of Prof. Partha Pratim Chakrabarti, Former Director and Professor of Computer Science & Engineering, IIT Kharagpur.

Prof. Damodar Acharya, Former Director, IIT Kharagpur, “Deeply saddened to know the demise of Professor M A Ramulu. He was an excellent teacher, and loved by one and all. He was known for his simplicity and sense of humour. He was the brain behind saving lives of hundreds of lives of the miners who were trapped in Chasnala Mining Disaster. He will be remembered by one and all in the mining field and KGPIAN of his time. I had the privilege of meeting him three times after his retirement. My sincere condolences to his bereaved family members and pray for the Moksha of his noble soul.”

In remembrance of the “The Mighty Miner”, his Alma Mater mourns in sadness after hearing the news of his demise. Our sincere condolences to his bereaved family. May almighty give enough strength to his family to bear this irreplaceable loss. We pray for eternal peace of his departed soul. He will always be remembered in our thoughts, prayers and action.

By : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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Turning Steel Slug Dump to Greenery Hub, IIT Kharagpur’s Transformative Work at Odisha

IIT Kharagpur Researchers Transform Steel Plant Slag Dumps in Odisha into Greenbelt Using Traditional Indian Organic Components and Japanese Afforestation Techniques

A drive through Angul, near the Dhenkanal region of Odisha will give you vast stretches of green canopy and vegetation on what was once industrial dumpsites. The transformation to a green belt is not a natural reclamation but the Midas touch of the Post Mining Mine Site Restoration group of the Department of Mining Engineering of IIT Kharagpur through a project supported by Tata Steel BSL. The researchers afforested over 32000 square feet in the region following a rapid forest regeneration technique by a unique mix of the traditional resource of Panchagavya with the Miyawaki plantation technique of ecologist Prof. Akira Miyawaki from Japan.

The dumping of blast furnace slag by steel plants has been a perennial challenge in India and even in some of the developed countries in the world. These steel slag dumps contribute to the generation of airborne particles causing air pollution and also to groundwater and surface-water contamination through different pathways. The slag-covered land is unsuitable for vegetation growth and associated problems lead to the ruination of vegetation and health hazards for both humans and animals. Researchers at IIT Kharagpur have devised a bioremediation method to reduce the concentration of these polluting slags to an innocuous state.

A research team led by Prof. Khanindra Pathak from the Dept. of Mining Engineering at IIT Kharagpur, has turned this slag suitable for plant growth by mixing it with topsoil, cow dung and other organic enhancers. Plants carefully chosen for the Miyawaki technique and 22 native species were grown on the mix with a 30cm layer of topsoil over it administering them with Panchagavya.

“Periodic administration of Panchagavya checked the problem of nutrient scarcity while mulching helped retention of water and nutrients. In a span of one year, we witnessed the growth of a self-sustaining mini-forest, dominated by plants belonging to the family Fabaceae and Sesbania grandiflora. The plants with long root systems could utilize the steel slag with their roots penetrating up to a depth of 2 m from the ground surface, thus reducing the effects of groundwater contamination and surface runoff of water in the monsoons,” remarked Prof. Pathak.

“Vetiver grass was used as a boundary for the plantation to check migration of nutrients. This grass if grown over the slopes of the slag dumps will further check the fugitive emissions and thereby reducing air pollution and erosion of slag onto adjacent habitations,” he added.

The process led an unsupportive steel slag dump to a self-sustaining primary succession over it.   

The success of the present project has helped the industry to not only comply with the mandate of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Govt. of India, but will protect the neighboring villages from airborne dust to a certain degree in addition to the usefulness of the vegetation developed to the villagers. Prof. Pathak earlier demonstrated stabilization of dump slope and prevention of erosion at the  Joda Mines in the Barbil region, which witnessed regeneration of thick vegetation cover. In another demonstration, a horticulture field was developed at Sonepur Bazari waste dump under a CSR project.

The approach established if implemented across such sites in the country would benefit millions of people leaving around the mining region. The damage caused to nature by anthropogenic activities can be repaired permanently following nature’s own way to heal. Restoration of the post-mining mine site is now mandatory, the approaches demonstrated contributions to the rural economy as well as to the regeneration of natural resources for the benefit of a large number of people of present and future generations.

The demonstrated methodology also has the possibility to eliminate the need for expensive geotextiles developed in the country using imported technology, opined Prof. Pathak. He further added about the replication of the process for municipality waste dumps. 

“Development of a vetiver grass field could be beneficial for urban wastewater management as well as municipality solid waste dump sites. We had also demonstrated hydroponic vetiver for the containment of oil in refinery wastewater through an IIT Kharagpur and IOCL collaborative project at the Bongaigaon refinery,” he remarked.

Contact: 

Project: Prof. Khanindra Pathak, E: khanindra@mining.iitkgp.ac.in; Sourav Mandal, E: souravm.iitkgp@gmail.com

Media: Shreyoshi Ghosh, E: shreyoshi@adm.iitkgp.ac.in

Connect on social media: Facebook: @IITKgp Twitter: @IITKgp Instagram: @iit.kgp; Or write to media@iitkgp.ac.in

More information: Dept. of Mining Engineering: http://www.iitkgp.ac.in/department/MI

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Digging Deeper: Parama’s Story

Parama Mukhopadhyay tries to answer why women lagging behind in the mining sector in India

“What is your department?”

“Mining Engineering”

“Mining? Are girls even allowed in Mining Engineering? Will you get any job in mining after you finish your study? Why mining? Is it suitable for girls?”

These questions – that come with raised eyebrows – are common for us while discussing our subject area with others. Us – the WOMEN in Mining in India! The above-mentioned questions are well-justified if we consider the number of women and job opportunities for them in the mining sector, not only in India, but worldwide. 

Let’s focus on the Indian scenario. Our country has different types of mineral reserves, and the mining industry contributes a sizeable amount to the country’s economy and generates a good number of employment opportunities every year. Unfortunately, since historical times, this sector is highly male-dominated and even hostile towards women. Though mineral production and overall employment generated by the sector have gone up exponentially, involvement of women has fallen further. In FY18, the country produced minerals worth Rs 1.13 lakh crore, registering an increase of 13 per cent over the previous fiscal. Compare this with the other figure. Women are said to account for only 4.4% (24,294 females) of the total mining workforce, which is considerably less compared to women labor force participation rate (22.5%) in India.Not only the numbers, but the job quality and salary amount is significantly poor for women compared to their male co-workers. Women labourers are paid less than males and this is because jobs that require technical skills are never offered to women with an assumption that they are not suitable for this.

Where are we going wrong??

What could be the possible reasons of such tragic situation of women in mining sector? Discriminating laws, historical patriarchal myths, issues with clothing suitable for mine works, so-called masculine- not-suitable-for women-job, lack of proper safety and security, lack of basic facilities including toilets, lack of technical skills are the primary reasons prohibiting females to join this industry. Laws in our country had always prohibited girls to take up jobs in mining sector. According to Mines Act, 1952, women were restricted to be employed in opencast mines during night shifts (7 pm to 6 am) and totally barred from working in underground mines. Later females were permitted to work in mines only in day shifts (6 am to 7 pm). 

In February 2019, the labour ministry of Central Government allowed female workers to work in open cast mines round the clock and also in underground mines even in night shifts. The implementation of this rule has to strictly follow few rules for underground mines that include safety and security of female workers. According to this new law, the deployment of female workers in night shift (7 pm to 6 am) can only be done for technical, supervisory and managerial work that does not need continuous presence. She should be in a group of not less than three. Owner of the mine should have a written consent from that woman and adequate occupational safety, security and health benefits has to be provided. Also this deployment will be subject to the framing and implantation of Standard Operating Procedures that will follow the guidelines issued by Chief Inspector of Mines at regular intervals. 

Execution of this new rule will undoubtedly bring more gender equality and more job opportunities for females in mining sector. But, still women are restricted to choose their favourite job type in underground mines, as they can only participate in “technical, supervisory and managerial work”.  We still have the Coal Mines Regulations, 1957 that states no adolescent or woman will descend or ascend a shaft in a cage or other means of conveyance unless accompanied by one or more adult males. It clearly implies that working in underground mines for women will depend on the availability of male workers. This surely make women less favourable as a candidate for underground mine jobs and they have to restrict themselves to choose option in office jobs above ground or be involved in opencast mines. 

But, at least changes have begun!

Why are women lacking skills to work for mining industry? This is because, not many courses or workshops are being offered to girls/women that can help develop required skills to work in mine exploration areas. Currently, three IIT’s – IIT KGP, IIT BHU and IIT(ISM) Dhanbad are offering admissions to girl students in Mining Engineering in B.Tech. M.Tech. and PhD. [Lucky to be part of IIT Kharagpur!]. Also, in 2015, Anna University allowed the same. But, even after offering courses, due to the lack of awareness among girls about job prospects for mining and about recent changes in laws in favour of women, mining is still not on the preferred list of courses for girls. 

What to do now? Changes in laws that create more jobs, assurance on safety and security, suitable courses to develop skills and spreading awareness among girls to encourage them to consider mining as a prospective industry for career. Changing process will take time, but surely will succeed. 

I would like to end my article by narrating the inspiring story of Dr. Chandrani Prasad Verma, India’s first female mining engineer and currently holding the position of Principal Scientist at the Central Institute of Mining and Fuel research at Nagpur. Dr. Chandrani Verma qualified her B.Tech. as a mining engineer at 1999. Her qualifying year clearly indicates that she started her journey at this field years before the amendment of laws were implemented and institutes started opening their doors for female students in mining courses. 

Being passionate about pursuing a career in this field, she had to fight a case in court for one year just to be enrolled in a college to study Bachelor’s degree in Mining. In 1996, she was admitted in Mining Engineering as ‘special case’ in Ramdeobaba Engineering College in Nagpur and in 1999, she graduated and became India’s first female mining engineer. Even after graduating successfully, doors for jobs in mines did not open for her, but her determination helped her to continue her work in this field. Besides working as a lecturer in college, she completed her M.Tech. in 2006 and completed Ph.D. on Web Pillar design in Highwall Mining from Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (VNIT), Nagpur in 2015. She was the only woman candidate during her interview at CSIR – Central Institute of Mining & Fuel Research. Her interviews were hesitating to select her, as her job will require regular visit to underground mines, but her passion for mining impressed them and she was selected as a scientist. We are proud of her. She opened the doors for many other girls to choose the dream of pursuing a career in mining.  

Finally, we, the women in mining, are hopeful that the administrations, lawmakers, educationists, professors and our society will come forward together to end the long-prevailing gender discrimination in this particular field and support us to become more and more successful in this field.

 

Parama Mukhopadhyay (16MI91R05)

Research Scholar, Mining Engineering Department,

IIT, Kharagpur

 

Digging Deep

Changes like that occurring at the Mining Engineering Department of IIT Kharagpur could lead to momentous changes for women in mining in India

Could the historically male-dominated mining industry be inching towards greater gender parity? The answer from IIT Kharagpur’s Department of Mining Engineering is yes. The department has seen a sharp rise in the number of female students in the undergraduate studies  – from a trickle of one or two in a year to 18 in the year 2019.

All the centrally funded technical institutes in India are mandated to increase the number of women graduating from these institutes. The number of female students admitted at IIT Kharagpur stood at 15% (with supernumerary seats created to make up the shortfall through JEE) in the year 2018, and 20% presently,  even including the Mining Engineering departments. In a matter of three years, these female students will be knocking on the doors of the mining companies for opportunities to work and to contribute to the safety, profitability and productivity of the industries.

In India, women were not permitted to work underground and even in surface mines, they were not allowed to work at night. Interestingly, coinciding with the change of decision in the female participation in undergraduate studies in mining engineering, the Ministry of Labour and Directorate General of Mines Safety which is a constituent body of the Ministry opened up through Gazette notification in 2019, hitherto unimaginable opportunities for underground employment for women. These opportunities cut across not only supervisory work but all types of activities of the mining profession.

According to the Directorate General of Mines Safety, the average daily employment of women in mines in 2011-12 accounted for 4.4% (24,294 females) of the total mining workforce which is considerably less compared to women labour force participation rate (22.5%) in India. The key occupations of engagement in the mining sector for women were reported as miners (mainly in the extraction of Iron, Gypsum, Magnesite and limestone), loaders and clerical and supervisory (Deloitte study on Human Resource & Skill Requirement Study for Indian Mining Sector, 2016).

Given that mining relies heavily on engineering talent, and women have proved that they can be capable engineers, the industry could gain a lot from greater diversity in its workforce and by having women in leadership roles. But the perception that mining is a ‘man’s job’, given the demanding nature of mining activity, has been a major contributing factor to the poor gender ratio. 

In modern day mining, where automation is the key, physical capabilities should not be a determining factor. Besides, there can be little doubts about the correlation between business growth and diversity. Companies with more women, specifically with women on their boards, have shown overall better performance: more efficiency, greater sustainability and higher profit margins.

Quite obviously, perceptions need to change, and at every level. At IIT Kharagpur, things changed in 2002-03, when the Department of Mining Engineering opened its doors to women at the undergraduate level.

Prof. Ashis Bhattacharjee, Professor at the Department of Mining Engineering, who was then Vice-Chairman of JEE, recalls the move. “We convinced the Joint Implementation Committee, the Senate approved the move and IIT Kharagpur, together with IIT BHU, began to offer Mining Engineering program to women.”

Things did not change overnight. The inflow of students at the undergraduate level remained a trickle.

“There were some exceptionally committed students though. One, B. Niharika of the 2012 batch worked in a top Australian mining company, before relocating to Hyderabad,” says Prof. Bhattacharjee. 

Perceptions also needed to change at a more fundamental level. And that seems to be happening now with more girls taking up mining.

“Before taking up Mining Engineering, I hardly knew what it was. But now I feel quite interested. There are so many facets to it,” says Samiksha Sharma, a 2nd year BTech Mining Engineering student, who has taken up Oil and Gas belt Testing and Enhanced Oil Recovery as her additional subjects. “Dual degree students can also specialize in Petroleum Engineering,” she reminds.

Like Samiksha, Niveditha Adari, a fourth year student, is also interested in the many opportunities that the Mining Engineering course at IIT Kharagpur leads to. She is interested in finance and management and as a Dual Degree student, she has ‘Financial Engineering’ as her specialization.

“I could go into operations research, which is an important part of mine planning. Or be part of finance planning for mining companies, where I could use my mining engineering knowledge.” 

Given the focus of the Mining Engineering Department of IIT Kharagpur, which is into interdisciplinary fields such as environment, health and safety, and so on, and the advantage of the varied specializations (Safety Engineering, Petroleum Engineering, Financial Engineering) women graduating from the Department will be open to varied roles both within the Mining sector and elsewhere. But what has also changed substantially for them is the government opening up to what is believed to be the “new realities” of society. Taking these realities into account, the Union government in 2019 lifted the restrictions of the Mines Act of 1952 and allowed women to work in underground mines and also in opencast or above ground workings of the mine during night hours.

“Somehow we need to prove ourselves,” says Samiksha, “About 20-30 years ago, when women were not common in Mechanical Engineering, if some of the women had not proved themselves, then others would not have followed in their path.”

Some, like Parama Mukhopadhyay, a PhD scholar at the Department of Mining Engineering, believe that the regulation is not enough and there are still enough restrictions in place to stall women’s full participation in hands-on mining (Read her story here).

“It is not about where women have greater scope. The idea should be that they can work everywhere,” says Prof. Sunita Mishra, who joined the Department in February 2020 and is the first lady to join the Mining Engineering faculty at IIT Kharagpur and probably in the country as well. A Mechanical Engineer, Prof. Mishra did her Masters in Tunnel Engineering from Mining Engineering from ISM Dhanbad and PhD in the area of Rock Dynamics from the Department of Civil Engineering at the IIT Delhi. Prof. Mishra, who is teaching Rock dynamics and mining machinery in the lab, is already a role model for students in the Department. 

As she exemplifies, and the girls of the Department are beginning to understand, proven skill and expertise will take them places. Samiksha’s worry is that if the industry will come around and change itself as fast as the changes are taking place with women and mining. “Rest assured,” say her professors, “This is just a transition, and things will fall in place.”

 

Ground rules

Two new MTech courses introduced by IIT Kharagpur will have wide acceptability in the industry

India Today Jagran Josh AglaSem Swarajya

Starting next semester, that is July 2019, the Mining Engineering Department of IIT Kharagpur will throw open two new MTech programs – one in GeoMechanics for Mineral and Energy Resources, and the other in Safety, Health and Environment. The Department so long allowed an MTech in Mining Engineering, which will be replaced with the two new ones. However, it also allows a Dual Degree in Mining Engineering and in Safety Engineering that will continue.

“The MTech course in GeoMechanics for Mineral and Energy Resources will cater to a wide spectrum of branches such as Geology, Mining, Civil or Petroleum Engineering, that is any other branch of science and technology that has something to do with earth,” said Prof. Debasis Deb, Head of the Department of Mining.

GeoMechanics is the theoretical and applied science of the mechanical behaviour of geological material, that is, soil and rocks. GeoMechanics assesses when the stress to a geological formation during activities such as assessing mine stability, oil and gas drilling, hydraulic fracturing or water/gas flooding or depletion or related processes, exceeds the strength of any formation, what are the risks and opportunities and recommends mitigation plans. An expert in GeoMechanics will, therefore, have wide acceptability in relevant industries.

The Mining Engineering Department of IIT Kharagpur has been dealing with GeoMechanics for long. The Civil Engineering Department also teaches geotechnical aspects, but mostly regarding the soil. Petroleum Engineering also touches on the subject. “But there were no Masters program here in IIT Kharagpur or any other the other IITs specializing in Geomechanics,” said Prof. Deb.

Every process industry like mining, chemical industry or car manufacturing etc that deals with production involving manpower requires a person or department where people are trained in Safety, Health and Environment or what is called SHE. “A holistic approach towards safety and health in the workplace is the need of the day, especially in India, where we think safety is somebody else’s job. But if we can give the necessary knowledge to Masters-level student – whether from Mining, Electrical, Mechanical, Civil, or Petroleum engineering – that culture will be engendered.”

The Mining Engineering department already runs several short term courses on SHE that helps in the training and retraining of personnel involved in the mining, chemical and petroleum industry. In recent times, safety aspects have been focused in emerging areas such as safety engineering, risk assessment and safety management plan, loss control, ergonomics, human behaviour and virtual reality. The MTech course will address these thrust areas of safety as well emerging methods which can be used as valuable techniques by the safety management to deal with risk assessment and management of industries

The two courses will admit 11 students in each course. Admission to these courses will be through GATE examination. BTech students from the mining, civil and petroleum engineering departments can opt for the MTech course in GeoMechanics. Students from mining, civil, petroleum, chemical, mechanical, electrical, production engineering can opt to do MTech in Safety, Health and Environment.

Photo Credit: Suman Sutradhar

Great Step for Tomorrow’s Mining Engineers

Are minerals the new gold standard? What are the environmental aspects and safety concerns in mining? What are bot functionalities in mining? And many more – IIT KGP’s GREAT STEP, the premier technical fest organized by the Department of Mining Engineering is here to answer many of these questions. With the theme “Ore is Gold” the fest is scheduled on 2nd to 4th of November 2018.

The event will address critical areas in mining through case studies, design problems, guest lectures, workshops and various competitions. These would include the Petro Case Study, Mineo Case Study, Enviro Case Study, Geobotics, National Mining Innovation Challenge, Industrial Design Problem, Mineac, Safety Data Analytics and Safety Hunt, Image Processing and Skills Facilitation Workshop and Geotechnical Instrumentation Workshop. Industry experts from TATA Steel, BCCL, Coal India will share the industry perspective.

About 300 students from 15 different colleges will be participating in the event.

Speaking about the fest, Professor Aditya Kumar Patra, President Technology Mining Engineering Society, said, “With a perfect mosaic of online and offline student events and addresses of eminent personalities from industries during the meet, it is the unique annual technical festival of the country that gives the students the exposure to peers and understands that the future challenge lies ahead after their academics.”

Professor Srikant Annavarapu, Former President Technology Mining Engineering Society, said, “The organizers are working hard to create yet another unique festival with a slew of new online and offline events. In addition to the standard program, we plan to have an Image Consultant to give tips for making a better presence at on campus and off campus interviews.”

The corporate partners for the event include Golcha Associated, MCL, Balasore Alloys Ltd., Sandvik, Tata Hitachi Construction, DMT Consulting, Geotech, Campus France.