The 11th of May is celebrated annually as ‘National Technology Day’ across India to mark the anniversary of the Pokhran nuclear tests of 1998 and to celebrate India's technological advancements in the sectors of Science and Technology. The theme for this year’s celebration was “Integrated Approach in Science and Technology for Sustainable Future”. On this occasion, Bhavans Indian Education School, Kuwait, under the auspices of the Department of Computer Science, hosted an exclusive online interschool Paper Presentation Competition for the students of grade 12 of Bhavans schools in the Middle East.
The competition was judged by Mr. Zhengru Fang, a junior in Computer Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a passionate researcher who is intensely interested in machine learning, bioinformatics, and algorithmic theory research.
The proceedings of the ceremony started off with the recitation of a few verses from the Holy Quran by Sahal Ansar of grade 12, followed by the national anthem of Kuwait and a melodious prayer song rendered by Akshitha Rajesh of grade 9. The emcees for the day, Srihari Badrinarayanan and Annabel Marianne Victor, gave a brief introduction to the event after rendering a warm welcome to Mr. Zhengru Fang, the judge of the event, Ms. Girija Baiju, Principal of PIES, Mr. Suresh V Balakrishnan, Vice-principal of PIES, Ms. Meenakshi Nayyar, Vice-principal (Senior Wing) of IES, Mr. Binoy Mathew, Vice-principal (Middle Wing) of IES, the principals and the vice-principals of other Bhavans schools in the middle east, the participants and the spectators.
Ms. Meenakshi Nayyar, Vice-principal (Senior Wing) while addressing the gathering, talked about the pivotal role played by technology in all different walks of life. She underscored that while following the most leading-edge technologies, humanity should embrace sustainable development too.18 teams from the schools of Bhavans Middle East had participated in the selection round held prior to the event, and 6 teams had been selected for the final paper presentation. The excitement reached its acme when the virtual stage was all set for the final round of the competition.
The presentations by the 6 participating teams were edifying and attention-grabbing. The young researchers of Bhavans Middle East could impress the judge and the spectators with their scientific and technological acumen, flaunting their profound knowledge of the topics presented by them.
The paper titled “Artificial Intelligence in Medicine - Hype or Hope?" by Team 2 of Indian Education School, Kuwait, comprising Dave Rino and Haran Amrith won the first position. The second and the third positions were bagged by Team 3 and Team 1 of Private International English School, Abu Dhabi, respectively. Team 3 (PIES) consisting of Aamod Varma, Samanyu Das and Siddarth Ravi presented “Applications of Blockchain Innovation Past Crypto Currency”, and Team 1 (PIES) represented by Abdul Musawir, Harsh Agrawal and Eldho Jose Attoor presented “Future Aspects of Computer Forensics”.
During the virtual prize distribution ceremony, Mr. Zhengru Fang declared the much-awaited results, and he appreciated the research and presentation skills of the participants and extolled the winners for their impressive achievements. A virtual certificate was presented to the judge as an expression of gratitude. The event came to a close with the vote of thanks proposed by one of the emcees, Annabel Marianne Victor.