By India Education Diary Bureau Admin Friday, October 29, 2021
Monday, October 25, 2021
READING INSPIRATION DAY 2021: REPORT
READING INSPIRATION DAY 2021
We salute APJ Abdul Kalam and celebrate his monumental achievements as a Scientist, Scholar and the President of India. We fondly remember his passion for teaching education and for reading. Dr. Kalam truly ignited young minds with the power to think and innovate. Dr. Kalam is not with us today but his thoughts, ideals and vision for India live on forever.
As part of the virtual celebrations, the library conducted the following two events in collaboration with the NDLI Club:
Online Quiz on the Life and Times of Dr. A.P. J. Abdul Kalam
Online Book Review Competition
Book Exhibition for the faculty members of SFIT
Poster for the Quiz Contest
24 students participated in the Online Quiz conducted as part of the Reading Inspiration Day.
Online Book Review Contest
Book Exhibition: 160 books were kept in the exhibition.
22 books were selected by faculty members (Ms. Josna Jose and Ms. Varsha Thandasarry) of the Electrical Engineering Department for their Departmental Library from the Book Exhibition.
As part of the virtual events, the library launched the following:
Wakelet on Dr. A.P. J. Abdul Kalam - https://wakelet.com/wake/3t6vUJO2hXrmqHe4MRfsF
Padlet: https://padlet.com/sfitlibraryreference/zs4m6k35fys49ulw
Monday, October 18, 2021
Quiz on Cyber Safety & Security
October is celebrated as National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) globally. In order to bring attention to Cyber Security and as a concentrated effort to stay safe and secure online, NCSAM is celebrated all over the world. It is an initiative to put conscious efforts towards ensuring better cybersecurity hygiene and incorporate stronger security measures.
With this objective, DSCI drove a month-long awareness campaign under the guidance of the National Cyber Security Secretariat. The campaign disseminated various content artifacts and reached out to 3.25 million citizens throughout the country.
Many interesting quizzes have been launched on the myGov portal to test the knowledge and readiness level of citizens around Cyber Security. The overall objective of the Quiz was to create Cyber Security awareness among citizens, to achieve a better security posture for the country, and to empower online users to remain Safe Online.
Participate and earn reward certificates: https://quiz.mygov.in/quiz/securing-digital-space/
Source: https://www.mygov.in/
Wednesday, October 13, 2021
This HR leader has an engineering degree
hey say there’s gold but I’m
looking for thrills
You can get your hands on
whatever we find
along for the ride
Being one of the few girls in the college, life was not easy. It was Protima’s first experience in navigating her way in a male dominated world. And she literally rocked. She joined the college band, and became the first girl in the history of the college to perform on stage.
Post college, she worked in an electronics consulting company, and then in the defence research establishment, LRDE, in its digital signal processing lab.
Protima then took a seven-year break from paid work to look after her kid.
Her second innings at paid work was different. She was briefly in an AutoCAD startup, and then she took up a completely unexpected role – as festival coordinator for the Udaipur film festival. She went on to work with the team that created the country’s first ever reality show, Meri Awaz Suno.
In 2000, she had to move to Bengaluru, where she joined Sasken. Here, she burned the midnight oil to learn the ropes of HR. She credits Sasken’s leadership for giving her the opportunity to prove herself. “They appreciated my point of view, which was not grounded in HR theory but more from real-life experiences. So success is not always tied to a degree. I do not hold an HR degree, but that was the start of my HR career, and I have been in it for 21 years,” she says.
looking for thrills
You can get your hands on
whatever we find
Because I’m only coming
along for the ride
Born in Mysuru to an army officer, Protima had been to six schools by the time she was in class 12. She did not have any place to sink her roots into. But this life made her comfortable with change.
Being one of the few girls in the college, life was not easy. It was Protima’s first experience in navigating her way in a male dominated world. And she literally rocked. She joined the college band, and became the first girl in the history of the college to perform on stage.
Post college, she worked in an electronics consulting company, and then in the defence research establishment, LRDE, in its digital signal processing lab.
Protima then took a seven-year break from paid work to look after her kid.
Her second innings at paid work was different. She was briefly in an AutoCAD startup, and then she took up a completely unexpected role – as festival coordinator for the Udaipur film festival. She went on to work with the team that created the country’s first ever reality show, Meri Awaz Suno.
In 2000, she had to move to Bengaluru, where she joined Sasken. Here, she burned the midnight oil to learn the ropes of HR. She credits Sasken’s leadership for giving her the opportunity to prove herself. “They appreciated my point of view, which was not grounded in HR theory but more from real-life experiences. So success is not always tied to a degree. I do not hold an HR degree, but that was the start of my HR career, and I have been in it for 21 years,” she says.
After 10 years with Sasken, Protima moved to Cisco, and then to NetApp. She now leads HR and talent acquisition for Apac and India at NetApp. “HR today has to be a lot more agile in responding to the needs and expectations of employees,” she says.
Raj Reddy: India’s only Turing Award winner, AI pioneer
Raj Reddy: India’s only Turing Award winner, AI pioneer
TNN | Oct 13, 2021, 07.25 AM IST
Raj Reddy, professor of computer science and robotics at Carnegie Mellon University, is the first person of Asian origin to receive the Turing Award, often called the Nobel Prize in computer science. He’s still the only Indian to win the award.
Reddy, who comes from a farming family in Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh, is an artificial intelligence (AI) pioneer. He’s been researching AI since the 1960s, when few in the world knew much about it. Reddy says AI has transformed the world in the last 10 years in a way that previously seemed would take at least 50 years.
“I joined the field when the subject was starting off. I was at the right place at the right time. Now we have computers that are a trillion times more powerful, memories that are a trillion times larger. Back then, the first computer had just 4 KB of memory and if you could not fit your programme, you had to recompute. So yes, things have changed exponentially and more so since 2007, when the first smartphone came in, enabling extensive communication,” he says.
Reddy, who is best known for his pioneering work in the field of speech technology, encourages aspiring engineering students to take up computer science as their preferred subject, but cautions them to not limit themselves to the subject. He himself was a civil engineer, before he did a PhD in AI in Stanford University.
“Most of the education in the US has that broad liberal arts focus, where you end up spending just two out of the four years of engineering studying the core subjects. The rest is studying languages, history, philosophy, and, during our times, we would bemoan all the IIT students at Carnegie who had not read or seen a Shakespeare play,” he chuckles.
Reddy says the Indian engineering curriculum should similarly be shrunk to two years, and students should be asked to take up 20 different courses from 20 subjects for the other two. And students, he says, should demonstrate excellence even in these other subjects, and not study them just to get a passing grade.
AI, Reddy says, has made the most striking impact on speech recognition and natural language processing, facilitating automatic translation of different languages. “You speak in Telugu and I speak in Gujarati and both understand each other because the phone is translating it and feeding me the Telugu translation instantly. While that is still some time away, the concept has already been demonstrated by Google and Microsoft for many languages,” he says.
Reddy says speaking to computers and the computer having the ability to understand and process it was something that could not be done even 10 years ago. “It is now possible through deep learning. While it is possible in English, think of a situation when an Indian can speak to the computer in his mother tongue and it can talk back to him. Then, all of a sudden, you are empowering many semi-literate people by expanding their knowledge base,” he says.
Reddy, who comes from a farming family in Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh, is an artificial intelligence (AI) pioneer. He’s been researching AI since the 1960s, when few in the world knew much about it. Reddy says AI has transformed the world in the last 10 years in a way that previously seemed would take at least 50 years.
“I joined the field when the subject was starting off. I was at the right place at the right time. Now we have computers that are a trillion times more powerful, memories that are a trillion times larger. Back then, the first computer had just 4 KB of memory and if you could not fit your programme, you had to recompute. So yes, things have changed exponentially and more so since 2007, when the first smartphone came in, enabling extensive communication,” he says.
Reddy, who is best known for his pioneering work in the field of speech technology, encourages aspiring engineering students to take up computer science as their preferred subject, but cautions them to not limit themselves to the subject. He himself was a civil engineer, before he did a PhD in AI in Stanford University.
“Most of the education in the US has that broad liberal arts focus, where you end up spending just two out of the four years of engineering studying the core subjects. The rest is studying languages, history, philosophy, and, during our times, we would bemoan all the IIT students at Carnegie who had not read or seen a Shakespeare play,” he chuckles.
Reddy says the Indian engineering curriculum should similarly be shrunk to two years, and students should be asked to take up 20 different courses from 20 subjects for the other two. And students, he says, should demonstrate excellence even in these other subjects, and not study them just to get a passing grade.
AI, Reddy says, has made the most striking impact on speech recognition and natural language processing, facilitating automatic translation of different languages. “You speak in Telugu and I speak in Gujarati and both understand each other because the phone is translating it and feeding me the Telugu translation instantly. While that is still some time away, the concept has already been demonstrated by Google and Microsoft for many languages,” he says.
Reddy says speaking to computers and the computer having the ability to understand and process it was something that could not be done even 10 years ago. “It is now possible through deep learning. While it is possible in English, think of a situation when an Indian can speak to the computer in his mother tongue and it can talk back to him. Then, all of a sudden, you are empowering many semi-literate people by expanding their knowledge base,” he says.
Tuesday, October 12, 2021
Reading Inspiration Day 2021: e Quiz 1
St. Francis Institute of Technology Library & NDLI Club, Borivali, Mumbai organizes Quiz on “READING INSPIRATION DAY OR VAACHAN PRERANA DIWAS 2021”, to commemorate the Birth Anniversary of Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam on 15th October.
Reading Inspiration Day 2021: Online Book Review Contest
Dear SFITians
A Warm Greeting from….
St. Francis Institute of Technology
On the occasion of 'Vaachan Prerana Divas' (15th October), Birth Anniversary of our Former President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
“NDLI Club” Invites you to participate in an Online Book Review Competition
🗓️ Date: 22nd October 2021
⏱️ Time: 5:00 pm to 6:00pm
📌Registration is Free
Registration Link: https://forms.gle/7vdwiRxujn7zEtKT7
Last Date for Registration: Friday, 15th October, 2021
Note:
Registration is mandatory
Rules and Guidelines:
Students are required to review book other than textbooks and religious books.
One entry per student
Only SFIT students, faculty and non-teaching staff are allowed to take part in the contest.
The book review must be uploaded in pdf on the Google form itself.
Time allotted is strictly five minutes for presentation..
Medium of presentation English / Hindi /Marathi.
Join the meeting 10 minutes before the given time.
Decision of the Judges will be final and binding.
E-certificate will be provided to all the participants through the NDLI account present for the event.
All the other details will be given on the WhatsApp group from time to time.
Join the whatsApp group for further information
WhatsApp group Link:
https://chat.whatsapp.com/DxXLUiJ34swKLa17aRrvXz
📌e-certificates will be generated through the NDLI account for all the participants present for the event.
WISH YOU ALL THE BEST
Best Regards,
Dr. Sincy George
Principal
St. Francis Institute of Technology,
Borivali, Mumbai.
For any query contact:
Viral Soni
8898106479
Paul Fernandes
76660 90565
Chinmayee Bhange
9820336910
IEEE Live Webinar Invitation on World Standards Day: Relevance of IEEE standards in an Engineer's Career Growth
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Source: E Mail received from IEEE EBSCO dated 12th October 2021.
AICTE invites application for PG scholarship for 2021-22; apply before December 31
AICTE invites online proposals from students and institutes for PG scholarship. Students can apply by December 31.
Tamanna Tamang | Oct 10, 2021 - 1:24 p.m. IST
NEW DELHI: All India Council of Technical Education has invited applications for post graduate scholarships for the academic year 2021-22.
The council has invited online proposals from AICTE approved institutions, and the students studying in such institutions or courses that are approved by AICTE. The scholarship will be provided through direct benefit transfer (DBT) mode to the eligible students for this academic year.
As per the notification issued by AICTE, the last date for creating IDs for the students and submission of forms is December 31. The institute will have to verify the application by January 14, 2022.
The council has instructed the institutes to verify applications of their students immediately after receiving the applications on their respective online portal. “The council has sent the PG scholarship portal login credentials to the institute's email ID,” said a notice from AICTE
The scholarship was introduced by AICTE to ensure development of technical education in India. The council grants the post graduate scholarship of Rs.12,400 per month to full-time GATE/GPAT qualified students studying in AICTE approved post graduate programs in AICTE approved institutions, university departments.
The Scholarship is granted for a period of 24 months or for the duration of the course i.e. from the date of commencement of classes till the date of completion of the classes whichever is lower. The scholarship is not extendable under any circumstances.
Candidates who are eligible for the scheme can visit the official website of .aicte-india.org/ for more information about the scholarship.
Wednesday, October 6, 2021
IIT Madras Launches Two Diplomas In Programming And Data Science For Students, Working Professionals& Job Seekers
IIT Madras Launches Two Diplomas In Programming And Data Science For Students, Working Professionals& Job Seekers
CHENNAI : Indian Institute of Technology Madras is launching two Diploma Programs in Programming and Data Science. These top-of-the-line diploma programs, carefully designed by leading experts in the field, are the only official diplomas offered by IIT Madras.
The program structure enables learners of all backgrounds to build the necessary fundamentals, enhance their knowledge, and hone their skills through extensive hands-on training. Learners need not have an engineering or computer science background. The diplomas are open to students, working professionals, and job seekers who have completed at least two years of their undergraduate education in any discipline through any mode.
The portal for the diploma entry was launched today (4th October 2021) by Prof. Anil Sahasrabudhe, Chairman, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) in the presence of Mr. ThirumalaArohi, Senior Vice President, Infosys Limited and Prof. Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Director, IIT Madras.
The Applications are open for the Diploma entry Qualifier Exam. The Last Date to apply is 15th November 2021. Those interested can apply through https://diploma.iitm.ac.in.
The Diploma entry qualifier exam is scheduled on 12th December 2021. Applicants must attend the in-person Diploma Qualifier Exam at an exam centre in the applicant’s city of choice. Those who clear this exam will be eligible to join the diploma program.
Addressing the launch event, Prof. Anil Sahasrabudhe, Chairman, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), said, “It is important to have skilled manpower in data science and programming from India to meet the requirements of the global economy. I am happy to see that IIT Madras is launching relevant programs that are on par with the industry requirement.”
Further, Prof. Anil Sahasrabudhe said, “Education is a continuous process of learning. Students and working professionals will have to continuously upgrade their knowledge and skills to stay competitive in today’s workplace. I am confident that these diplomas will reach a diverse set of learners who are passionate about building a career in programming or data science.”
A learner has to complete eight courses to obtain a diploma, either in programming or data science. One diploma can be completed in as short as eight months. As the content delivery will be in online mode, the program has the flexibility required for working professionals and students.
With these diplomas, IIT Madras aims to provide the highest-quality education and training to the largest possible audience. With this goal in mind, the program offers significant financial flexibility through its pay as you go model. Basically, the fee paid every term is based on the number of courses registered in that term. In addition, IIT Madras is offering course fee waivers upto 75% based on the socio-economic background of the learners.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. ThirumalaArohi, Senior Vice President and Head – Education Training and Assessment, Infosys Limited, said, “I am glad to be part of the launch of IIT Madras’ Diploma programs in Programming and Data Science. We are thriving in a world where technology is all pervasive. To navigate through this labyrinth of opportunities, the students and professionals must embrace an attitude of lifelong learning. Therefore, it is both timely and opportune that our premier educational Institution, IIT Madras is offering Diplomas in Programming and Data Science for college students and working professionals. The program structure is a perfect blend of curated best in class self-paced learning, live classes, hands-on activities, assignments and projects. The flexible and affordable nature of the program will help aspiring learners to accelerate their skills enhancement and be ready for the myriad opportunities, across sectors.”
The diplomas provide a unique opportunity for working professionals to upskill themselves without having to take a break. Even employers who want to upskill their employees can consider this option.
The courses would be delivered through a comprehensive learning delivery model that competes with a classroom learning experience. The courses include lecture videos, lecture-based activity questions, practice assignments, graded assignments, and mini-projects that reinforce problem-solving skills.
There are live sessions with course instructors where questions from the learners are answered for every subject. The evaluation would be done through in-person quizzes and end-term examinations, ensuring that this program meets with the same academic rigor of an on-campus program from IIT Madras. This one-of-a-kind combination provides high-quality training that is sought-after by recruiters.
Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Director, IIT Madras, said, “We are delighted to offer this program to the students, working professionals, and job seekers who are passionate about building a career in programming and data science. The convenience of online learning combined with in-person assessments makes the program flexible while retaining the academic rigor. With our rich experience in the online education space, we are well-equipped to handle scale, provide an enriching and engaging learning experience.”
With a blend of high-quality content, continuous mentorship, rigorous hands-on practice, active peer-to-peer support, and prompt feedback, these two official Diplomas from IIT Madras, prepare the learners of all backgrounds to build fundamental knowledge and gain industry-relevant cutting edge skills required for a successful career in Programming and Data Science.
Classroom Teaching: AICTE Directs Institutes To Install Hi-Tech Gadgets To Beat Covid-19
Classroom Teaching: AICTE Directs Institutes To Install Hi-Tech Gadgets To Beat Covid-19
In its latest circular, the AICTE has asked its affiliated educational institutions to take the necessary steps for installation of air-sanitization devices based on Ultra - Violet C band irradiation in auditoriums, buildings, AC Buses etc.
VIKASH SHARMA
INDIA
PUBLISHED: SATURDAY, 02 OCTOBER 2021
LAST UPDATED: 02 OCTOBER 2021, 02:05 PM IST
Photo: For Representational Purposes
Classroom Teaching: AICTE Directs Institutes To Install Hi-Tech Gadgets To Beat Covid-19
The All India Council For Technical Education (AICTE) has issued a circular directing institutions and universities to take special measures for the installation of several devices to put a check on the spread of Covid-19 during resumption of physical mode of teaching for the current academic session.
In its latest circular, the AICTE has asked its affiliated educational institutions to take the necessary steps for installation of air-sanitization devices based on Ultra - Violet C band irradiation in auditoriums, buildings, AC Buses etc.
The AICTE has also asked to install the 'Circulating Air Flow Purelevator’ technology' for lifts, toilets, washrooms and the 'Standalone Air- Circulation Technology ' for rooms to reduce cross-infections and restoring confidence among students during the physical classes in the current academic year.
It is pertinent to mention here that the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the premier national R&D organisation under the Ministry of Science and Technology, has developed possible solutions and interventions that are required to contain the tremendous challenge faced by the country due to SARS-COV-2 virus that causes Covid19.
As a possible mitigation measure, CSIR constituent laboratories, CSIR-Central Scientific Instruments Organization (CSIRCSIO), CSIR-Central Building Research institute (CSIR-CBRI) and CSIR- Institute of Microbial Technology (CSIR - lMTech) have developed and made available air-sanitization devices based on Ultra-Violet C band irradiation.
“These devices, once extensively implemented in community spaces like schools and colleges, have the potential of reducing cross-infections and restoring students' confidence in academic places,” the circular added.
In its latest circular, the AICTE has asked its affiliated educational institutions to take the necessary steps for installation of air-sanitization devices based on Ultra - Violet C band irradiation in auditoriums, buildings, AC Buses etc.
VIKASH SHARMA
INDIA
PUBLISHED: SATURDAY, 02 OCTOBER 2021
LAST UPDATED: 02 OCTOBER 2021, 02:05 PM IST
Photo: For Representational PurposesClassroom Teaching: AICTE Directs Institutes To Install Hi-Tech Gadgets To Beat Covid-19
The All India Council For Technical Education (AICTE) has issued a circular directing institutions and universities to take special measures for the installation of several devices to put a check on the spread of Covid-19 during resumption of physical mode of teaching for the current academic session.
In its latest circular, the AICTE has asked its affiliated educational institutions to take the necessary steps for installation of air-sanitization devices based on Ultra - Violet C band irradiation in auditoriums, buildings, AC Buses etc.
The AICTE has also asked to install the 'Circulating Air Flow Purelevator’ technology' for lifts, toilets, washrooms and the 'Standalone Air- Circulation Technology ' for rooms to reduce cross-infections and restoring confidence among students during the physical classes in the current academic year.
It is pertinent to mention here that the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the premier national R&D organisation under the Ministry of Science and Technology, has developed possible solutions and interventions that are required to contain the tremendous challenge faced by the country due to SARS-COV-2 virus that causes Covid19.
As a possible mitigation measure, CSIR constituent laboratories, CSIR-Central Scientific Instruments Organization (CSIRCSIO), CSIR-Central Building Research institute (CSIR-CBRI) and CSIR- Institute of Microbial Technology (CSIR - lMTech) have developed and made available air-sanitization devices based on Ultra-Violet C band irradiation.
“These devices, once extensively implemented in community spaces like schools and colleges, have the potential of reducing cross-infections and restoring students' confidence in academic places,” the circular added.
AICTE wants colleges to install air purifiers
AICTE wants colleges to install air purifiers
Bangalore Mirror Bureau / Oct 6, 2021, 06.00 AM IST
By Dhanalakshmi TL
With classes slowly shifting to offline mode, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has now asked colleges to install air-sanitisation devices based on ultra-violet C band irradiation. AICTE member secretary Professor Rajive Kumar said that during the pandemic, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) have developed possible solutions and interventions required to contain the tremendous challenge faced by the country due to covid. “The aerosol, air-borne route of the virus is now considered as the most likely cause for spread of infection. This mode of virus dispersal has been confirmed by major agencies like WHO. As a possible mitigation measure, CSIR institutes have developed air-sanitisation based on ultra-violet C band irradiation. These devices, once extensively implemented in community spaces like schools and colleges, have potential of reducing cross-infections and restoring students’ confidence in academic places,” he said. These AICTE-approved institutes have been suggested to take necessary steps for installation of these devices, auditoriums, buildings, and AC buses, etc. The circulating air-flow technology has been suggested for lifts, toilets and washrooms while a standalone air-circulation technology for rooms has the potential of reducing cross infections during physical classes in the current academic year.
Indian scientists working on 1st ever dengue DNA vaccine
Indian scientists working on 1st ever dengue DNA vaccine
This is the second dengue vaccine candidate from India.(Reuters file photo. Representative image)
Updated on Sep 28, 2021 04:25 AM IST
By Anonna Dutt, New Delhi
The world’s first DNA vaccine was approved for use in India recently. Developed by the Ahmedabad-based Zydus Cadila, ZyCoV-D is, as the name indicates, is a vaccine against Covid-19. Now, some researchers believe the technology -- considered superior because DNA vaccines are easier to make and store, and, most importantly store an enormous amount of information -- can be used to develop a vaccine for another tropical disease, dengue, a viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes.
“We know that there are four serotypes of the virus, but what we found was that there were genetic variations within the serotypes -- any sequence with over 6% difference is considered to be a different genotype. So, the team created a consensus sequence that is the same across the genotypes as well,” said Dr Easwaran Sreekumar, senior scientist at Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology-Thiruvananthapuram and one of the corresponding authors of the yet-to-be peer-reviewed paper uploaded on MedRxiv.
With the DNA vaccine platform allowing them to pick pieces of genetic material that can be used in the vaccine, the researchers resorted to sequencing the virus from four regions in the country that report dengue cases and selecting the common parts.
The virus that causes dengue has four types with four different viral antigens – essentially proteins that cause the infection and against which antibodies are created.
The researchers selected a part called EDIII (short for envelope protein domain III) from all the four serotypes of the virus, which is widely considered the most important viral protein. In addition, the researchers also selected the NS1 protein from the DENV2 serotype, which is known to cause severe dengue with internal bleeding and drop in blood pressure.
“In the traditional vaccines, the whole envelope protein is used that can lead to Antibody Dependant Enhancement (a phenomenon where the viral antigen is bound to less effective antibodies, something that actually makes the virus more effective) . We have used only the domain III of the envelope protein from all four serotypes to avoid ADE. And, we have added the NS1 protein from DENV2 that is known to generate both T cell and B cell response,” said Dr Arun Sankaradoss, project lead and scientist at Tata Institute of Fundamental Research-Bangalore. T and B cells are lymphocyte or white blood cells that are part of the immune system.
This, they say, is likely to provide effective immune response against all four serotypes of the virus, without causing ADE or antibody-dependent enhancement where antibodies generated against some of the serotypes by the vaccine can lead to a severe disease by the other serotypes.
This is what is believed to have happened with the only approved vaccine against dengue, where the vaccinated individuals developed more severe disease in the Phillipines. The vaccine uses live weakened virus to elicit immune response.
The DNA technology based vaccine candidate was tested on a mice model for DENV2 dengue and a good response was seen.
“We still do not have mice models for the other three serotypes; we are trying to create it. The vaccine candidate was found to be protective in the mice model and also neutralised the other three serotypes of the virus effectively in lab experiments. It is usually the DENV2 against which the immune response is the least and we have tested that,” said Sreekumar.
This is the second dengue vaccine candidate from India, with the other one being developed by researchers from International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB). The ICGEB vaccine uses a virus-like particle using the same EDIII portion of the dengue virus.
“So far, DNA vaccines hadn’t been successful in producing good immune response; but with ZyCoV-D we now have a safe and effective DNA vaccine. It is a very versatile platform. It brings down the manufacturing cost. It is stable at room temperature for a year, and at 4 degrees forever. This means it will be a very good candidate for resource constrained settings. That is the reason we have also used sequences from Eastern Africa for the vaccine,” said Sankaradoss.
Globally, there are at least five vaccines under development against dengue. Traditionally, the four serotypes have posed a challenge for dengue vaccine.
Once developed, the vaccines cannot only help India but the neighbouring countries. Asia contributes nearly 70% of the total dengue burden in the world. The World Health Organisation estimates that there are 390 million dengue virus infections every year, of which 96 million become symptomatic.
One hundred twenty-six countries or territories saw dengue infections according to Global Burden Disease (GBD) 2019.
The global number of dengue episodes increased 85.47% from 30.67 million in 1990 to 56.88 million in 2019, highlighting the importance of developing an effective vaccine against the viral disease that is a major public health concern globally.
“The dengue vaccine is very important as there are pockets across the country that report a flare up in cases every few years, and lead to deaths especially in children like we saw in Firozabad. A vaccine can prevent these deaths. Dengue cases are going up not just in urban centres but also across the rural parts of the country wherever construction activities such as for the roads are being undertaken,” said Dr PL Joshi, former head of the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme.
This is the second dengue vaccine candidate from India.(Reuters file photo. Representative image)Updated on Sep 28, 2021 04:25 AM IST
By Anonna Dutt, New Delhi
The world’s first DNA vaccine was approved for use in India recently. Developed by the Ahmedabad-based Zydus Cadila, ZyCoV-D is, as the name indicates, is a vaccine against Covid-19. Now, some researchers believe the technology -- considered superior because DNA vaccines are easier to make and store, and, most importantly store an enormous amount of information -- can be used to develop a vaccine for another tropical disease, dengue, a viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes.
“We know that there are four serotypes of the virus, but what we found was that there were genetic variations within the serotypes -- any sequence with over 6% difference is considered to be a different genotype. So, the team created a consensus sequence that is the same across the genotypes as well,” said Dr Easwaran Sreekumar, senior scientist at Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology-Thiruvananthapuram and one of the corresponding authors of the yet-to-be peer-reviewed paper uploaded on MedRxiv.
With the DNA vaccine platform allowing them to pick pieces of genetic material that can be used in the vaccine, the researchers resorted to sequencing the virus from four regions in the country that report dengue cases and selecting the common parts.
The virus that causes dengue has four types with four different viral antigens – essentially proteins that cause the infection and against which antibodies are created.
The researchers selected a part called EDIII (short for envelope protein domain III) from all the four serotypes of the virus, which is widely considered the most important viral protein. In addition, the researchers also selected the NS1 protein from the DENV2 serotype, which is known to cause severe dengue with internal bleeding and drop in blood pressure.
“In the traditional vaccines, the whole envelope protein is used that can lead to Antibody Dependant Enhancement (a phenomenon where the viral antigen is bound to less effective antibodies, something that actually makes the virus more effective) . We have used only the domain III of the envelope protein from all four serotypes to avoid ADE. And, we have added the NS1 protein from DENV2 that is known to generate both T cell and B cell response,” said Dr Arun Sankaradoss, project lead and scientist at Tata Institute of Fundamental Research-Bangalore. T and B cells are lymphocyte or white blood cells that are part of the immune system.
This, they say, is likely to provide effective immune response against all four serotypes of the virus, without causing ADE or antibody-dependent enhancement where antibodies generated against some of the serotypes by the vaccine can lead to a severe disease by the other serotypes.
This is what is believed to have happened with the only approved vaccine against dengue, where the vaccinated individuals developed more severe disease in the Phillipines. The vaccine uses live weakened virus to elicit immune response.
The DNA technology based vaccine candidate was tested on a mice model for DENV2 dengue and a good response was seen.
“We still do not have mice models for the other three serotypes; we are trying to create it. The vaccine candidate was found to be protective in the mice model and also neutralised the other three serotypes of the virus effectively in lab experiments. It is usually the DENV2 against which the immune response is the least and we have tested that,” said Sreekumar.
This is the second dengue vaccine candidate from India, with the other one being developed by researchers from International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB). The ICGEB vaccine uses a virus-like particle using the same EDIII portion of the dengue virus.
“So far, DNA vaccines hadn’t been successful in producing good immune response; but with ZyCoV-D we now have a safe and effective DNA vaccine. It is a very versatile platform. It brings down the manufacturing cost. It is stable at room temperature for a year, and at 4 degrees forever. This means it will be a very good candidate for resource constrained settings. That is the reason we have also used sequences from Eastern Africa for the vaccine,” said Sankaradoss.
Globally, there are at least five vaccines under development against dengue. Traditionally, the four serotypes have posed a challenge for dengue vaccine.
Once developed, the vaccines cannot only help India but the neighbouring countries. Asia contributes nearly 70% of the total dengue burden in the world. The World Health Organisation estimates that there are 390 million dengue virus infections every year, of which 96 million become symptomatic.
One hundred twenty-six countries or territories saw dengue infections according to Global Burden Disease (GBD) 2019.
The global number of dengue episodes increased 85.47% from 30.67 million in 1990 to 56.88 million in 2019, highlighting the importance of developing an effective vaccine against the viral disease that is a major public health concern globally.
“The dengue vaccine is very important as there are pockets across the country that report a flare up in cases every few years, and lead to deaths especially in children like we saw in Firozabad. A vaccine can prevent these deaths. Dengue cases are going up not just in urban centres but also across the rural parts of the country wherever construction activities such as for the roads are being undertaken,” said Dr PL Joshi, former head of the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme.
As crypto booms, exchanges need a variety of engineers
As crypto booms, exchanges need a variety of engineers
TNN | Oct 6, 2021, 08.04 AM IST
The world is still divided on whether cryptocurrencies will survive. But for now, there’s intense action in the field. Including in India.
Market research firms have put Indians among the biggest users and holders of cryptocurrency. Several cryptocurrency exchanges – which allow you to trade in cryptocurrency, and even use them to purchase goods & services – have emerged in India, and most are doing phenomenal business. Coin-DCX became India’s first cryptocurrency unicorn in August when the exchange raised $90 million from investors. Coinswitch Kuber hit 10 million registered users in September, just 15 months from launch, making it perhaps the biggest exchange in India.
Exchanges need talent to build, maintain and improve multiple components. They need user-interface designers and front-end engineers to build a visually appealing application that is also simple and seamless to use, more so since users are new to crypto. They need engineers to build a trading engine that can quickly match buyers and sellers, and enable immediate transactions. They need to provide a variety of ways for people to use their cryptocurrency – not just as investment, but also for, say, payments (Unocoin allows users to recharge their Fastag, make bill payments). This requires building those interconnections.
They need to enable wallets for users to keep their cryptocurrency. They need to provide extremely high levels of security. The whole transaction system is typically built on a blockchain network, and while that provides for a lot of trust and security, blockchains have been hacked.
Exchange responsibilities
Avinash Shekhar, co-CEO of Zeb-Pay, says the talent around crypto deposit infrastructure is turning out to be a key requirement. “The exchanges have three responsibilities. One, if you are depositing Bitcoin from somewhere, we should have an automated system that takes this into account. The transaction typically happens on blockchain infrastructure. Two, as exchanges can be hacked, you need infrastructure to keep it safe. Three, when you place a withdrawal request, it needs to be processed in an automated manner – again using a blockchain infrastructure that is secure enough. Crypto engineers need to understand every block in the chain and how the data moves. There’s great demand for a blockchain engineer with an understanding of blockchain security, platforms, architecture, and standards.,” he said.
Ashish Singhal, founder of Coinswitch Kuber, says they look for skills in problem solving, product development, data, engineering, and security. The blockchain industry, he says, is putting a new face to security, but blockchain security talent has not evolved in India. “We had to go to Israel and the US for security experts,” he says.
Another major evolving area is smart contracts, built on the Ethereum blockchain network. These are collections of code that carry out a set of instructions when certain pre-stated conditions are met. These contracts, which make tampering of transactions impossible, are powering decentralised applications. Ethereum is also what has enabled the rise of NFTs (non-fungible tokens), which are digital assets designed to represent ownership of unique virtual items.
Sathvik Vishwanath, CEO & co-founder of Unocoin, says smart contracts allow users to create decentralised financing protocols, create NFTs, create automatically executing escrow contracts.
Nischal Shetty, founder of WazirX, says smart contracts have created good demand for developers specialising in Solidity, the programming language preferred for smart contracts. He says developers familiar with Python will find it easy to learn Solidity as they have similar syntax.
Almost every company in the business is expanding. ZebPay’s head of HR, Geetika Mehta, says they plan to raise headcount from 220 now – of which 30% are engineers – to 400-450 in 6-9 months. WazirX had 35 employees in January; it’s now 300.
Coinswitch Kuber’s Singhal said they have grown to 350 people, from 20 last year, and they expect to be a 1,500-strong team by the end of the 2021-22 financial year. “A third of the talent will be engineers, specialising in data, security, and solving complex engineering problems,” he says.
Market research firms have put Indians among the biggest users and holders of cryptocurrency. Several cryptocurrency exchanges – which allow you to trade in cryptocurrency, and even use them to purchase goods & services – have emerged in India, and most are doing phenomenal business. Coin-DCX became India’s first cryptocurrency unicorn in August when the exchange raised $90 million from investors. Coinswitch Kuber hit 10 million registered users in September, just 15 months from launch, making it perhaps the biggest exchange in India.
Exchanges need talent to build, maintain and improve multiple components. They need user-interface designers and front-end engineers to build a visually appealing application that is also simple and seamless to use, more so since users are new to crypto. They need engineers to build a trading engine that can quickly match buyers and sellers, and enable immediate transactions. They need to provide a variety of ways for people to use their cryptocurrency – not just as investment, but also for, say, payments (Unocoin allows users to recharge their Fastag, make bill payments). This requires building those interconnections.
They need to enable wallets for users to keep their cryptocurrency. They need to provide extremely high levels of security. The whole transaction system is typically built on a blockchain network, and while that provides for a lot of trust and security, blockchains have been hacked.
Exchange responsibilities
Avinash Shekhar, co-CEO of Zeb-Pay, says the talent around crypto deposit infrastructure is turning out to be a key requirement. “The exchanges have three responsibilities. One, if you are depositing Bitcoin from somewhere, we should have an automated system that takes this into account. The transaction typically happens on blockchain infrastructure. Two, as exchanges can be hacked, you need infrastructure to keep it safe. Three, when you place a withdrawal request, it needs to be processed in an automated manner – again using a blockchain infrastructure that is secure enough. Crypto engineers need to understand every block in the chain and how the data moves. There’s great demand for a blockchain engineer with an understanding of blockchain security, platforms, architecture, and standards.,” he said.
Ashish Singhal, founder of Coinswitch Kuber, says they look for skills in problem solving, product development, data, engineering, and security. The blockchain industry, he says, is putting a new face to security, but blockchain security talent has not evolved in India. “We had to go to Israel and the US for security experts,” he says.
Another major evolving area is smart contracts, built on the Ethereum blockchain network. These are collections of code that carry out a set of instructions when certain pre-stated conditions are met. These contracts, which make tampering of transactions impossible, are powering decentralised applications. Ethereum is also what has enabled the rise of NFTs (non-fungible tokens), which are digital assets designed to represent ownership of unique virtual items.
Sathvik Vishwanath, CEO & co-founder of Unocoin, says smart contracts allow users to create decentralised financing protocols, create NFTs, create automatically executing escrow contracts.
Nischal Shetty, founder of WazirX, says smart contracts have created good demand for developers specialising in Solidity, the programming language preferred for smart contracts. He says developers familiar with Python will find it easy to learn Solidity as they have similar syntax.
Almost every company in the business is expanding. ZebPay’s head of HR, Geetika Mehta, says they plan to raise headcount from 220 now – of which 30% are engineers – to 400-450 in 6-9 months. WazirX had 35 employees in January; it’s now 300.
Coinswitch Kuber’s Singhal said they have grown to 350 people, from 20 last year, and they expect to be a 1,500-strong team by the end of the 2021-22 financial year. “A third of the talent will be engineers, specialising in data, security, and solving complex engineering problems,” he says.
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