IIT-Kharagpur, NIT Trichy and MIT Pune teams win Singapore-India Hackathon

PM Narendra Modi presented awards to the three winning teams from India, and Singapore winners from Nanyang Technological University and the Singapore University of Technology and Design

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday presented awards to six teams — three each from India and Singapore — that won a joint India-Singapore hackathon meant to “harness and showcase the innovation potential of the youth of the two countries”, in Singapore.

The winning teams from India were from IIT Kharagpur, NIT Trichy, and MIT College of Engineering Pune. The winners from Singapore were from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD).

"Happy to have met innovators who won prizes in the first ever Singapore-India Hackathon. They talked about their extensive work. I was impressed by their passion and commitment towards solving problems our world faces," Modi said.

Singapore Education Minister Ong Ye Kung was present at the award ceremony along with Subra Suresh, president of the Nanyang Technological University; Anil Sahasrabuddhe, chairman of the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and Jawed Ashraf, High Commissioner of India to Singapore.

"PM Narendra Modi met and felicitated the winning teams of India Singapore Hackathon, agreed to during the visit of PM to Singapore in June 2018," Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Raveesh Kumar tweeted.

These problem statements for the hackathon were in the areas of mapping, synchronised output of diverse social media, shared digital identity verification, effective number estimate, space management and allotment, effective learning, and personal security. These were based on campus scenarios that students could easily relate to. However, the solutions emerged will act as seeds to address larger problems in these areas in society.

"Platforms like the Singapore-India Hackathon serve as excellent opportunities for our youngsters to showcase their work. They also serve as forums to learn about pioneering innovations by youngsters from other nations and institutes. A win-win for our students!" Modi said in a tweet.

During his official visit to Singapore from May31 to June 2, PM Modi had proposed to his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong that India and Singapore organise a joint hackathon to harness and showcase the innovation potential of the youth of their two countries. The proposal was welcomed by Lee and the Singapore side had designated Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and its innovation and enterprise arm, NTUitive, to conduct the hackathon. Similarly, the Indian side had designated AICTE. The High Commission of India in Singapore had facilitated the event in collaboration with Ministries of Education and Foreign Affairs of Singapore.

Twenty teams each from the two countries, with university and college students selected on a nationwide basis, participated in the hackathon. Each team had 3 students and a dedicated mentor.

These 120 participants joined the 36-hour hackathon working on 20 problem statements on November 12-13, ending with the grand finale on November 14. From India, an 83-member delegation comprising 60 students from AICTE-approved institutions, Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and National Institutes of Technology (NITs); 20 mentors and three officials of AICTE visited Singapore for the hackathon.

On November 14, the top six teams (three each from India and Singapore) were chosen after a final pitching session. The first prize of S$10,000, second prize of S$6,000 and third prize of S$4,000 was announced for each of the three winners from India and Singapore.