Ham radio clubs in IITs, NITs could boost emergency communications

Setting up amateur radio clubs in Indian educational institutions, particularly in technical establishments like the IITs and NITs, could help in disaster management and strengthening the communication domain, an Austrian amateur radio practitioner said here on Friday.

Computer network administration expert Miroslav Skoric, who has over two decades of experience in amateur radio digital communication, pointed to prestigious varsities and institutes in developed nations like the US, France and Germany, among others, having small ham radio set ups.

"There could be small groups of amateur radio operators in the IITs, NITs and establishments of similar level.

"In case of emergency, it is essential to establish some ad hoc communication system because internet and phones wouldn't work," Skoric told IANS here on the sidelines of a conference.

Further, he said, local ham clubs would boost collaborations between practitioners and researchers to improve quality of software and ham radio equipment.

"Academic institutions, such as technical institutions, already have electronic laboratories and computer labs. The best possible environment for improving the quality of amateur radio are the technical institutes.

"Practical amateurs can offer some more field area of research and, in return, the college can give us better quality of software programmes, antennas, cables etc. So it would be a mutual benefit," said Skoric, who is also a member of National Institute of Amateur Radio, India, and IEEE, Austria.

Skoric also showcased amateur radio operations with the West Bengal Radio Club (Amateur Club) at the second IEEE International Conference on Research in Computational Intelligence and Communication Networks (ICRCICN), organised by the RCC Institute of Information Technology.

"It probably won't become an official part of the engineering curriculum but it can be a free activity," he added.

The institute was established in 1999 as a collaborative venture of the Ministry of Information Technology and the Department of Higher Education, West Bengal.

--IANS

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