‘IIT Kharagpur taught me to be fearless and confident,’ shares BTech student | Life in an IIT

In 2021, I got selected for BTech in Agricultural and Food Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur. I chose this programme as my father is also an agricultural engineer. Moreover, I discussed this with some seniors whom I met through a friend, informed me that the academic pressure of the course is not very high. In the programme, I am being taught concepts of Electronics and Mechanical and there are courses on mathematics as well. We are offered courses from other departments and we can choose whatever course we are interested in.

My future aspirations

In the coming years, I see myself pursuing higher education after taking a job in the corporate sector for two years or so. As of now, I don’t see myself working in the agriculture sector but if there are any start-up opportunities in the future, I might go for it.

My goal is to do something impactful that aligns with my interests. I want to do something innovative. But for now, my focus is on what I am pursuing at present.

Life at IIT Kharagpur — labs, lectures and clubs

Life at IIT is very dynamic. Things have changed so much from the first year till the third year. During the first year, I was mostly immersed in exploring clubs and societies. My peers and seniors used to motivate us to participate in college events. I got selected for product designing, social welfare and personality development clubs. The first year was online due to the pandemic.

During the second year, we got the opportunity to come to the campus and I was experiencing everything for the first time. Other than academics, I was meeting people with whom I have interacted only via online mode, going to clubs, attending regular meetings, discovering various posts and positions available in college, relaxing with friends, playing sports, attending workshops and so much more.

Life in an IIT: Madhvi and her friends

The classes for the third year have commenced recently and the academic load has increased. There are more labs and lectures. There are course projects this year and we also have additional courses and projects. This year, I am a part of only one club— product designing as the management coordinator. The third year is more academically inclined.

Since I have 8 am lectures, I wake up at 7 am, eat breakfast and leave for classes. I return for lunch by 1 pm and then go back for labs between 2 pm and 5 pm. In my free time, I play sports, attend club meetings, study for tests or spend time with friends. I also take part in competitions and spend a good amount of time preparing for those competitions

IITs, freedom and opportunities

When I came to IIT, I felt as if I had freedom. The first year was rigorous adapting to changes but there wasn’t any compulsion to study all the time, the main objective was to have your concepts clear and revising it was enough.

Being at IIT feels great, there is a great deal of freedom, and you can use your time however you want. The campus is green with a lot of facilities. Also, there is no in-time or out-time in the hostel so you can roam around the campus as long as you want. But, with freedom comes responsibility. At IITs, the competition is stiff, everyone is doing something productive, and students have to be up-to-date with their academics as well as extracurricular activities. No matter what, your grades shouldn’t suffer.

Extracurricular activities give us a lot of freedom to express ourselves in whatever way we want — we have the freedom to conduct and manage events. We are given a platform to express and implement ideas, something similar to having your own mini corporation.

IITs provide us with multiple opportunities to participate in several competitions. One such competition was Invention Factory at IIT Gandhinagar. It is exclusively for IITs, NITs and BITS. I had a wonderful experience there. At the competition, we had to invent a product from scratch. We had six weeks to create a prototype and prepare a pitch. We literally stayed in the lab. Invention Factory is an initiative by the Maker Bhavan Foundation.

My team member and I made a wearable breast pump integrated into a bra with a milk refrigeration container. We won the first prize and Rs 2 lakh. Invention Factory happens at three institutes — IIT Bombay, IIT Jammu and IIT Gandhinagar. I was offered IIT Gandhinagar.

Life in an IIT: Madhvi at Invention Factory

Life in an IIT: Madhvi at Invention Factory

I also participated in a product design competition at IIT Madras called Empower. We had to design a portable camera stand so that visually impaired people could scan notes and it would adjust itself as per the size of the notebook.

Other than that, I have also participated in case study competitions in college and general championships as well.

The culture at IIT is competitive but also very friendly. People are approachable and always ready to help each other.

Fests and fun

The month of January is one of the most exciting months for KGPians as we have four fests in January. Two of them are the main festivals, technical fest Kshitij and cultural fest Spring Fest. The latter is 3 to 4 days long and there are so many cultural activities and students from all across other states such as Odisha, West Bengal come to attend it. There are concerts on all four nights, magicians, competitions such as debates, nukkad nataks, dance competitions, fashion shows, street plays, stage plays and literary workshops where artists come. Last year we invited Sunidhi Chauhan, King, Nikhil D Souza and Nucleya. We also have an arena where there are a lot of food stalls, handicrafts, book stalls and more during spring fest.

Another important event during the year is Illumination. It takes place during Diwali. All the halls compete against each other and design a figure covered in diyas. The theme is decided by students and for one month they make designs and designs on the final day the figure, called chatai is lit up.

Life in an IIT: Illumination at IIT Kharagpur

Learning from IIT

My biggest learning from IIT has been that I have stopped fearing for taking initiative. I have become more confident, and empowered and do not shy away from challenges any more.