Sreedhara Panicker Somanath is the 10th Chair of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). He graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from TKM College of Engineering, Kollam, in 1985. Soon after, he started his stint in ISRO as team leader of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). After 10 years of service, he […]
Category: Campus Chronicles
Living with Parkinson’s
Subramony Mahadevan, a former faculty member at the Department of Developmental Biology and Genetics, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2009. In this personal essay, he reflects on his experiences of coping with the condition. This essay was first published in the Deccan Herald on 9 September 2023 and is being republished in CONNECT with […]
Chemistry Matters
Why the oldest department in IISc continues to be relevant As one goes down the canopy-covered Tala Marg in IISc, there stands a building tucked unobtrusively on the right side. The exposed stone bricks, sharp features, and small windows harken back to a time when robustness and utility were qualities that were paramount. Even […]
Flashing Lights of Hope
Alumnus Sudhakar Varanasi recounts the history and impact of India’s 108 ambulance service It was a day like any other in the year 2001 when Barbara and her daughter set out on a drive to the suburbs of Bangalore. Unfortunately, their car met with an accident, leaving Barbara bleeding profusely and severely injured. Her […]
Growing a Forest of People
Student conference has been fostering India’s conservation community for 14 years “How many of you have been chased by an elephant?” is not a typical question you’d expect to hear at a conference. But it seems to fit right in at this one; many people raise their hands, some laugh. Standing at the front […]
Electronic City Was Not Built in a Day
The story of Rama Krishna Baliga, a government bureaucrat who laid the foundation for Electronic City, which eventually led to Bangalore becoming the “Silicon Valley of India” Ragavendra R Baliga has fond memories of his father, Rama Krishna Baliga. “There’s an article my father wrote for my medical school journal after he retired. [In that], […]
Coming of Age
Tracing the growth of IISc’s UG programme through the eyes of a student Hailing from a small village outside Guwahati in Assam, I had no idea about the existence of IISc, let alone its undergraduate (UG) programme. I only learned about it when I was well into my 12th grade after I cleared the […]
Helping Hands
The Pensioners’ Association supports retired employees in their golden years As you take a leisurely stroll down Gulmohar Marg, your gaze might be drawn to a quaint two-storeyed complex adjacent to the walkway across the IISc main building, its vintage facade standing quietly amidst the hustle and bustle of the campus. The sign near […]
The Chase Begins
A first-person account of IISc’s women’s cricket tournament It was a hot Sunday morning in May. Under clear skies that offered little protection against the beating sun, a group of women gathered around at the pavilion in the Gymkhana to discuss strategies. It was the second match of the women’s cricket tournament organised by […]
Crossed Cultures
The lives and experiences of IISc’s international students Fourteen years ago, before Fekadu Mihret Geremew came to India for the first time to pursue his Master’s, he had heard a lot about how it was not the ideal place to live. The image he had in mind was a country of traffic congestion, overcrowded […]