Author: blog

Shoolini Newsletter Team

Researchers from Solan-based Shoolini University and the United Kingdom (UK)-based Cranfield University shall collaborate on research and knowledge related activities for green synthesis of nano particles.

This was one of the major outcomes of the two day International Workshop on “Advanced Materials for Engineering and Solar Energy Applications” held last month. School of Physics and Materials Science and School of Mechanical and Civil Engineering, in association with Cranfield University, Bedfordshire (UK) conducted the workshop.

It was also resolved that dual degree programmes with Shoolini University and Cranfield University will be worked out.

In order to step up research it was decided to seek more funds from the agencies such as The Royal Society, London and The British Council along with Indian funding agencies such as Department of Science and Technology, Department of Biotechnology and other relevant funding agencies.

The convener of the workshop Dr Rajesh Kumar Sharma said that the main objective of this workshop was to reveal the outcome of the project funded by Royal Academy of Engineering, London for helping Shoolini University to embed the developed technology in the curriculum of Engineering, Pharmacy and Sciences and to disseminate the knowledge to the neighboring Universities and Engineering Institutes. He told that delegates from 15 educational Institutions and Industries participated in the international event.

The Vice Chancellor of Shoolini University Prof PK Khosla said that these types of collaborative projects allow the researchers to best use the mutual resources and propagate the research activities at mutual convenience. Shoolini University researchers have already submitted couple of projects with Cranfield University and they are focusing on further projects like UK-India Educational and Research Initiative (UKIERI) and Horizon 2020.

In this workshop, the people from other universities, institutions and industries were engaged so that they can implement the novel academic curriculum practice in their organisations, he added.

The workshop also aimed to understand type and level of expected skill requirements in engineering and pharma students.

To understand futuristic scenario, experts proposed to carry out ‘Focus Group Study’ with experts from industry, academia and research and to redesign the curriculum for the Indian students in view of present scenario in manufacturing Industry, Dr Sharma said.

It also aimed to expand the use of traditional composite materials for multifunctional applications and to encourage Indian students for registration in M Sc by Research.

SNL Team

Shoolini University has announced participation in AWS Academy, a new Amazon Web Services (AWS) programme that provides higher education institutions with a ready-to-teach cloud computing curriculum. This makes us the first Amazon certified campus located in Himachal Pradesh.

Beginning next semester, students can enroll in courses that will prepare them for careers in the rapidly-growing cloud computing space and help them pursue industry-recognised AWS Certifications.

The courses would be available, free of cost to the students, from the engineering and the management departments initially. Later, students from other departments will also be offered these courses. The courses will run for a full semester.

After successfully completing the programme, students who take and pass the AWS Certification examination will become AWS Certified. 

Vice Chancellor Prof P K Khosla said, “We are proud to make the AWS Academy curriculum available to our students.” He added that “cloud computing has become the new normal for organisations around the world, and the technical skills that students develop through this programme will position them well for their careers today and in the future.”

The AWS Academy curriculum is developed and maintained by AWS subject matter experts, ensuring that it reflects current services and up-to-date best practices. Courses are taught by AWS Academy-accredited educators who are trained by AWS to help students become proficient in AWS technology.

“We created AWS Academy to develop the next generation of cloud computing professionals by working collaboratively with higher education institutions and industry partners,” said Scott McKinley, AWS Academy Global Team Lead, Amazon Web Services, Inc. “Our goal is to build a pipeline of AWS-trained professionals who can help drive innovation as cloud computing becomes the new normal.”

AWS Academy courses help students develop in-demand cloud computing skills and gain hands-on experience in order to pursue employment as a cloud computing IT professional or earn industry-recognised AWS Certification.

Returns Rs 1 lakh help paid by VC for MBA fee

Vishakha Thakur

Success is not measured by wealth, but the trials and tribulations one encounters during the journey to triumph over all odds, and gratefully remember every person who contributed to the effort on the way.

One such successful person is our illustrious alumni, Mr Gopal Das, who rose from a humble background to attain success in his career. If it wasn’t for Vice-Chancellor Prof PK Khosla, Mr Das would never have been able to achieve his goals in a top multinational corporation. Brimming with gratitude, he fondly recalls the personal financial assistance provided by the philanthropist, Prof Khosla, during his hour of need.

He recently met Prof Khosla and expressed his desire to return the money, over Rs 1 lakh, given by him for his MBA fee. Prof Khosla was pleasantly surprised with the gesture as he had completely forgotten about it. He immediately announced that a revolving fund would be created from the money returned by Mr Das to help deserving and needy students. It was also decided to honour him at the next convocation.

Mr Gopal Das hails from Solan. His father, Late Pat Ram, passed away when he was in the 10th standard and his mother, Mrs Vidya Devi, did menial jobs to raise the family. He completed his schooling at Raja Delip Government Senior Secondary Boys School, Solan, in the non-medical stream and then moved on to pursue graduation and post-graduation diploma at the Government PG College, Solan. He used to take tuition to meet his financial needs.

After completing his diploma, it was impossible for him to bear the cost of a professional degree. “By God’s grace I chanced upon Prof Khosla and Mrs Saroj Khosla and divulged to them all about my passion for studies but my inability to afford it,” he recalls. Offering to personally bear all his expenses, Prof Khosla advised him to continue his education in management and join MBA. “The guidance and monetary support given by Prof Khosla at this critical juncture completely turned my life around as well as my way of thinking.”

This bright student then joined the Department of Management (MBA 2008-2010) batch. He said: “Now, I want to help others and spread the same message of humanitarianism to society.”

After a year, he got selected in B?yer, which ranks Number 3 in an international ranking of the best and strongest company brands.

“For the past nine years, I have been working as the senior area business manager, India, (North Zone) in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir for a world-leading and one of the oldest German multinational corporations, B?yer, for which most of the Nobel Prize scientists have worked,” he added.

When asked about his future plans, he shared, “I want to be the youngest manager to step into top management in India and I know I will achieve this with my performance in a competitive and challenging environment.”

Recalling his days in the University, he said “I really enjoyed my time in the department of management at Shoolini University under the expert guidance of Dr Khosla, Dr J B Nadda and other faculty members, including Dr Yasmin Jhanhua, Dr Sulochana Sayal and Dr Nisha Raghuvanshi. I would like to thank all of them from the bottom of my heart for their direct or indirect contribution to my career,” he smiled.

His message: Never give up!

MUSKAN KHAN AND USAMA BIN FIROZ

Ayurveda is the oldest holistic healing system. But do we, the new generation, know enough about it?

This question twisted and twirled in our brain when we, BPharm 1st year students, were studying about different medicinal systems of the world. As pharmacy graduates, it is crucial for us to get acquainted with these systems, be it old traditional Chinese medicine or our own Indian traditional medicinal systems including Ayurveda.

After the class, our curiosity about the Ayurveda system was heightened as we were curious to know much more about it. Interestingly when we talked to our own classmates about Ayurveda, we realised that very few of our friends were actually aware of India’s oldest medicinal system how to use it, its principles or how Ayurveda works on the human body.

To satiate our curiosity, we searched online and came to know that despite the government’s attempts over the years to popularise AYUSH (Ministry that works on promoting Ayurveda), the general population preferred allopathic drugs.

According to a recent Times of India article, 90 per cent of Indians prefer allopathy over Indian traditional systems. That was quite surprising for us.

We spent a few days brooding over this information till we decided to talk to one of our Professors about it. Luckily, our educator, Dr Gurjot Kaur, noticed this dilemma and decided to guide us. During one of our ‘between the lectures’ long conversations, Ma’am explained to us, in very simple words, what Ayurveda is all about.

We also discussed why the B. Pharmacy graduates are largely unaware of such an important topic. We, unanimously, agreed that while we would like to get actual numbers about the current facts on the students about Ayurveda, we would also like to raise their awareness on such an important topic. Fortunately our classmates Caroline, Divya, Harsh, Rishika and Sakshi, helped us design the online survey on Ayurveda using Sogo Survey.

We chose 13 questions as part of our survey. For example: do you use ayurvedic medicine, are you aware of the ingredients, do you use any other medicine with it? Luckily, some of our friends wanted to help us with this design and we ended up with a pretty cool survey.

As the link of the survey could be shared through WhatsApp, we started visiting all the current batches of BPharmacy, usually at the end of one of their lectures. We would start by explaining in detail why we are conducting this survey and what is the importance of Ayurveda and then share the survey link through WhatsApp to their respective batches. As our survey was fully functional through this link on an online server, their answers were directly registered into the survey app and it was quite easy for us to work with such a huge number of students (almost 80-90 every time).

Once the data was obtained, we analysed it using analysis software on Sogo Survey. For example, we found that out of 231 students that took the survey, 65 per cent were males and 35 per cent were females.

Most of the answers were quite unexpected. For example, when we asked the question on whether they use Ayurvedic medicines, 117 students out of 231, that is around 50 per cent gave a negative as a reply while 63 students or 27 per cent had rarely used Ayurveda. To our question on whether they used other medicinal systems, 169 students out of 231 (or 73 per cent) entered allopathy as their preferred choice of therapy while 33 (14 per cent) used homoeopathy, and 58 (25 per cent) used home remedies for relief. About 140 students (60 per cent) were not aware of the ingredients, formulations, and side-effects of using two systems such as allopathy and Ayurveda together.

As BPharmacy students (now in our 2nd year), this was a huge accomplishment. Not only did we actually generate facts through our survey but also raised awareness in students about a very important Indian medicinal system. We personally learned many interesting facts and even, how-todo-a-survey.

In the end, we would like our readers to ponder over the following question: Do we know enough about Ayurveda? If you are sufficiently interested, go online or grab a book and read about such an important part of Indian history and our role in the development of one of the world’s oldest medicinal systems. Let us be proud and promote it as a great option for therapy.

MANSI GUPTA

The combined effects of ambient (outdoor) and household air pollution leads to about seven million premature deaths worldwide every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections.

A study titled “State of Global Air 2019” has reported that on an average the life of a South Asian child growing up under current high levels of air pollution will be shortened by two years and six months, while the global life expectancy loss is 20 months.

Vast tracts of north India, particularly the NCR region and parts of Uttar Pradesh, are among the most polluted areas in the world and air quality further deteriorates during winters due to a variety of reasons.

Concerned over the worsening problem of air pollution, Dr Pradeep Kumar and Dr Saurabh Kulshrestha along with their two students, Kanika Arora and Ankurita, decided to work on a viable household model that would help purify indoor air through harnessing Nature itself.

The Indoor Green Air Purifier harnesses the potential of microalgae and moss to degrade the toxic pollutants present in air like CO2, NO2, SO2, VOC’s heavy metals and most significantly PM2.5 and PM10.

Professor, School of Biotechnology, Faculty of Applied Sciences and Biotechnology, Dr Kulshrestha said that the model prepared by them would be handy and can be kept on a small table with a structure like that of lava lamp. He said the purifier would cost around Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 and it will work for whole life as it can be replenished with algae and moss in every 2 months.

“We can also install Internet of Things (IoT)-based system in it so that we can check out the PPM of air we are breathing via mobiles”, he said and added that even the campany concerned “will get an alarm alert if the system is releasing polluted air i.e. air with pollutants above the set values”, he added.

The system, he said, would need a sparger system, light source and an exhaust fan for output air. Patent has been granted for microalgae bioreactor but is pending for the combination of moss and microalgae consortium.

The researchers focussed on microalgae Chlorella pyrenoidosa that needs CO2 (the major greenhouse gas), sunlight and wastewater containing nutrients to photosynthesis and grow. The other one is the lush green moss Ceratodon purpureus. Being a rootless bryophyte, it takes its entire nutritional requirement from atmosphere and chiefly targets CO2, SO2, SPM PM2.5, PM10, heavy metals and VOC’s present in the polluted air.

The leftover biomass can be used for extraction of various bioactive compounds like super antioxidant “astaxanthin” and for biofuel production. Further the slurry can be used as biofertilizer agricultural farmlands.

The purifier works as microalgae culture and gets aerated via sparger system which is connected to an aeration pump. Thereby, dissolve various harmful gases in the media for microalgae to utilize it for photosynthesis using LED source that are muffled around the glass to optimize the growth conditions by meeting both heat and light requirement.

Dr Kulshrestha said the exhaust placed on the top of the bioreactor will force the air through moss layer which is grown in aeroponics and placed just above the algae media. This results in restoring the clean and fresh air to the indoor environment. The model is used for curbing the most deadly and profound problem of air pollution that leads to 7 million deaths per year due to its health effects.

This purifier will not only decrease AQI of the ambient atmosphere to a great extent but also gives the most reliable, efficient, natural and frugal alternative to the society for addressing the most concerned challenge worldwide.

PRIYASI PARMAR

Three final semester students of Masters in Business Management of Shoolini University have been selected by leading MNC Hindustan Unilever Limited during the ongoing campus placements drive.

All of them have been offered a placement with a package of Rs 7 to Rs 8 lakh per annum each.

An elated Preeti, who is one of the three to bag the job gave credit to the University and in particular to Dr Kuldeep Rojhe heading the MBA programme for her success.

Asked what helped her in getting the placement, she said “my determination helped me to crack this interview because it was a one-time opportunity and I have been preparing for it since last year placements”.

Her advice to MBA students: “I will only suggest that be focused and work on improving your skills as per your dream job. Companies hire those people who fit in their framework. So, work on yourself accordingly”.

Her classmate and future colleague Sonali said she stayed optimistic during the interview and had a positive attitude.

She said she would like to “firstly give credit to my parents. My mother has always motivated me to become independent and self-sufficient in life. Secondly, I want to thank my teachers and our sprint team for shaping my whole personality. Last but not the least I want to give credit to my friend Rohit Soni for his constant efforts. He has always motivated me to work towards achieving my goals”. 

Asked about her advice for MBA students for great placements, she said she would like to tell them that they should always believe in themselves and should not lose hope. “These will be times when situations will be tough but stay strong because sooner or later everything will fall into place and will make sense to you”.

The third student Prachi said it was her dedication, consistency, hard work and clear vision to be a part of HUL that made her crack the placement. 

She said she would like to give “credit to Shoolini University, teachers, family and friends who motivated me at every point of time”.

Asked for tips to MBA students looking for placements, she said “focus and consistency in working hard is definitely the key to success”.

VANSHIKA NAGAR recently interviewed Dr Dinesh Kumar Chatanta, Prof and Head, School of Bioengineering and Food Technology at Shoolini University. Here are some excerpts:

Where did you complete your studies?

I did my schooling from Shimla and completed my Graduation from Centre of Excellence, Government Degree College, Shimla in B.Sc. Medical. Then I did M.Sc. from Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla. Later I joined JRF Biotechnology under Prof Hariom Aggrawal and did PhD in Biotechnology from Himachal Pradesh University under Prof T.C. Bhalla.

Since how many years are you with Shoolini University and what are your main areas of responsibility?

Vice-Chancellor Dr P.K. Khosla asked me to join this university in 2011 and gave me the challenge to independently handle the School of Bioengineering and Food Technology which was earlier with the Engineering department. There were very few students but with the passage of time, we have been able to develop the school and its infrastructure.

What’s the future scope of bioengineering and food technology?

Biotechnology is one of the emerging career fields at the national and international level with its widespread application across multiple industries like food, pharmaceutical, chemical, bio-products, textile, medicine, nutrition, environmental conservation and animal sciences with ample opportunities for qualified professionals. The scope of biotechnology is wide and offers opportunities both in research and engineering.

What are the employment prospects for students?

There are ample job opportunities both in the government and private sectors. Food technology offers numerous job opportunities in food processing industries, research laboratories, hotels, soft drink factories, quality control, spices, cereals, rice mills, manufacturing industries, distilleries and packaging industries. They can also get absorbed in government jobs related to food, as a food inspector, food analysts, food scientists in FSSAI and in the Ministry of Food Processing Industries. Besides this, they can get international opportunities as researchers to work in frontier areas of biotechnology and food technology.

Your School has students ranging from an undergraduate level to that of PhD students. How do you cope with it?

UG and PhD students are with completely two opposite mindsets. UG have to be pampered and given guidelines regarding their career in the field, syllabus, opportunities and they have to be reminded that they are in the university which is a more independent system of learning as compared to school. They are also not directly loaded with the syllabus whereas PhD students are mature enough to handle themselves.

What kind of problems do freshers from schools face and how do you help them out?

It is a completely different world for them as in the schools, they have been spoon-fed and now they have to work on their own. With the passage of time, they get adjusted to the environment. What is your advice to those who come to the hostel for the first time? There is diversity within the hostels. They have the opportunity to interact with several students from different parts of the country and abroad and enhance their interpersonal skills.

How many PhD students are there in the Department and how do you coordinate with them?

There are 12 PhD students working within the university from different places and different kinds of workshops are there for their benefit.

What is your message for the students?

Students should try to achieve whatever they want and there are very good chances that they would succeed. All that is required is that they should be keen, determined and must always remember that nothing is impossible.

KESHAV KUMAR

Vivek Mohan, a National Film Award winner, who has also been Natonal Jury twice in Indian Panorama of International Film Fest of Goa, has said governments must provide enough space for children to play, particularly in hill areas.

Vivek, who hails from Shimla and is based in Mumbai, depicted the plight of children through a docudrama “Shivaji Park of Shimla” to underline his point. The 22 minute film depicted children playing in the only available open and level space in Shimla – the Ridge.

Delivering a Guru Talk at Shoolini University, he said there was an urgent need to provide open spaces in parks and playgrounds to give children an alternate creative activity to keep them away from mobiles and nefarious activities at this tender age.

He related the Ridge to the famous Shivaji Park in Mumbai. The Ridge witnesses and hosts all kinds of political, religious and social activities except allowing kids to play for few hours at least even on Sundays.

He said the documentary made an impact with the government which began opening up parks and other spaces for the children to play.

He said he evolved a comprehensive strategy to sensitise the government as the film alone could not have made the impact. He started a social media campaign and also spread his word through the mainstream media.

He went nostalgic about his experience of playing cricket with a ball made with socks. He said “if we do not provide playgrounds and open spaces to the children, they will only play on mobile inside the room. If you want to hear chirping of birds, you have to go outside”.

Vivek Mohan told students to be patient in life as nothing can be achieved overnight. He further added, “Whether you are writer, painter or singer or in whatever profession, you have to be sensitive to the society. You can’t create until you feel pain.”

ALISHA GARG

Nargis Qadri, a student from Afghanistan pursuing MBA at Shoolini University, says she came on a student exchange programme for 4 months and it was then that she decided to pursue her MBA from here.

She liked the environment, calmness, people and the way of teaching here. She further adds that it was her father who supported her throughout and encouraged her to come to India.

When asked about her hobbies, she said that her hobbies include playing basketball and listening to songs. Besides this, she loves listening to Hindi songs. Arijit Singh and Armaan Malik are her two favourite singers. She loves cooking and misses Afghani food sometimes. Cooking makes her joyful and provides relief from stress.

When asked about her wishes she said she wants to open a school for orphans and provide them with a good education. She feels education is a basic necessity in one’s life and everyone must be able to acquire it regardless of financial sources.

There are some days when she feels homesick but then she spends time with her native country friends and goes out to explore new places. She is fond of seeing and trying new things every day.

In the university, Namrata, Sejal and Radhika are some of her best friends. Regarding faculty, she said Dr Nitin Gupta is a very co-operative teacher and has helped her throughout her studies. Talking about taking up a job she said her first preference would be to get a job in India and work here for some time.

Nargis misses her family but she is able to talk to them on a daily basis. She has recommended her siblings to study in Shoolini University and pointed out that her brother might come to pursue BBA from here in the next few months.

She doesn’t understand Hindi and has difficulty communicating in English as well but with time she has started understanding English a bit.

Overall she says she is easy to get along with and makes friends easily and is good at creativity. She also shared that she loves to travel. She has visited Ajmer Fort in Rajasthan and loved the culture, serene beauty and royalty of that place. She is looking forward to visit more such places in India.

A state-of-the-art Cancer Research Centre, with facilities for cutting edge research on cancer biology, has come up on the University campus.

The facility, which houses five different research groups actively engaged in the research on various aspects of cancer biology like herbal cancer therapy, cancer immunotherapy, drug delivery and chemical biology group, was formally inaugurated on Thursday by Mr Raj Khosla, a philanthropist from Thailand.

Vice-Chancellor Prof PK Khosla said the Centre has been built with an endowment fund of Rs one crore donated by Mr Raj Khosla, for strengthening of cancer research in the University.

The Vice-Chancellor said the Centre also contains a state of the art food and drug testing laboratory funded by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries. 

Prof Khosla said the future goal of the Centre is to develop better formulations to control different forms of cancer by innovative cancer therapies. The Centre has experienced research groups and state of the art infrastructure facilities also envisages attracting funding from national, international and private funding bodies so that it can be a Centre of excellence in cancer research in the country and across the globe.

The prime area of focus of Shoolini University is on the Sustainable Utilization of Himalayan Biodiversity for the betterment of society in general and Himalayan states in particular. One of the main areas of research is to utilise the medicinal wealth of the Himalayas for the treatment of cancer. 

For that, the researchers of Shoolini University have already made significant progress and developed formulations as immunostimulators and efficient drug delivery systems to fight various types of cancer. In the past 10 years of its establishment, Shoolini University has created modern infrastructure in the form of labs and research equipment from intramural and extramural research funding to cater for the needs of cancer biologists in the University.