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In this 15th edition of As We Leave, Nitish Kumar, a Y19 B.Tech-M.Tech (Dual Degree) student graduating in the Department of Electrical Engineering, shares his reflections on his journey at IITK. He fondly recalls moments of camaraderie with his support system, from wingmates to lab mates, which made his college life memorable. As Nitish prepares for the next chapter of his life, he leaves behind a legacy of resilience and compassion, reminding us of the transformative power of society exploration while in college along with academics and the endless possibilities that await those who dare to dream.
Disclaimer:- The views presented below are the author’s own and are not in any manner representative of the views of Vox Populi as a body or IIT Kanpur in general. This is an informal account of the author’s experiences at IIT-K.
Today, when I sat to write my AWL, I felt bad and good at the same time. Bad because I will miss my great friends, juniors, and professors. When searching for the photos for AWL, I felt nostalgic about every photo crossing my eye. Good because some new challenges are waiting in life. Let’s deal with them as early as we can. If one or another day has to come, then why not today?
Many changes have happened in the last five years (3.5 only; 1.5 years were COVID) in college, and I am considering where to start the story and where to end. I can’t cover everything, but I will try to cover most things more concisely so that AWL doesn’t become a course book. Let’s begin. I hope you will enjoy and get something from this AWL.
I. Moments with the Support System Wing A3
We need someone to support us every time in our lives. From the first day of college, we had our SG (student guide); from the first day on, we started building conversations in our wing, and some days we had a perfect wing group. My wing group was amazing.
One day, around 12:30 AM, I was sleeping, and Arush (my roommate) came, and he was like, “Something happened; come fast outside.” Meanwhile, almost all the wingies were sitting in the Sahil room, and Arush called me there. Everyone was like, “Nitish dance kar.” I was like, “Kya Yarr.”
These small things are excellent and irritate you when they happen, but you will miss those moments when they are not with you. We used to go to dinner frequently and had a game plan for every meal. Everyone has to tell a story about their childhood, and that part is just amazing. During our final year of B.Tech, we gathered in our wing F-Bot daily and had a great time there.
Lab Group
Along with my wingies, PIL Lab, where I lived most of the time in the final year of my dual degree, I interacted well with everyone. One of the best things we used to do was go to the canteen for tea every day with the lab members. We used to have interesting discussions there. We went to dinner together multiple times. The best was when the whole lab group went to a placement party; it was unique and memorable. Some of the lab members are very good friends. We also danced together in DE (Dance Extravaganza); that was my first dance.
Milan
In our lives, we should always be around something that inspires us to be active in society and be aware of society so that we don’t forget our role. Our Milan and Vivekananda Samiti teams were amazing.
We used to have daily games and discussions on topics focused on our own and society’s development. We went on multiple trips near Kanpur. The people are one of my favorite people, and I used to discuss topics that interest me, like what society needs and what we can do for society. You should always be in touch with the people and group, or create some group like this other than your wing and lab.
II. Beyond the Books: A Journey of Social Awakening at IITK
When we joined the IITK on our first day, we were motivated to study hard, do something big like everyone else, and contribute to society. Still, as time passed, we used to engage in college life, and we just forgot about where we came from and what responsibilities we had. We forgot to plan for society and started living in our own world like frogs in a well. The same thing happened to me until my second semester. However, a turning point occurred when I had a conversation with one of our alums. So, I decided to do something for society while living in college.
We don’t have much time besides club activities and academics, so I decided to continue with the Vivekananda Samiti. I am very grateful that I got the chance to meet many social workers, spiritual leaders, alums, and monks there. During my Vivekananda Samiti tenure, I taught students, distributed blank, and met people outside campus. During our campus life, we get involved in our problems too much and think our problems are the biggest. Still, when you go outside and see the people and meet them, you will realize that our problem is tiny compared to theirs, and from there, you will also get the motivation to work properly and patiently.
Due to a lack of time on our campus, we can’t do too much work, but at least we can get exposure to what’s going on in society, and to get exposure, the best way is to visit the places where people are working full time for society. We did two visits, one at Sonbhadra, UP, where we got a chance to meet the tribal (Vanvasi) students from all over India. The best moment was when I was in Sonbhadra on December 31, 2022, and I danced with them for 2 hours on New Year’s Eve. It was one of the best moments of my life.
We also went to Jhabua MP, where the Shivganga team worked for society. There, I saw the tribal people and lived for one night at one of the tribe’s (Dhuliya Bhai) homes. After seeing the welcoming nature of the people and the culture they are preserving, I was shocked. If they can maintain the culture and humanity between them, then why can’t we? I can’t write every moment of that place; otherwise, AWL will become very long.
We did other small things also other than trips, like teaching students and meeting some personalities who work for the society, but I can’t write about everything here:)
III. Stages of Change: Club and Fest
When I was in Patna during my 12th coaching, I sometimes went to Premchand Rangshala Patna, where people were trying to make the society aware via Nukkar Natak (Street Play), so while filling out the form for freshmen night, I decided to fill out the form for the dram’s club. I had a great time with the dram’s club team. It was the last day of Antaragni 2019, and we won the 2nd Prize in Mime and the First Prize in Nukkar. For the Bollywood Pronight, Shankar Mahadevan came to campus, and our whole dramatics club team was in slippers and dancing on the ground. And while dancing, my slipper was also broken. Indeed, that day was one of the best days on campus.
Along with the Dramatics Club, I was also in E-cell during E-Summit. The fun thing in the E-cell interview was the manager asking the spelling of entrepreneurship to select the volunteer. As a manager at Techkriti 22, I had an excellent experience managing multiple things in the core team, and the sham with Shan was just amazing.
Once lockdown started, I decided to leave both clubs. At one point, while I was in the volunteer group Vivekananda Samiti, a member messaged me a link to an article by Swami Vivekananda. Still, it was not opening due to a technical issue. After that, I messaged him for the pdf, and after some time, we had a long discussion about society and many other things. That day, I joined Vivekananda Samiti as a secretary and then manager. Vivekananda Samit is a social volunteering club where we can meet many good people. We learned a lot there with the Samiti team and Swami Atmashradhannada Ji Maharaj, the secretary of Ramakrishna Mission Kanpur and an advisor for Vivekananda Samiti. The lessons and experiences I gained with the Vivekananda Samiti will remain with me for life.
IV. The Journey: Academics and Placement
On the first day of college, I still remember being one of the guys in my wing with the least understanding of English. During orientation, everyone had to write the English test, which was very easy, but I failed in that, and I had to do ENG122C (English Language and Communication Skills) as HSS in my first semester.
One thing I remember during the LIF101 course is that when the professor was teaching, I was not getting many words in the class, and I used to write the word that I was not getting, and then after coming to the room, take a look at those words for their meaning. I managed, and after the first semester, I got things right with some effort.
Unfortunately, our second-semester midterm (Holi’20) vacation was 1.5 years long. Many ups and downs were there. Let’s keep it aside; let’s not be sad again and return to college. I came to college during RC (Resource Constrained: If someone has an issue with online resources) time. That time was significant in Hall 13 because, whoever we were, we were talking to everyone and knowing each other. One day after the end semester exam of one of the courses, 6-7 people just came out of the room, and whoever was meeting, even if we didn’t know him, we just took their GPL, and after GPL, they were also joining the team. That was a lot of fun.
During the SPO internship session, I didn’t get the internship. Still, at the end of February 2022, I got the summer internship at L&T Technology Services, with the help of one of the old alums via LinkedIn (I am not going to explain here how to get an internship and a job using LinkedIn). I also got the PPO after that internship, but I decided to do a dual degree, and finally, I enjoyed an extra year on campus. I got a very good PIL (Perception and Intelligence) Lab environment from my thesis advisor, Prof. Tushar Sandhan. During this placement season, I got an offer from TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company) and will join them.
V. At The End: Reflections
I will keep some things open for you, and if you need some discussion or help, please contact me. Now, I will try to summarize some of my learning and things that I would like everyone to take care of while in college:
- After coming to college in your first year, try to correlate your interest with the clubs and society in college, or ask the seniors, and don’t try every club as it’s time-consuming.
- Other than your wing group bulla sessions, try to form a group or connect with that group where you can discuss what you would like.
- Don’t get too disconnected from society after coming to college, as in the end, you have to live in society, so be aware of that. Learning about society will help you through your ups and downs.
- Connect with as many people (senior, junior, and batchmates) as possible, as some of them will be in touch for life.
- Yes, academics matter, so take care of that. Don’t be sad, and believe in yourself if anything goes wrong. Take help from your wings, batchmate, senior, and Prof.
Thanks for reading till the end!!!
If you have any queries or want to discuss something, message me on LinkedIn.
Ultimately, I thank everyone who helped make college life memorable. I hope to meet you guys soon.…………………..
Signing off !
Written by : Nitish Kumar
Edited by : Sanchit Arora, Kaushal Jain
Designed by: Sanyam Shivhare
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