#no but pretty sure its implemented in the new syllabus that was put in place around 2017 and after

[technothlon]

Meet The Heads

In late 2003, a small group of students decided to design and conduct an exam unlike any other. An exam that is as fun and interesting as it is logical. An exam that requires no special preparation and has no syllabus. An exam that motivated students to think out of the box.  And thus, Technothlon was born. The first edition was conducted successfully in 2004, with 200 students participating from Guwahati. Every year since, a small group of students, the heads, have been selected and given the task of not only conducting Technothlon the next year but also making it bigger and better in the process. Over the course of 12 years, with the hard work of several generations of Technothlon heads, Technothlon has grown to be Asia’s largest student organised exam. In fact, Technothlon 2016 saw the largest participation in prelims and the winner getting a trip to NASA’s AMES Research Centre, California, cementing its place as the Biggest Technothlon yet. However, as has been the tradition, in late September 2016, 6 sophomore students of IIT Guwahati were selected and given the task of making Technothlon bigger, and better than ever before.

So, how does it feel, being responsible for conducting Asia’s largest student organised exams? Let us find out from the heads of Technothlon ’17!

Q:Do you think Technothlon ’17 will be the biggest edition of Technothlon yet?

Pratyay Nigam: With a team of such dedicated and motivated juniors, I am sure Technothlon 2017 will be the biggest ever

Jitika Rajpoot: Yes, I know that this edition of Technothlon is going to be its biggest edition yet. We already have very high standards set by Technothlon '16, and we are all set to break all records once again

Vishak Regu: Definitely. This year as well, we have managed to get a guided trip to NASA as our Grand Prize. This will give us a huge boost in terms of registration. Also, we have a very motivated and hardworking team of city representatives. So, there is no doubt that this will be the biggest edition of Technothlon yet

Q: What according to you are the benchmarks you wish to accomplish with Technothlon 2017?

Likhita Konjeti:  Conduct more LEDs, conducting the biggest prelims yet and conducting mains at a very good level 

Udayraj Deshmukh: We are focusing on improving the quality more than the quantity. Thus our benchmark is to meet the quality needs in smoother conduction of Technothlon, certificate distribution and faster declaration of results, and not only the conducting the biggest techno yet.

Pratyay:  As a core team member of Technothlon 2016, we broke the record for maximum participation in any exam conducted by a student body. This year I hope to work more on improving the quality of Technothlon such that Prelims is much more fun and interesting than it ever was. By the way, questions won't get easier though

Q: Technothlon's FB page has crossed 50k likes, Congratulations on the same. What do you feel is the reason for the enormous popularity?

Vishak:  The credit goes to our very motivated team of freshers for making it happen. I think one of the biggest factors for Technothlon’s popularity is that the exam is so much fun. Aside from this, our team works very hard to keep the page filled with interesting content, such as blogs, Techno Coup D’oeil and Factechs

Yash Gandhe:  Technothlon is known primarily for the complexity of the questions. Every year, each head tries to better the elegance of the same and this has probably led to us reaching a new milestone, the milestone being us reaching 50k likes on Facebook

Jitika:  The exam being completely logical, including no school syllabus is one of the very big reasons for its popularity. It is also unique; students participate in teams of two to give the exam. The other reasons I believe are that this exam is conducted by students who have just passed out from school, so they know the interests of school students better and so paper of prelims and the events of mains are designed by them in a way that makes it even more attractive for school students

Udayraj:  Reasons for popularity? Everything that we release contributes to it i.e. Factechs, Techno coup d'oeil, LED, etc. Our branding team also works very hard for it. The website and the app also add to Technothlon's popularity

Q: Which was a better experience - being a part of Team Techno as a fresher and a city rep or as a team head?

Yash: Each of the positions is better in different aspects and the experience necessary to become an exceptional head

Likhita: I can’t compare the experiences because both of them are worth it in their own way. Being a city-rep I learnt how to talk to principals, how to convince them etc. I really miss those moments when we were frustrated with the number of registrations we were getting. As a team head, the scenario is entirely different. You have the power to implement things, have freshers under you, the feeling I get during meetings is different.

Jitika:  All these experiences are better than the others in their own ways. However, Techno as a whole is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. And I feel really lucky to have been a part of it and will always work for the betterment of Techno.

Pratyay: Every position has its perks. As a team member, I was responsible in designing the question paper as well as worked on Mains' Events. Being a head is one hell of a responsibility, the six of us are responsible for conducting the biggest student organized examination of the country, it gives us a feel that cannot be expressed in words and at the same time that is what keeps us going. For me, I would say being a City representative has been the best experience till now. Conducting Technothlon in my city for the first time, representing my institution in the city, talking to thousands of students, tens of presentations, getting 600 teams registered and then "The Day: 17th July'16" when all the students are attempting the prelims paper, scratching their heads as well as having fun and then getting reviews on the questions, it made all the effort put in by me and my team the entire year worth it

Q: What is the biggest problem you faced as the head of team techno? How did you overcome it?

Udayraj: Honestly, the biggest problem for me initially was about how to bond with others. As a fresher I was not so open. But then I learned it from our ex-heads and the other five heads, it took a little while but now I think I have a pretty good bonding with others in the team

Vishak: Initially, the biggest problem I faced was getting registrations from the south zone, as a few schools had a problem with giving registrations. However, since then, these problems have been sorted out. Other than this, as a team, we are yet to face a major crisis. And even if we do, with these five people by my side, I believe we’ll be more than capable of facing it

Q: What would you say has been your best moment as a part of Technothlon?

Udayraj:  For me, one of the best moments was when we conducted LED in a small school near IITG. Seeing the faces of happy children was one of the best memories

Likhita:  As a city rep, on the day of prelims when you look at around 1200 students who came for Technothlon, and see them having fun trying to solve questions, you feel satisfied that yes, this was worth all the effort I’ve put in. For me, that was the best moment

Yash:  After the conduction of the exam, parents coming up to you and congratulating you on the successful management of the exam and knowing that you played a part, no matter how small in it

Jitika: As a city representative, the day 17th July 2016 was the best day of my life. The feeling of satisfaction that came just after the completion of the exam was the best. Every faculty member, invigilator, and parents around in the school who came for the exam were all appreciating the efforts. Students praising the paper of techno and everything else on that day was awesome. Techno has given me many, many amazing moments but this one was really the best moment of my life till now

Heads, Technothlon ‘17!

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