Accolades Amidst a Pandemic
Gilesh M P, Secretary for IEEE Kerala Section
On 30th January, 2021, IEEE Kerala Section held its Annual Awards Ceremony for the year 2020. The edition of the most prestigious award instituted by the Section in memory of its founder chair and the doyen of electronic Industry, Padma Bhushan Shri. K. P. P. Nambiar was bestowed upon Dr. M. S. Valiathan for his distinguished contributions in the field of medical technology in India. Instituted in the year 2017, the K. P. P. Nambiar Award honors an individual or institution in the State for significant contributions to the IEEE vision of “Advancing Technology for Humanity” through research, development and application of technology that benefits humanity, devoid of social bias. The awardee Dr. M. S. Valiathan, a renowned Cardiac Surgeon and the Founder-Director of Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), was honored for his exemplary role in the creation and propagation of biomedical technologies in the country.
The event was conducted in a composite structure with small group gathering physically at Trivandrum, Kochi, and Kozhikode adhering to the COVID-19 protocols, connecting over Zoom, and live streaming on the IEEE Kerala Section YouTube Channel. For the first time ever a Section event was streamed over IEEE TV, the official channel of IEEE HQ. The award ceremony recognized eminent personalities and organizations in the field of Science & Technology with honorable positions.
- Outstanding Women Engineer Award – Ms. Rameetha K, Scientist ‘G’, NPOL, Kochi;
- Outstanding Industry Contributions Award – Mr. C. Balagopal, Founder-CEO of Terumo Penpol;
- Friend of IEEE Awards – Mr. Prasad B. Nair (CEO, Maker Village); Dr KN Madhusoodanan (CUSAT); and Dr. P. S. Sathi Devi (NIT Calicut);
- Outstanding Teacher Award – Dr. Bijuna Kunju (TKMCE) and Dr.Dhanaraj K. J. (NIT Calicut);
- Outstanding Researcher Award – Dr. B. S. Manoj (IIST); and
- Outstanding Start-up Award – GenRobotics Innovations Pvt. Ltd.
IEEE Kerala Section presented several professional members with Professional Awards, including Mr.Shankar Jayaraj (Outstanding Volunteer); Ms. Jiby Krishna K. G. (Outstanding WiE Volunteer); Mr. Rejin Narayanan (Outstanding Humanitarian Volunteer); Varghese Cherian (Outstanding Industry Contributions); Ms. Juliana Biju (Outstanding YP Volunteer); Mr. Akash Nambiar (Outstanding YP Volunteer); Mr. Midhun C. (Notable Technical Contributions) and Mr. Albin Paul (Outstanding Humanitarian Volunteer – Special Mention). Extraordinary performance by student volunteers was acknowledged by the Student Awards along with a special mention on institutions that provided support to IEEE student activities including Rajagiri School of Engineering and Technology (RSET) – Ernakulam; Sree Chitra Thirunal College of Engineering (SCTCE) – Trivandrum; and Jawaharlal College of Engineering and Technology, Lakkidi.
Being a global organization that works towards enhancing technology and making it accessible to every sector of society, IEEE observes its members and their contributions with utmost regard, making this award function a stimulus for a better tomorrow.