Yes.

Please start by introducing your professional journey in academia

So I started with. On my B.Tech in mechanical engineering. And and uh, then I did my. A postgraduate diploma from Central Institute of Tool Design. Uh, where I did for two design and uh. Uh, CAD cap?

Alright, so you started with your B.Tech in mechanical engineering, then a postgraduate diploma at Central Institute of Tool Design focused on tool design and CAD/CAM. Go on.

So I started with. On my B.Tech in mechanical engineering. And and uh, then I did my. A postgraduate diploma from Central Institute of Tool Design. Uh, where I did for two design and uh. Uh, CAD cap? Then I did. Did my masters in mechanical engineering where the. Universe into cat Cam and robotics. And finally. I did my PhD. In mechanical engineering, where my focus was on manufacturing sciences, especially smart manufacturing. Surface, surface. Integration and surface. Uh yeah, Basically, uh, surface. Modifications. Then the. Diagnostics and sensor and interventions. Currently I have 11 papers out of which eight are. Uh, first or corresponding? OK. Uh, then I have book chapters and, uh, a book. Currently being uh. Accepted by CRC Press. For the publication. Next question.

You mentioned your focus on smart manufacturing and surface diagnostics. Which foundational concept in mechanical engineering do you find most rewarding to teach to new students?

So basically now people are going towards. Industry 4.0 and industry now it is going to Industry 5.0 where? Uh, we are using different sensorial interventions and. A smart feedback basis. To automate the systems. In AI and database management. Which can automate the industry. And produce the necessary. Foods in the best. So that is one of the things. Secondly, we need to also work on. How? Take data. How this can be uh, more? Precise enough.

So basically now people are going towards. Industry 4.0 and industry now it is going to Industry 5.0 where? Uh, we are using different sensorial interventions and. A smart feedback basis. To automate the systems. In AI and database management. Which can automate the industry. And produce the necessary. Foods in the best. So that is one of the things. Secondly, we need to also work on. How? Take data. How this can be uh, more? Precise enough. Uh, so uh, it requires the pre processing to be better. Uh, where I've told about. Surface Engineering. Surface modifications. Which are requirement to the sensorial. Uh, designs and all those things, so the students should also know about that. Next question.

Alright, so you're passionate about teaching how Industry 4.0 and 5.0 leverage sensor-based automation and data precision. When you introduce these concepts in class, how do you make sure students actually grasp the practical side—not just the theory?

Okay, so you emphasize the importance of sensor integration, surface engineering, and precise data processing for modern manufacturing. How do you help students bridge the gap between theoretical concepts like surface modifications and their practical application in smart manufacturing labs?

Uh, so basically we need to integrate. Uh, theoretical concepts more towards the lab oriented, uh. I mean, uh. In labs we have to show them physically how. The basically the physical. Data maps to the. Real time. Real time.

Uh, so basically we need to integrate. Uh, theoretical concepts more towards the lab oriented, uh. I mean, uh. In labs we have to show them physically how. The basically the physical. Data maps to the. Real time. Real time. Uh, like, uh, how we do surface, uh, modifications. For example. If you need to. Do super hydrophobicity or hydrophobicity concepts. We need to bring in the people and show. By real experimentation how that works? Just say if the angle is more than. Uh, say 90° hydrophobic. We have to show how it is hydrophobic. What happens in that hydrophobicity? And that can be done. Through experimentation.

So you're saying you try to connect theory to hands-on lab work by showing how physical data maps to real-time manufacturing scenarios. Can you give me a concrete example of a lab exercise you've designed that helps students see this connection for themselves?

Alright,

Next question.

Dr., I noticed your thesis at IIT Kanpur was titled "Surface Nano-engineering through Digital Manufacturing and Decision-making Tools." Can you share a time you had to explain this research to undergraduate students or a non-specialist audience? How did you make the concepts accessible?

So basically. We had to show. Like I said, we have to show in real time. How old is? Uh, thing works out. Uh, like in? Experimentation how it works out. So basically. Like I said, for hydrophobicity or super hydrophobicity. We need to show them. What? What we mean by? This hydrophobicity in real time where we capture the images. Through the microscopic lens. And we show them that. Uh, what? How the angle has to be measured? What it what hydrophobicity means? Like if you put a drop of water? It can be properly be. Drained out on the from the surface. Without the surface being getting better. So that is one of the concepts that I had produced. Secondly, if you say data management and data data analysis. There we showed how. What kind of data needs to be used? How much the data needs to be used? How it should be analyzed using different concepts like P value analysis? And mean and. A mean and standard duration analysis. That which data is. Good enough to be used further for experimentation and also. For developing any process or product.

You explained how you used real-time experiments—like measuring hydrophobicity with microscopes and water drops—to make abstract concepts tangible for your students. When you taught data analysis for experiments, how did you ensure students really understood which statistical tools to use and why?

So basically the basic available statistical tools are nowadays the Excel sheets. So which? Uh, there are a number of concepts and a number of videos where we show. How Excel can be used for? Simple I mean. Median mode analysis. R value analysis. P value analysis. And that is a basic concept that. First of all, they need to need to understand. Then the next step would be to use. Other kind of statistical tools that are available in the market. But that is on the second phase where we go for real kind of research. Next question.

Given your research focus on smart manufacturing and surface engineering, where do you see the most fundable directions in the next three years? Which grants or funding sources would you target first?

When I was doing my PhD, I found that. Uh, core manufacturing is not. Being given much of an interest in India. So. We should target something which is more specific to the industry or the society.

When I was doing my PhD, I found that. Uh, core manufacturing is not. Being given much of an interest in India. So. We should target something which is more specific to the industry or the society. There there, uh, we have to sort problems the 1st. Uh, foreseeable thing is. Basically developing. Uh, medical diagnostic tools. Which have used in the market. For example, once I develop. Uh, impedance based spectroscopic method for detection of hepatitis. S uh and dengue UH. Basically dengue antigens. And uh. There we used. Ai-based methods. To process the data from the fluorescence data and the impedance based data. To develop a system. Which can give the absolute value. With the best of the sensitivity and specificity, and currently it is being. Basically, we are. Uh, trying to sell it to the market, uh, industries. So that it can be used further in the in the society.

You pointed out that core manufacturing isn't getting enough attention, and you want to target research that's more industry- and society-specific. What kind of partnerships or collaborations would you pursue to make your research more attractive to funders and relevant to industry needs?

Alright, you described how you worked on an impedance-based spectroscopic method for medical diagnostics, using AI to process fluorescence and impedance data. What steps did you take to find relevant industry partners or collaborators for this project, and how did you approach the funding conversation with them?

So initially. Got it funded through ICMR. Where we. He had a. Uh medical partner. That is Ilbs daily. Now what we did we we submitted the proposal where we. To control them that they will be developing this chip. Once we started, once we were at the end of the first stage of prototype. We start started searching for medical partners. Uh, we had contacted with several medical partners like Mold. Bio and uh. Certain other Jamitra and all. Those partners? We went to them, we showed. The prototype technologies to them. Then they were they asked for further. Basically clinical, clinical. Diagnostics to that clinical data from for that. So we did clinical testing of these kits. In different places like Ilvis Delhi and Ames Jodhpur where we caught. Data. And once we got this data, we were. Went back to this uh. Industries, now they are contemplating as to how much. That can be used. Or that can be. Developed as a overall product. And given to the society.

So initially. Got it funded through ICMR. Where we. He had a. Uh medical partner. That is Ilbs daily. Now what we did we we submitted the proposal where we. To control them that they will be developing this chip. Once we started, once we were at the end of the first stage of prototype. We start started searching for medical partners. Uh, we had contacted with several medical partners like Mold. Bio and uh. Certain other Jamitra and all. Those partners? We went to them, we showed. The prototype technologies to them. Then they were they asked for further. Basically clinical, clinical. Diagnostics to that clinical data from for that. So we did clinical testing of these kits. In different places like Ilvis Delhi and Ames Jodhpur where we caught. Data. And once we got this data, we were. Went back to this uh. Industries, now they are contemplating as to how much. That can be used. Or that can be. Developed as a overall product. And given to the society. And what should be its market value?

Okay, so you got initial funding through ICMR, partnered with ILBS Delhi, and did clinical testing at places like AIIMS Jodhpur to gather data for industry partners. Given the competitive nature of grant funding, what was your strategy for making sure your proposal stood out and actually got selected?

So what I have seen from the past few years is that. You cannot sell your sell your. Uh, thought process only by giving. Uh, a single person. Uh, yeah, you have. To have collaborations with other. Other partners too like like I said we went to ILBS Delhi as a clinical partner. We went to AIIMS Jodhpur for. Clinical testing. Uh, we had some connects with CSIS. For helping us out with the manufacturing part of it. So you need to prepare a. A template, Uh. Basically a project proposal. Where you use multiple partners. To give. The project proposal. And that is the way I. Next question.

Right, Dr., you clearly have a strong research background. For your teaching, imagine you have to run a hands-on lab session in Smart Vehicle Technologies, but you can't rely on traditional lectures or slides. How would you design that class to keep students engaged and make sure they're actually learning the core concepts?

Uh, so hands-on lab initially we should start with. Uh, basically designing, uh, using. Uh, CAD Cam uh. Tool with a CAE software. We should show the basics. Basic understanding of how to design the vehicle. Then. We should give a lab means a hands on experience to these. Students. By showing them some videos. Of how people are creating those, uh, in the, in the lab, uh. Prototype stages. And then allow them, give them resources, a few resources to develop that. Same car, same vehicle for themselves.

So you’d start with CAD CAM and CAE basics, then use videos and hands-on prototyping to get students building their own vehicle models. How would you assess whether students are actually understanding the underlying engineering principles during those sessions—not just following instructions?

So that needs to be done by. By asking one-on-one on one questions to each of these students when they are developing the. Prototypes or when they are doing the hands on sessions. Basically, if you are given, if a person is given to. Design a component. The person should be asked. Where what this component does? How the component works? Or what is the? What is it going to fit on?

So that needs to be done by. By asking one-on-one on one questions to each of these students when they are developing the. Prototypes or when they are doing the hands on sessions. Basically, if you are given, if a person is given to. Design a component. The person should be asked. Where what this component does? How the component works? Or what is the? What is it going to fit on? Or whether we can design it in a new way, saying getting a much more. Uh, efficiency. To that concrete. That will be the basic idea to start with. Next question.

Alright, so you focus on one-on-one questioning during hands-on sessions to make sure students understand what each component does and how it fits. If you notice a few students struggling with the basics or disengaging, what would you do mid-session to bring them back in and support their learning?

Okay, let’s shift gears a bit. Accreditation cycles can be demanding—if you joined our department and found that outcome assessment data was inconsistent across courses, how would you approach fixing that?

Uh, so basically each course requires a different set of. Understanding a different set of. Umm assessment. Uh, say if you go to. Mechanical concepts, especially in the manufacturing part. It requires a lot of hands-on experience, but then if you say something like a mathematical. Uh, mathematics. Uh, concepts like that that requires more of a? More of a teaching basis.

Uh, so basically each course requires a different set of. Understanding a different set of. Umm assessment. Uh, say if you go to. Mechanical concepts, especially in the manufacturing part. It requires a lot of hands-on experience, but then if you say something like a mathematical. Uh, mathematics. Uh, concepts like that that requires more of a? More of a teaching basis. So the assessment obviously requires a different. Proposition in both these factors. Uh, where mathematical mathematical mathematics would require more of. Paper based. Testing while the mechanical part should have. Both lab based and paper based examinations.

Uh, so basically each course requires a different set of. Understanding a different set of. Umm assessment. Uh, say if you go to. Mechanical concepts, especially in the manufacturing part. It requires a lot of hands-on experience, but then if you say something like a mathematical. Uh, mathematics. Uh, concepts like that that requires more of a? More of a teaching basis. So the assessment obviously requires a different. Proposition in both these factors. Uh, where mathematical mathematical mathematics would require more of. Paper based. Testing while the mechanical part should have. Both lab based and paper based examinations. So. But obviously we need to have a. Centerline where we. Say that OK, this kind of assessment is the best. Uh, for each of these, uh. Topics. We need to align with that and we should. It's like take. Obviously, both administrative, the administration as well as the professors in one line. To say that OK, this is the best possible assessment tool. For which? For which kind of? Subjects, that is that. If it is a theoretical subject, it should be assessed with tests and. Business, well, if it is a practical course we have to go with. Both, uh, hands on. That is lab based. As well as some assessment through. Quizzes RA. Other tools? Other practical things.

Uh, so basically each course requires a different set of. Understanding a different set of. Umm assessment. Uh, say if you go to. Mechanical concepts, especially in the manufacturing part. It requires a lot of hands-on experience, but then if you say something like a mathematical. Uh, mathematics. Uh, concepts like that that requires more of a? More of a teaching basis. So the assessment obviously requires a different. Proposition in both these factors. Uh, where mathematical mathematical mathematics would require more of. Paper based. Testing while the mechanical part should have. Both lab based and paper based examinations. So. But obviously we need to have a. Centerline where we. Say that OK, this kind of assessment is the best. Uh, for each of these, uh. Topics.

Alright, you’re saying each course needs its own assessment method—hands-on for manufacturing, more theory-driven for mathematics. But if the department needs consistent outcome data across all courses for accreditation, how would you make sure every instructor is actually collecting and reporting their results in a standardized way?

Alright, you pointed out that different courses need different assessment types—lab-based for mechanical, paper-based for mathematics. But if the department needs consistent outcome data across all courses for accreditation, how would you standardize the reporting or ensure the data's reliable for external review?

Okay, let’s talk about something that comes up in academic life. Imagine a student files a formal complaint saying your grading is biased, but at the same time your department head is pressuring you to improve pass rates. How would you handle that situation?

Alright, you emphasized tailoring assessments—lab-based for practical courses, paper-based for theory, with input from both administration and professors. Let's shift to something that comes up in academic life. Imagine a student files a formal complaint saying your grading is biased, but at the same time your department head is pressuring you to improve pass rates. How do you navigate that situation?

First of all, what I think is. I would not. Be very biased about any marking scheme. Because if I feel that the student is learning and he is doing good. Uh, that that person will be given the. Best possible marks. Because I don't go for biasness, I. Go for people who learn or who study or who does the best. As for the pressure from the director or any head of the. Head of my department. I would. Be means like. I would obviously explain to him why I am going for that. Kind of, uh. Assessment. And I will be obviously not giving too much of A pressure saying that like I said. Uh, it's I both the theory and the lab session, uh should be passed for each of the students if I am taking. Something in, say, manufacturing sciences. So. The there will be a leeway saying that. Is the theoretical classes. You are not performing that much. But you are good at. Uh, hands on experience. You will get a leave aid. To all the students and vice versa.

First of all, what I think is. I would not. Be very biased about any marking scheme. Because if I feel that the student is learning and he is doing good. Uh, that that person will be given the. Best possible marks. Because I don't go for biasness, I. Go for people who learn or who study or who does the best.

First of all, what I think is. I would not. Be very biased about any marking scheme. Because if I feel that the student is learning and he is doing good. Uh, that that person will be given the. Best possible marks. Because I don't go for biasness, I. Go for people who learn or who study or who does the best. As for the pressure from the director or any head of the. Head of my department.

First of all, what I think is. I would not. Be very biased about any marking scheme. Because if I feel that the student is learning and he is doing good. Uh, that that person will be given the. Best possible marks.

Alright, so you keep your grading strictly tied to student learning. What if the department head still insists you raise pass rates, even if it means lowering your standards—how would you respond?

You’re saying you’d stick to your principles and only reward real learning, regardless of pressure. If the department head keeps insisting you raise pass rates, even if it means lowering your standards, what would you do next?

Makes sense—you’d stand by your grading and not let outside pressure compromise your standards. Now, Dr., given your background in smart manufacturing and surface engineering, do you have any industry connections that could help students with internships or placement opportunities in those fields?

You’d make the assessment interactive, asking students about their design choices and how components function, which helps you gauge their real understanding. Earlier you mentioned working with ILBS Delhi and AIIMS Jodhpur for clinical testing—can you share one concrete way you’d help students connect with industry partners like those to boost their employability after graduation?

So basically when you do experimentation. Obviously nothing. Uh, there are some things. Which not which will not be available at the IT value. So I will use my previous connections obviously and. Connections of those connections to. Gain access to some industrial. Sites some other academic areas where you can use those technologies that are available in those places. Obviously this is. Much more important. Projects Multi. Means with multi. This this is what one of the most important points that if you have multi centric projects, you will have access to those labs too. So this will help. Both the students. And our projects. In as well. Next question.

You mentioned leveraging your existing network and multi-centric projects to help students access industrial labs and resources—so they'd get more exposure and real experience. Can you give me a concrete example of a student project that directly benefited from your industry connections, maybe leading to an internship or placement?

Uh, so, uh, like I said, uh, we had connections, uh, with some of the industries. In some of our projects, we had connections with some of the industries. Like there was 1 industry which we worked on. Uh, that was a textile industry. Where we we had a project where we used to develop a water. Wastewater management system. Where I had the work of developing. Uh, the automation of this, uh. This plant in itself. There the requirement to. Use this system in itself. And processing it. Uh, means like, uh, reviewing the. Whatever the wastewater component or renewing the system in itself. Requires a. Person who is killed enough? So what we did is we trained one of our. Diploma and Btech guys and we send them. There and they joined this. Company in itself.

Okay, Dr., now I need to verify a few core skills for this role. For starters, can you walk me through a practical scenario in smart manufacturing or mechatronics where you had to solve a technical challenge—what was the problem, and how did you approach it?

So the first major project that I did. Uh, was on. Nanofurnishing of. Uh, cylindrical, uh, reciprocating Cam shafts, which came from a textile industry where the problem was they had finishes up to 500 nanometers in the grooves. But they they needed to reach it 200 nanometers and below. The problem being that the industry had only options of grinding or surface buffing. Which, uh. Led to around 500 nanometers of finishing. Now. We developed so we. Try to develop uh. Basically Magneto rheological abrasive flow finishing technique. Where where we develop the technique, where and through process optimization and. All those. Criteria. All those multi criterias that we optimized. And we took it 200 nanometer and below. Now one of the problems is that. We used. An based technique. Which was a feed forward based technique and uh. Where we developed. Uh, uh, through, through different, uh, experimentation, we had developed the data and we had traded to the Ann system. But there was problem with. Uh, basically when when it tried to. Uh, when we went to the lower, lower, lower skills like towards the under dynamite. There was problems with the nano finish with by taking the whatever the criterias was given by the. So now. Now what we did is we developed another system. Which could measure the surface roughness. At certain points, say 70% of the cycles, 90% of the cycles, or 100% of the cycles. And reiterate. It reiterate the whatever the parameters are. There like the number of cycles to finish. And according to whatever the. Uh, finishes available at that. Now this is this is very helpful. Uh, in the terms that. You get the perfect finish that is required on the. Surface.

Alright, so you developed a magneto-rheological abrasive flow finishing technique and fed process data to an A N N system, then added surface roughness checks at different cycle points to hit the target finish. What would you do if the industry needed to scale this process for ten times the volume—how’d you handle throughput and quality control?

So basically this machine can be. Basically. Uh, uh, the set of uh. And the systems can be multiplied accordingly. Obviously a single. Compa single processor can. Obviously, take care of all this. Data. Because. Uh, like I said, uh, a single processor can do multiplication of these, uh. At every point. Taking that you say there are machines 1234 and and number of machine. And in each machine they are checking the 70 at 70% of the cycles. And 1790 / 100% of the cycles and it can be automated in itself. Where we use the. Like I said, the AI tools and the sensorial interventions. For multiplication. Next question.

Alright, you trained students for a wastewater automation project in the textile industry, and that led directly to a placement. For theory and lab courses, how do you structure your teaching so students can connect the abstract concepts to real-world engineering challenges?

So basically we need to. Use case study is an application based UH teaching. Uh, for obviously to connect the abstract. Uh, theoretical concepts to the real life. Uh, happening means. Like. Uh, finishing is a for. For an example like I used. Finishing as an concept. No, now finishing can be done in multiple. Avis so one has to understand how. This finishing each of these processes finishing works. What are its? What are its pros and cons? And how much it can give you the finishing. So that. That has to be taught initially and then. Uh, you have to show it. In real time to the. To the uh. Students in a way, like I said. Through microscopic studies or through. Surface roughness measurement systems. Of concepts like that that how the finishing has changed from X to Y. Umm, uh. Through different process. Next question.

Alright, so you use case studies and hands-on measurement to bridge theory with real-world applications—like showing surface roughness changes and discussing different finishing techniques. When you're guiding student research projects, how do you make sure each student is actually contributing and not just riding along with the group?

So the thing being that like I said. Individual assessment is the best policy in this case. So. Each student will be asked to explain one of the comp. Components of the concepts that is associated with the overall project. For example. If you are developing a car. Uh, or a vehicle. So you should understand. How the power unit is there? How? How? The linkage unit is there or how? Some some XYZ component is working and what is? What can be done? New to it? Or what? What needs to be done? New to it. Uh, how it can be changed to give more more efficiency?

Right, so you handle group projects by having each student explain a specific component and suggest improvements—so you’re making sure everyone’s actually contributing. When you’re evaluating students during exams or lab sessions, what’s your approach for handling borderline cases—those who barely meet the criteria for passing?

Like I said, it should not be only on lab session or only on. The theoretical peoples it should be a. A mix of both. So. Obviously a student may be good at one thing and not good at. The other thing maybe, but then he should have good. At least a good hands on or a good theoretical. Understanding of the subject. To go through. Uh, into the next round or next?

Okay, so for borderline cases you look for overall competence—if they're strong in hands-on work or theory, that can help them pass. Shifting gears, Professor, you've published research in reputed journals—can you talk about a specific paper you're most proud of and what impact it had on your field?

So I have multiple papers in different domains. Uh, like I said, 1 is on the surface roughness concept. Which is in CIRP. Manufacturing systems technology. People, it's around a man uh. Impact factor of around. 5.5. Then there is another paper which is on impedance based spectroscopic method that I have said it's in lab on chip which is around. .57. Impact factor. Now, uh. Both these papers have got real potential in it. Because it. Uh, shows uh, new unders. Understanding a new concept to. Uh, basically automate or. Diagnose. In different fields of. Obviously 1 is in manufacturing, the other being in. Medical diagnostics tools, but both are. Basically aiming at automating. Something. And obviously, in today's world, automation is everything.

You’ve got papers automating surface roughness and medical diagnostics, both with solid impact factors. Now, I need to verify a few final core skills. Can you tell me about a time you worked on a consultancy or industry project, and what your role was in delivering results for the client?

So I have worked on different consultancy and industrial products. Industrial products. One being in Boeing. Uh, where I have developed, uh, superhydrophobic. The surfaces on paper for applications. Concern to the Boeing, Uh, Boeing. Going company, uh. The thing being that we had to develop. Uh, Sup uh, superhydrovoic surfaces on paper. Crazy teacher. Because some. Scapus Absorb. And papers after absorbing. Can have real trouble in different. Points of time and how much to? What kind of voting needs to be done for different materials is a very big study. I have a paper in Scientific Reports about this. Uh, then I have work. Like I said, I have worked for. Different, uh. Textile industries solving their multiple problems. Like 1. Then I said like super finishing. The second being water wastewater management. Which I have have, uh, a good. Uh, on which I have the paper.

Alright, we're wrapping up. Is there anything you'd like to ask about the role or the team?

So I would like to know what exactly you mean by assistant professor in research. Because the normal assistant officer and what is the difference? Folks between a normal assistant professor and assistant professor research. Hello. Hello.

Alright, you're asking about the difference between an Assistant Professor and an Assistant Professor (Research). The key distinction is that an Assistant Professor (Research) focuses almost entirely on research and scholarly output, with minimal or no formal teaching load—whereas a traditional Assistant Professor balances both teaching and research. In the research track, your main responsibility is to lead funded projects, publish in high-impact journals, mentor student researchers, and collaborate with industry. Teaching duties, if any, are usually limited to advanced seminars or supervising graduate students. Anything else you'd like to know about the role or the team?