Sure, we can begin.

Please start by introducing your professional journey in academia

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution?

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances.

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps.

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances. Later I have returned gait exam and got. All India ranked 460 and I have joined. NIT, Hamirpur. In signal processing and control.

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances. Later I have returned gait exam and got. All India ranked 460 and I have joined. NIT, Hamirpur. In signal processing and control. That I joined as assistant professor in Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore. There I worked as four years. During my tenure, I realized that I need. Practical knowledge in order to guide the students better. So I have joined PhD in one of the most premier institutes in India that is IIT Bombay.

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances. Later I have returned gait exam and got. All India ranked 460 and I have joined. NIT, Hamirpur. In signal processing and control. That I joined as assistant professor in Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore. There I worked as four years. During my tenure, I realized that I need. Practical knowledge in order to guide the students better.

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances. Later I have returned gait exam and got. All India ranked 460 and I have joined. NIT, Hamirpur. In signal processing and control. That I joined as assistant professor in Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore. There I worked as four years. During my tenure, I realized that I need. Practical knowledge in order to guide the students better. So I have joined PhD in one of the most premier institutes in India that is IIT Bombay. During PhD I have developed. Three devices. Point of care devices. Calgary Meter fluorimeter and camera-based spectrometer.

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances. Later I have returned gait exam and got. All India ranked 460 and I have joined. NIT, Hamirpur. In signal processing and control. That I joined as assistant professor in Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore. There I worked as four years. During my tenure, I realized that I need. Practical knowledge in order to guide the students better. So I have joined PhD in one of the most premier institutes in India that is IIT Bombay. During PhD I have developed. Three devices. Point of care devices. Calgary Meter fluorimeter and camera-based spectrometer. This has resulted in. 4 patents. And numerous. Publications.

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances. Later I have returned gait exam and got. All India ranked 460 and I have joined. NIT, Hamirpur. In signal processing and control. That I joined as assistant professor in Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore. There I worked as four years. During my tenure, I realized that I need. Practical knowledge in order to guide the students better. So I have joined PhD in one of the most premier institutes in India that is IIT Bombay. During PhD I have developed. Three devices. Point of care devices. Calgary Meter fluorimeter and camera-based spectrometer. This has resulted in. 4 patents. And numerous. Publications. In conferences. Not only this, I got a chance to work with a scientist in Samir for eight months, where I have developed a. Lateral flow essay reader which is fluorescence based uh. That I have presented at a conference. Not only this, I walked on a funded. Industry funded project which is worth 50,00,000 with Tata Steel. Where we have. Have developed bilirubin detection in urine samples that. Also. The product was. Demonstrator.

You mentioned having a keen interest in solutions coming out of your bachelor's in Electronics and Instrumentation. Can you say more about what sparked that interest or how it influenced your next academic steps?

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances. Later I have returned gait exam and got. All India ranked 460 and I have joined. NIT, Hamirpur. In signal processing and control. That I joined as assistant professor in Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore. There I worked as four years. During my tenure, I realized that I need. Practical knowledge in order to guide the students better. So I have joined PhD in one of the most premier institutes in India that is IIT Bombay. During PhD I have developed. Three devices. Point of care devices. Calgary Meter fluorimeter and camera-based spectrometer. This has resulted in. 4 patents. And numerous. Publications. In conferences. Not only this, I got a chance to work with a scientist in Samir for eight months, where I have developed a. Lateral flow essay reader which is fluorescence based uh. That I have presented at a conference. Not only this, I walked on a funded. Industry funded project which is worth 50,00,000 with Tata Steel. Where we have. Have developed bilirubin detection in urine samples that. Also. The product was. Demonstrator. At Tata Steel Jamshedpur on Founders Day.

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances. Later I have returned gait exam and got. All India ranked 460 and I have joined. NIT, Hamirpur. In signal processing and control. That I joined as assistant professor in Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore. There I worked as four years. During my tenure, I realized that I need. Practical knowledge in order to guide the students better. So I have joined PhD in one of the most premier institutes in India that is IIT Bombay. During PhD I have developed. Three devices. Point of care devices. Calgary Meter fluorimeter and camera-based spectrometer. This has resulted in. 4 patents. And numerous. Publications. In conferences. Not only this, I got a chance to work with a scientist in Samir for eight months, where I have developed a. Lateral flow essay reader which is fluorescence based uh. That I have presented at a conference. Not only this, I walked on a funded. Industry funded project which is worth 50,00,000 with Tata Steel. Where we have. Have developed bilirubin detection in urine samples that. Also. The product was. Demonstrator. At Tata Steel Jamshedpur on Founders Day. And post my PhD. I have worked. Uh, Mohan Babu University as an assistant professor for nine months. So these all about me. Let me know if you need, uh, more details in here.

OK. Hi, good afternoon, Arjun. I'm Doctor J Girish Kumar. I have completed my bachelors in Electronics and Instrumentation from. Shivdanika, an engineering college, Tirupati. From my bachelors I have keen interest in pursuing. Uh, solution? Providing solutions for real-world problems. I got the flavor of. For this by doing. Find me. Main project that is. Gesture recognition using 3D maps. Where I have provided a solution for paralyzed people in order to control in home appliances. Later I have returned gait exam and got. All India ranked 460 and I have joined. NIT, Hamirpur. In signal processing and control. That I joined as assistant professor in Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore. There I worked as four years. During my tenure, I realized that I need. Practical knowledge in order to guide the students better. So I have joined PhD in one of the most premier institutes in India that is IIT Bombay. During PhD I have developed. Three devices. Point of care devices. Calgary Meter fluorimeter and camera-based spectrometer. This has resulted in. 4 patents. And numerous. Publications. In conferences. Not only this, I got a chance to work with a scientist in Samir for eight months, where I have developed a. Lateral flow essay reader which is fluorescence based uh. That I have presented at a conference. Not only this, I walked on a funded. Industry funded project which is worth 50,00,000 with Tata Steel. Where we have. Have developed bilirubin detection in urine samples that. Also. The product was. Demonstrator. At Tata Steel Jamshedpur on Founders Day. And post my PhD. I have worked. Uh, Mohan Babu University as an assistant professor for nine months. So these all about me. Let me know if you need, uh, more details in here. Anything about it? Hi, Arjun, are you there?

So, building a gesture recognition system with 3D maps — that's quite hands-on. When you think about teaching that kind of technical concept to students, what's one approach or method you've found especially effective for helping them make sense of complex material?

Okay, so you designed a gesture recognition system to help paralyzed people control home appliances — that's a real-world impact. When you teach students about applying technology for social good like this, how do you balance the technical rigor with making sure they see the human side of the problem?

Alright, so you cracked the GATE exam and moved into signal processing and control at NIT Hamirpur after designing an assistive tech project for paralyzed users. When you're teaching those foundational subjects, like signal processing, what's one way you help students who are struggling with the abstract math really connect it to something practical?

Right, you realized during your time at Kumaraguru that practical knowledge is key to guiding students. Can you give me a specific example of an activity or project you introduced in your classroom to help bridge that gap between theory and real-world application?

Alright, so after your time teaching at Kumaraguru, you decided to pursue a PhD at IIT Bombay to deepen your practical experience. Thinking back to your classroom at Kumaraguru, can you describe one specific change you made to your teaching style or curriculum as a result of realizing you needed more hands-on knowledge?

So, you've built three point-of-care devices during your PhD at IIT Bombay — a glucometer, a fluorimeter, and a camera-based spectrometer. Out of those, which device do you think is most effective for illustrating core engineering or research principles to students, and how would you use it in a classroom setting?

You mentioned you developed three point-of-care devices during your PhD, resulting in four patents and several publications. Out of those research achievements, which aspect do you find most valuable when shaping your teaching philosophy, Professor?

Professor, I noticed your SPIE Biophotonics conference paper on the low-cost camera-based spectrometer, as well as your patents for portable fluorimeter and colorimeter devices. When you present these technologies to undergraduate students, how do you break down the core optical or analytical concepts to ensure the class really grasps both the engineering and the applications?

That’s quite a range — from patents and conference papers to an industry-funded project with Tata Steel for bilirubin detection, and even developing a fluorescence-based lateral flow assay reader. When you’re guiding students through the process of translating research prototypes like these into classroom demonstrations or student projects, what’s your strategy for ensuring that complex clinical or industrial concepts are accessible and engaging at the undergraduate level?

Okay, Dr. Kumar, that's quite a comprehensive journey — from gesture recognition for assistive tech, to patents and conference presentations, to hands-on industry work with Tata Steel, and then a stint at Mohan Babu University. Out of all these experiences, which specific research project or technology do you find most effective for inspiring undergraduate students to pursue research, and how do you introduce it in your courses?

You mentioned both patents and successful industry-funded projects, like the bilirubin detection device with Tata Steel. Given your track record, where do you see the most fundable research directions emerging from your current expertise over the next three years, and what specific grants or agencies would you target to sustain that research?

OK, so initially I'm thinking. To develop over. My PhD work. That is, I have developed. Calorimeter, fluorimeter and camera based spectrum.

OK, so initially I'm thinking. To develop over. My PhD work. That is, I have developed. Calorimeter, fluorimeter and camera based spectrum. So, uh. I have validated the device using the basic dies. So I'm planning to. Who are more testing with the actual biological samples or? Chemical, Sam.

OK, so initially I'm thinking. To develop over. My PhD work. That is, I have developed. Calorimeter, fluorimeter and camera based spectrum. So, uh. I have validated the device using the basic dies. So I'm planning to. Who are more testing with the actual biological samples or? Chemical, Sam. So that's one thing and coming to. Industry projects. I'm planning to. Write grants to all the government agencies that is funded agencies. In order to. Go more about. The projects which I have done or. A new projects as well.

OK, so initially I'm thinking. To develop over. My PhD work. That is, I have developed. Calorimeter, fluorimeter and camera based spectrum. So, uh. I have validated the device using the basic dies. So I'm planning to. Who are more testing with the actual biological samples or? Chemical, Sam. So that's one thing and coming to. Industry projects. I'm planning to. Write grants to all the government agencies that is funded agencies. In order to. Go more about. The projects which I have done or. A new projects as well. So, uh. If I'm getting a grant, I'm planning to start my own lab where I recruit. PhD students to. Work more on. The real. Where we can get more funding as well as which can lead to start-ups. In order to. How to generate income? For the university as well as UH. For the students who are working on it.

OK, so initially I'm thinking. To develop over. My PhD work. That is, I have developed. Calorimeter, fluorimeter and camera based spectrum. So, uh. I have validated the device using the basic dies. So I'm planning to. Who are more testing with the actual biological samples or? Chemical, Sam. So that's one thing and coming to. Industry projects. I'm planning to. Write grants to all the government agencies that is funded agencies. In order to. Go more about. The projects which I have done or. A new projects as well. So, uh. If I'm getting a grant, I'm planning to start my own lab where I recruit. PhD students to. Work more on. The real.

Right, so you want to build further on your PhD device work. When it comes to publishing this next phase, how do you plan to target high-impact journals and tie your publication strategy to global academic networks, especially given VIT University's emphasis on global visibility?

Okay, so you’ve validated your devices with basic dyes, and now you’re planning to test with real biological or chemical samples. Scaling up to biological validation can get resource-intensive—how do you plan to secure funding or collaborate with external labs to support this phase?

So you're planning to apply to government funding agencies for both ongoing and new projects, especially as you move from basic dye validation to real biological samples. Since VIT University places a strong emphasis on maintaining accreditation and compliance with quality assurance in both research and teaching, how would you contribute to their accreditation processes and help ensure these standards are met in your research activities?

You’ve talked about building out your lab and recruiting PhD students, but let’s shift to teaching for a moment. Suppose you’re running a core undergraduate lab session in instrumentation or signal processing, but you can’t rely on traditional slides or chalk-and-talk. How would you structure that session so students actively engage with both the theory and real-world applications?

So you’re targeting government grants, aiming to build a lab, and want research to have real-world impact—possibly even leading to start-ups for your students. That entrepreneurial angle is interesting. Shifting to teaching, let’s say you’re running an instrumentation lab with undergraduates—no slides, no chalk-and-talk, just you and the students. How would you structure that session to make sure they actually wrestle with both theory and hands-on work, not just follow instructions?

OK, so. Basically for the instrumentation lab, uh, I will. I will say them to think about real world examples like. Uh, if you. If you uh. If you take a mobile phone. Actually, your voice is being converted to a digital signal and it is being sent to the other person who is talking over the phone. So that and then it is that digital signal is converted to a audio signal by an. Amplifier and the speaker. So these are all. Real world example so that the students will get excited. Thinking that. Where they are coming from, the electronics background, and the importance of instrumentation in each and every part of. Their life. Using electronics.

Okay, so you like to ground the session in real-world examples, like explaining how a mobile phone converts voice to digital and back again. But let’s say some students just follow the steps without really engaging or thinking about the underlying principles. How do you check if they truly understand what’s happening, and what do you do if you spot disengaged students?

So. Uh, the basic amplifier designs won't work. The students might be. Thinking why it is not working, then I'll ask them to look into the actual amplifier designs. Because, uh. The sound signal is of very very low amplitude and they have to consider. Amplifying it as well as removing noise in a specific. Uh, band of. Frequencies. Now so that. Uh, it actually was. So. So this might be the issue for the students where. The output didn't come, so that might be the reason.

Given your experience with both research and teaching, I want to ask about institutional responsibilities. Accreditation cycles can get pretty demanding — if you joined our department and found that outcome assessment data was inconsistent across courses, how would you approach fixing that?

OK, so I would check. The course outcomes and programs outcomes whether. They have mapped it properly or not I hope. Uh, they were not being mapped.

OK, so I would check. The course outcomes and programs outcomes whether. They have mapped it properly or not I hope. Uh, they were not being mapped. Uh, properly. That's why there is inconsistency. Across different courses, I think that. But the issue which we need to solve in order. Uh, correct the issue?

So you’d start by checking if course outcomes and program outcomes are mapped correctly—often that’s where the gaps show up. But what if the mapping looks fine on paper, yet the actual assessment data is still inconsistent between courses? What’s your next step then?

Right, so your first step would be to check if the mapping between course outcomes and program outcomes is actually done properly, since that’s often where inconsistencies start. But let’s say the mapping looks fine on paper, yet the actual assessment data isn’t being gathered consistently—maybe different faculty measure outcomes in very different ways. How would you address that kind of practical compliance issue?

So this is a general problem where. When there are multiple sections. Being taught by different faculty. Uh, and the level of. Difficulty in terms of paper setting as well as paper correction. That is, evaluation is different. So we should come up with a. A normalizing. Factor. Based on. The complexity in terms of. Uh, questions as well as evaluation so that. When you look at. The overall students, everyone is. Equally evaluated. Scene so uniformly so that. Might solve the issue. Hi, are you there?

Alright, so you're aware that normalization across sections is key, especially when the evaluation style differs between faculty. That's the kind of practical compliance detail accreditation bodies look for. Now, before we move on, could you outline your publication strategy and explain how it aligns with VIT University's emphasis on contributing to high-impact journals and global academic networks?

OK, my. Uh, publication strategy is, uh, I'll choose. State of art problems like novel problems.

OK, my. Uh, publication strategy is, uh, I'll choose. State of art problems like novel problems. Where the solution is highly demanding.

OK, my. Uh, publication strategy is, uh, I'll choose. State of art problems like novel problems. Where the solution is highly demanding. So and when I saw the. Or that kind of problems which has a huge impact. In terms of uh. Patenting, uh. Or entrepreneurship. Well, so it has a huge economic potential. So. This helps us to publish the work in high impact journals. Which is. Uh, which is. Not only. Suitable for vit as well as UH. For global standards as well.

OK, my. Uh, publication strategy is, uh, I'll choose. State of art problems like novel problems. Where the solution is highly demanding. So and when I saw the. Or that kind of problems which has a huge impact. In terms of uh. Patenting, uh. Or entrepreneurship. Well, so it has a huge economic potential. So. This helps us to publish the work in high impact journals. Which is. Uh, which is. Not only. Suitable for vit as well as UH. For global standards as well. So I think doing the right work or. Not repeatable work is a key for publishing in high quality journals.

Alright, so your strategy is to focus on state-of-the-art or novel problems—which aligns with the kind of research VIT likes to see. But how do you decide which journals or conferences to target, and what steps do you take to make sure your work gets visibility in global academic networks?

Alright, so you focus on selecting novel, high-demand problems as the foundation of your publication strategy. How do you decide which journals or conferences to target, and what criteria do you use to make sure your work reaches a global audience and aligns with VIT's emphasis on high-impact publications?

Alright, Dr., shifting gears a bit. Imagine a student formally complains that 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?

Okay, so your focus is on state-of-the-art, high-impact work with potential for patents or start-ups, aiming for journals that reflect that level of novelty and relevance. Let's shift to something a bit more delicate. Imagine a student files a formal complaint alleging 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?

1st I'll discuss with the student like. Why the grading is biased first I'll understand. The problem from the student's perspective. And then I'll explain. By showing the papers like. If he points out to one student where I have given more. I should. I'll show and justify. Migrating. With the student. With a comparable paper. And the same I'll discuss with my Hod and. To solve the issue.

So you’d sit down with the student first, show how you graded by comparing papers, and then involve your head of department to resolve things transparently. Suppose your department head disagrees with your approach and insists you raise pass rates regardless of your evidence—how would you handle that?

Then. Then I'll discuss the issue with the exam cell. Uh, usually they have. Uh, good knowledge and uh. About the regulations.

Then. Then I'll discuss the issue with the exam cell. Uh, usually they have. Uh, good knowledge and uh. About the regulations. And. Post discussion with with them like. Uh, I'll try to convince my hedge 40.

Then. Then I'll discuss the issue with the exam cell. Uh, usually they have. Uh, good knowledge and uh. About the regulations. And. Post discussion with with them like. Uh, I'll try to convince my hedge 40. That if it is not ethically right, I will not do that. So I'll ask him. Uh, whatever. He's asking me to send him. Send me through e-mail. So that that will be an official record. Uh, so whenever. I I take some actions, I have some solid evidence from my higher authority. In order to do the same.

Then. Then I'll discuss the issue with the exam cell. Uh, usually they have. Uh, good knowledge and uh. About the regulations. And. Post discussion with with them like. Uh, I'll try to convince my hedge 40. That if it is not ethically right, I will not do that. So I'll ask him. Uh, whatever.

Then. Then I'll discuss the issue with the exam cell. Uh, usually they have. Uh, good knowledge and uh. About the regulations. And. Post discussion with with them like. Uh, I'll try to convince my hedge 40. That if it is not ethically right, I will not do that. So I'll ask him. Uh, whatever. He's asking me to send him. Send me through e-mail. So that that will be an official record. Uh, so whenever. I I take some actions, I have some solid evidence from my higher authority. In order to do the same. So. Post e-mail instructions from my HOD I'll. I'll try to do the corrections if required. And if it is allowed as per the regulations?

You’ve worked on industry-funded projects and mentioned hands-on device development. Given your background, do you have any existing industry connections that could help students at VIT with internships or placements?

So you’d go to the exam cell for guidance and try to work things out with your head of department after that. Before we wrap up this section, you’ve worked on industry-funded projects and mentioned hands-on device development. Given your background, do you have any existing industry connections that could help students at VIT with internships or real-world project opportunities?

You’d escalate the issue to the exam cell if needed and hold your ground if the request isn’t ethical. Stepping back to your industry work—given your background developing point-of-care devices and working with companies like Tata Steel, do you have any connections or partnerships that could help VIT students access internships or real-world project opportunities?

You’d escalate to the exam cell, keep the request on record, and insist on ethical grading—which shows you’re thinking about institutional processes as well as individual fairness. Let’s touch on your industry collaborations. Given your background developing point-of-care devices and working with Tata Steel, do you have any existing industry contacts or collaborations that could help VIT students with internships or placements? If so, who are those contacts, and how would you leverage those connections for student benefit?

Alright, so you'd go through the exam cell for regulatory clarity and insist on written instructions if you're being asked to bend policy. Given your background developing point-of-care devices and working on industry-funded projects, do you have any existing industry connections that could help students at VIT with internships, placements, or hands-on exposure to real-world problems?

OK, so I have uh. Connections with Samir. Which is an government entity. A present inside IIT Bombay.

OK, so I have uh. Connections with Samir. Which is an government entity. A present inside IIT Bombay. So so they they work on different electronic projects and. Since I have done my PhD from. Nanobius Lab, IIT Bombay.

OK, so I have uh. Connections with Samir. Which is an government entity. A present inside IIT Bombay. So so they they work on different electronic projects and. Since I have done my PhD from. Nanobius Lab, IIT Bombay. Uh, and I worked with Tata Steel. Uh, so. I hope. These three are. Uh, good locations for? The students in order to gain. Industry experience. Or the right skills required for their higher education or jobs. Yeah, I hope. Uh, it helps for them. For now. And I'm planning to have. More collaborations in future. With my work so that. Will happen in future.

Okay, so you’ve got a connection with SAMEER at IIT Bombay, which is a government entity. Have you collaborated with any private industry partners or companies—like during your work with Tata Steel—that could open up internship or live project opportunities for students, or is your network mostly in the public sector?

Right, so you've got a strong connection with SAMEER and your ties to IIT Bombay’s Nanobios Lab. That covers government and research sectors. Given your earlier mention of the Tata Steel project, have you maintained any ongoing relationships with private industry partners who might also be a resource for student placements or collaborative work?

Okay, so you’ve got a connection with SAMEER at IIT Bombay, and you’ve worked with Tata Steel and Nanobios Lab as well. Have you actually helped students secure internships or industry projects with any of these organizations in the past, or how would you go about doing that if you joined VIT?

So during my PhD tenure I have guided. UH2M tech students and multiple. Btech students and I got a good opportunity to guide. School level students as well. So, uh. This guidance helped them in case of Mtech student to secure a good job and for Btech students in order to. Complete the project which is. Which is equivalent to a good standard amount of work. Of umm. Which is required to get a job or?

So during my PhD tenure I have guided. UH2M tech students and multiple. Btech students and I got a good opportunity to guide. School level students as well. So, uh. This guidance helped them in case of Mtech student to secure a good job and for Btech students in order to. Complete the project which is. Which is equivalent to a good standard amount of work. Of umm. Which is required to get a job or? To secure a position for higher education. And one of our student who. Who passed out from our lab? Under my guidance, he secured A JRF position in a government institute in Jaipur. Hey, Arjun, are you there?

You've talked a lot about your research and teaching, and I want to make sure we hit on some specific requirements. When it comes to teaching both theory and lab courses—let's say you're given a new course on biomedical signal processing, theory plus lab, and only a few weeks to prepare. How would you structure your approach to make both components effective for students?

So you guided MTech and BTech students during your PhD, and even a school student landed a JRF in Jaipur under your mentorship—that’s a strong track record. When you’re supervising student research or projects, how do you help them develop their own ideas instead of just following your directions or choosing easy topics?

So we have a. Uh, culture in our lab. In order to. When they are choosing a problem, we'll ask them to come up with multiple problems. And we'll ask them what is the idea behind. Choosing those problems. So. So this will make them. Think in order to. Come up with the problem and they know. They should know. The reasons behind it so they will do the background. Research about the problem as well. Rather than choosing a simple problem from the Internet.

So we have a. Uh, culture in our lab. In order to. When they are choosing a problem, we'll ask them to come up with multiple problems. And we'll ask them what is the idea behind. Choosing those problems. So. So this will make them. Think in order to. Come up with the problem and they know. They should know. The reasons behind it so they will do the background. Research about the problem as well. Rather than choosing a simple problem from the Internet. This one thing I'm coming to the guidance of. The Stew students when when there is an issue, I will not. Uh, our friend say the solution for the problem. I'll ask them to debug. Maybe for a? Hour or maybe for half a day or a day. Then the students will realize what the problem is and. That will help them. To understand. Debugging well. So that if they encounter similar problem in future that will help them to solve way faster. And to gain practical knowledge which is required for. Securing. An industry job.

So we have a. Uh, culture in our lab. In order to. When they are choosing a problem, we'll ask them to come up with multiple problems. And we'll ask them what is the idea behind. Choosing those problems. So. So this will make them. Think in order to. Come up with the problem and they know. They should know. The reasons behind it so they will do the background. Research about the problem as well. Rather than choosing a simple problem from the Internet. This one thing I'm coming to the guidance of. The Stew students when when there is an issue, I will not. Uh, our friend say the solution for the problem. I'll ask them to debug. Maybe for a? Hour or maybe for half a day or a day. Then the students will realize what the problem is and. That will help them. To understand. Debugging well. So that if they encounter similar problem in future that will help them to solve way faster. And to gain practical knowledge which is required for. Securing. An industry job. Any other question?

So you push students to come up with their own problems and justify their choices, which gets them thinking deeper and doing real background research. When you're teaching a theory-heavy topic that's outside most students' comfort zones—something abstract, not immediately practical—how do you make sure they not only memorize it, but actually develop a strong conceptual grasp?

Right, so you’ve created a lab culture where students have to justify their problem choices and really dig into the background, and you make them wrestle with debugging instead of just handing them answers. When you’re teaching, how do you make sure your explanations are clear and structured—especially for students who might struggle to follow complex topics?

Okay, so you make students justify their problem choices and really push them to debug on their own—sounds like you value hands-on learning. Let’s shift gears. When you’re teaching a theory-heavy course, how do you keep your lectures structured and engaging, especially for students who might struggle with abstract concepts?

OK, so these are very interesting thing. So during my last teaching position, like uh. I have thought. Uh, design thinking course. So I'm giving this an example for. To to answer your question. So I'm I, I would have. Solved. I would have thought the course in a theoretical manner. Rather than that for design thinking, what I have done is I also have chosen a design problem like designing a digital thermometer. Also, the students also has to choose UH. Initial projects for for team.

OK, so these are very interesting thing. So during my last teaching position, like uh. I have thought. Uh, design thinking course. So I'm giving this an example for. To to answer your question. So I'm I, I would have. Solved. I would have thought the course in a theoretical manner. Rather than that for design thinking, what I have done is I also have chosen a design problem like designing a digital thermometer. Also, the students also has to choose UH. Initial projects for for team. So. So there. Trying to design something where they're learning practically. I'll teach some topic. And I'll ask them like how do you implement? In their own project. And I will show them how. Implemented the concept in my project.

OK, so these are very interesting thing. So during my last teaching position, like uh. I have thought. Uh, design thinking course. So I'm giving this an example for. To to answer your question. So I'm I, I would have. Solved. I would have thought the course in a theoretical manner. Rather than that for design thinking, what I have done is I also have chosen a design problem like designing a digital thermometer. Also, the students also has to choose UH. Initial projects for for team. So. So there. Trying to design something where they're learning practically. I'll teach some topic. And I'll ask them like how do you implement? In their own project. And I will show them how. Implemented the concept in my project. So so here. Uh, the students are. Running the concept. They are seeing how. I'm using that concept in order to apply for a. Product design. And they will come up. With uh. The way. How they need to. Or design their product using the principle. So I think these are best way where? A theoretical code. Can be thought. Not all courses has product design. In that case we can use some programming or we can have some. Practical videos. Of applications you can show them. So that the small theoretical concept has. This kind of application so they will link up the importance of. The concept. And they will understand better. So I'll try to add some real time real world examples so that they can relate.

OK, so these are very interesting thing. So during my last teaching position, like uh. I have thought. Uh, design thinking course. So I'm giving this an example for. To to answer your question. So I'm I, I would have. Solved. I would have thought the course in a theoretical manner. Rather than that for design thinking, what I have done is I also have chosen a design problem like designing a digital thermometer. Also, the students also has to choose UH. Initial projects for for team. So. So there. Trying to design something where they're learning practically. I'll teach some topic. And I'll ask them like how do you implement? In their own project. And I will show them how. Implemented the concept in my project. So so here. Uh, the students are. Running the concept. They are seeing how. I'm using that concept in order to apply for a. Product design. And they will come up. With uh. The way. How they need to. Or design their product using the principle. So I think these are best way where? A theoretical code. Can be thought. Not all courses has product design. In that case we can use some programming or we can have some. Practical videos. Of applications you can show them. So that the small theoretical concept has. This kind of application so they will link up the importance of. The concept. And they will understand better.

OK, so these are very interesting thing. So during my last teaching position, like uh. I have thought. Uh, design thinking course. So I'm giving this an example for. To to answer your question. So I'm I, I would have. Solved. I would have thought the course in a theoretical manner. Rather than that for design thinking, what I have done is I also have chosen a design problem like designing a digital thermometer. Also, the students also has to choose UH. Initial projects for for team. So. So there. Trying to design something where they're learning practically. I'll teach some topic. And I'll ask them like how do you implement? In their own project. And I will show them how. Implemented the concept in my project. So so here. Uh, the students are. Running the concept. They are seeing how. I'm using that concept in order to apply for a. Product design. And they will come up. With uh. The way. How they need to. Or design their product using the principle. So I think these are best way where? A theoretical code. Can be thought. Not all courses has product design. In that case we can use some programming or we can have some. Practical videos. Of applications you can show them. So that the small theoretical concept has. This kind of application so they will link up the importance of. The concept. And they will understand better. So I'll try to add some real time real world examples so that they can relate. Go to the concept. What I'm teaching.

Alright, so you used a digital thermometer design problem to make the design thinking course more hands-on instead of just sticking with theory. Switching topics, when it comes to evaluating students—what’s your approach to setting exams or practical tests so that they really measure a student’s understanding, not just their memorization?

Alright, so you used your own hands-on project alongside the students’ projects in that design thinking course, which helps them see theory in action. Now, switching gears — when you're responsible for setting or invigilating exams, how do you make sure the evaluation process is both fair and consistent across different batches or sections?

Alright, so for your design thinking course, you kept things practical by tying theory to real projects and showing students how you applied concepts in your own work. Now, thinking about student evaluation—when you're grading lab work or exams, what's your process for making sure your grading is fair and consistent, especially if there are multiple sections or TAs involved?

Right, so in your design thinking course, you made sure students tied theory to practice through real projects and examples, which definitely helps with engagement. Shifting focus, Professor, can you describe a time when you had to formally evaluate students—like setting or grading exams—and how you ensured fairness and objectivity in your process?

So you used the design thinking course as a chance to blend theory with hands-on projects, and you made sure students could see concepts applied in practice. For student evaluation and exam duties, can you describe a time when you had to handle suspected plagiarism or academic dishonesty? What steps did you take?

So the students are in. Uh, instructed in. But the starting of the course itself in order not to do. Plagiarism. Because. That is dishonesty where they are not learning anything, they are just copying things from the. From some other resource and pasting it. So with this instructions given. As the course is structured into different parts like. Mid exams, assignments and projects and final exams. So they would have submitted the assignments. And they got the instructions at the starting of the core.

So the students are in. Uh, instructed in. But the starting of the course itself in order not to do. Plagiarism. Because. That is dishonesty where they are not learning anything, they are just copying things from the. From some other resource and pasting it. So with this instructions given. As the course is structured into different parts like. Mid exams, assignments and projects and final exams. So they would have submitted the assignments. And they got the instructions at the starting of the core. When when the plagiarism is noticed, I'll warn them. Once or twice. And if they are held for plagiarism case. In the final exams. They will definitely need to. There should be a penalty like. Maybe I'll reduce 50% of the marks for them. Rather than completely failing the student. So that. He will face bigger issue. Arjun, are you there?

Alright, so you set clear expectations about plagiarism at the start and structure assessments to reinforce that. Shifting focus, can you talk about how your background in artificial intelligence or health informatics influences the way you design course content or research projects for students?

Alright, you set expectations about plagiarism right at the start and you have a penalty system that ramps up if students repeat the offense, which keeps things fair but firm. Now, thinking about your background in artificial intelligence or health informatics, can you give me an example where you applied those skills directly to a research project or classroom activity?

Yeah, so. As I said during my PhD, I have uh. Developed three projects that is. Uh, colorimeter, fluorimeter and camera based spectrometer.

Yeah, so. As I said during my PhD, I have uh. Developed three projects that is. Uh, colorimeter, fluorimeter and camera based spectrometer. All the projects require. The data collection. So the collected data will be stored and they will be analyzed. Or, uh, extracting the useful information out of it. And process it for. For the same. So I have experience in recording. The data. And analyzing the data. And, uh, processing it as. So I have. So this if you take the application of the calorimeter or fluorimeter if you. If you take. Uh, for example like a blood sample if you want. Analyze the amount of hemoglobin. You can. Use a reagent and add the blade and mix them up and. Check for the color change over a period of time.

Yeah, so. As I said during my PhD, I have uh. Developed three projects that is. Uh, colorimeter, fluorimeter and camera based spectrometer. All the projects require. The data collection. So the collected data will be stored and they will be analyzed. Or, uh, extracting the useful information out of it. And process it for. For the same. So I have experience in recording. The data.

Yeah, so. As I said during my PhD, I have uh. Developed three projects that is. Uh, colorimeter, fluorimeter and camera based spectrometer. All the projects require. The data collection. So the collected data will be stored and they will be analyzed. Or, uh, extracting the useful information out of it. And process it for. For the same. So I have experience in recording. The data. And analyzing the data. And, uh, processing it as. So I have. So this if you take the application of the calorimeter or fluorimeter if you. If you take. Uh, for example like a blood sample if you want. Analyze the amount of hemoglobin. You can. Use a reagent and add the blade and mix them up and. Check for the color change over a period of time. So this data collection helps us. See how the color is changing over time. And that has a crucial information. So this. You can say. My projects are. Uh, related to the healthcare informatics, so which can be. A useful yeah. So this is how I have done.

Alright, you mentioned the colorimeter, fluorimeter, and camera-based spectrometer as projects from your PhD. Can you walk me through how you incorporated AI or health informatics techniques into one of those devices, either in the research itself or in how you explained it to students?

Alright, so you handled a lot of hands-on data collection and analysis with those devices during your PhD. Shifting over, how do you make sure your communication style in lectures or labs actually helps students who might be struggling, rather than just repeating the content?

Right, you walked me through how you collected and analyzed data from those devices, and how that ties into processing blood samples for hemoglobin analysis. Now, thinking about your teaching approach—when you're in a lab session and a student is stuck but hesitant to ask for help, how do you encourage them to open up and get the support they need?

Right, so you built those analytical tools and used them for healthcare data, like tracking hemoglobin changes, which ties your research to real-world health informatics. Now, thinking about your research publications—can you name a journal where you’ve published and explain what made your work stand out for acceptance?

OK, so. The work which I have done that is camera based spectrometer using that. That work has been presented at an international conference, SPAE Photonics Europe. Which is an international conference where I have gone to France and. Presented it and I got an appreciation for that work as well.

Alright, so your camera-based spectrometer work was presented at SPIE Photonics Europe and you actually traveled to France for that—getting appreciation from an international audience is no small thing. For your publication strategy, what was it about that particular research or how you positioned it that you think helped it stand out to a global, peer-reviewed audience?

So the spectrometers are expensive instruments. So which costs around maybe? Uh 20,00,000 to 50,00,000. So what I have done is I made a portable spectrometer where you can carry in your pocket for doing some analysis work. So I have reduced that cost. Say suppose around 20,00,000.

So you made the spectrometer pocket-sized and drastically reduced the cost compared to commercial models, which definitely makes it stand out for practical impact. Dr., thinking about your ability to teach both theory and lab courses, can you walk me through how you structure a typical laboratory session to make sure students actually understand the concepts and don't just follow instructions mechanically?

So the spectrometers are expensive instruments. So which costs around maybe? Uh 20,00,000 to 50,00,000. So what I have done is I made a portable spectrometer where you can carry in your pocket for doing some analysis work. So I have reduced that cost. Say suppose around 20,00,000. To around 8000 or ₹10,000. So it. She's a huge factor. Because. When you reduce. High cost instruments to low-cost instruments. You can actually integrate them. Into point of care devices. Which has numerous. Applications. Because of the high cost of the instruments, the actual standard instruments cannot be integrated into point of care, so this has a huge scope. In order to. Have multiple point of. Care instruments for different applications. So these are the main point. Uh, the. Evaluators has impressed and selected my. Paper on poster for presentation in the conference. Hi, June, are you there?

So you managed to cut the cost of the spectrometer down to a fraction of the commercial models, which opened up new possibilities for point-of-care applications—that’s a big impact. Dr., thinking about your teaching, what’s one concrete strategy you use to make sure students actually understand complex topics, not just memorize them for exams?

So as I said before, when there is a complex topics you can go. Are in multiple ways about it. In order to. Make students exciting about the topic. 1st I'll play the application video of that. Then I'll teach them. And I'll say what is the relevance of this concept with the application. Later I'll ask them. That one of some of the best students in order to present 1 presentation about it.

So as I said before, when there is a complex topics you can go. Are in multiple ways about it. In order to. Make students exciting about the topic. 1st I'll play the application video of that. Then I'll teach them. And I'll say what is the relevance of this concept with the application. Later I'll ask them. That one of some of the best students in order to present 1 presentation about it. So. The students will actually understand. From from the whole of this the students actually understand what is the application. And the concept behind it. And they will. Also understand from the student perspective. To understand the concept. So this makes. Uh, the students. The easier in order to understand and apply it better.

So you use application videos and student presentations to reinforce understanding, not just rote learning. Earlier, you mentioned having a PhD from IIT Bombay—what was your dissertation topic, and how did it contribute new knowledge to your field?

So you get students to see real applications and then reinforce the learning by having them present and connect the theory to practice, which helps with deeper understanding. Earlier, you mentioned your PhD from IIT Bombay—what was your dissertation topic, and how has that shaped your approach to either research or teaching?

My dissertation topic is to, uh, design A. Design and develop low-cost camera based. Calorimeters, fluorimeters, and. Spectrometers for camera-based spectrometers for analytical application. So this is my topic.

Alright, so your dissertation was all about designing low-cost, camera-based analytical tools for practical applications. Given that background, how do you bring that hands-on research mindset into mentoring students on their own projects, especially when they might not have access to expensive equipment?

So these days we actually. For all the. Projects are concept we don't actually require. The hardware. We have different simulation tools and different. A different websites where you can use them in order to understand things better. So I'll use different simulation tools which are open source sometimes. So for the students. Actually don't have to. Uh, buy things in order to learn. Say suppose for Arduino. In order to. Or connect different sensor to Arduino board. You don't actually require an Arduino board, you have some different. Free websites where you can. Connect different sens. Search to it and then do the programming and check the output.

So these days we actually. For all the. Projects are concept we don't actually require. The hardware. We have different simulation tools and different. A different websites where you can use them in order to understand things better. So I'll use different simulation tools which are open source sometimes. So for the students. Actually don't have to. Uh, buy things in order to learn. Say suppose for Arduino. In order to. Or connect different sensor to Arduino board. You don't actually require an Arduino board, you have some different. Free websites where you can. Connect different sens. Search to it and then do the programming and check the output. So this is a very good way. Uh, for the students. Without actually. Spending a lot of money. Doing debugging. With the connection, they will actually learn. Before I. Actually trying. Hey, Cortana, are you there?

So you're making use of open source simulation tools so students can experiment even when they don't have hardware—definitely lowers the barrier for hands-on learning. Dr., one last thing: can you talk about any experience you’ve had working on industry projects or consultancy, and how that’s influenced your teaching or research?

So you mentioned presenting your camera-based spectrometer work at SPIE Photonics Europe, but I'm specifically interested in journal publications—have you published any of your research in peer-reviewed scientific journals, and if so, which ones?

Oh no, I don't have any questions. I'm excited to attend the actual. Uh, next round of interview.