Print Olympiad - South Zone round inaugurated

As per the standard norms, to select the top student of each of the four zones (North, South, East and West), the regional level competition will be held online and will be organised under the supervision of two regional coordinators. 

The coordinators will organise two rounds of online competition(s) to select top three to five students of the region. The final round to select the top student of the region, will be organised under the supervision of a national team where these five students will have to speak on a given topic for a specific time. This will also involve votes from onlookers of the online event.

After completing the regional competitions (at virtual mood) the national finale will be organised in the physical mood at a leading university/institution. 

Prof Kamal Chopra is the brain of the Print Olympiad concept. He conceived the idea of Print Olympiad to drill out the best brains among the printing students and also award them handsomely. The first prize is Rs 1,00,000. 

The South Zone competitions are being hosted by the School of Engineering, Avinashilingam Institute for Women, Coimbatore along with AGP, Sivakasi. The south Zone coordinators for Print Olympiad are Dr (Mrs) TKS Lakshmi Priya, professor and head, department of printing technology, Avinashilingam University and Dr M Nandakumar, principal, Arasan Ganesan Polytechnic, Sivakasi. 

Speaking about the concept and necessity of the Print Olympiad, Chopra gave a quick brief about the objectives of Print Olympiad, which is to give opportunities to students of printing to showcase their technical knowledge and their technology-readiness. This unique event has attracted the attention of printer associations all over the globe that many countries have extended their eagerness to join in.

In her inaugural address, Dr (Mrs) Bharathi Harishankar, vice-chancellor, Avinashilingam Institute for Women, Coimbatore, praised the print industry as one of the very few Industries that have survived the various industrial revolutions. 

The participating students were supposed to answer the set of 50 questions on a Google form, in 30 minutes, in the presence of three eminent judges during this online meet. The entire team of judges and coordinators, monitored the conduct of the test. The students were insisted upon keeping their cameras open and use of headphones and laptop were mandated to mitigate any malpractices. After 30 minutes the test was concluded. The judges analysed the results and declared eight students eligible for the next round.

These students are Vishwa Shree K from Anna University, Guindy, Chennai; Asshefa A from Avinashilingam University, Coimbatore; Ebinezer Sam Prince from Arasan Ganesan Polytechnic College, Sivakasi; Maneesh N from Institute of Engineering & Technology, Calicut University, Thenhipalam; Jilsha KS from Govt Polytechnic College, Palakkad, Shoranur; Prabavathi R from Avinashilingam University, Coimbatore; Praveen Kumar MS from Anna University, Guindy, Chennai and Midhun K from Govt Polytechnic College, Palakkad, Shoranur.