It is convenient to stereotype engineering students as nerds, but this bunch thinks out of the box to break all moulds.
The students of PEC University of Technology, Chandigarh deserve a pat on their back for organising yet another exciting edition of the much-awaited three-day PEC Fest, which started on Friday.
Feeling the campus pulse, in full throb on Saturday, HT City finds out what makes this students’ festival most popular in the region and draw the maximum footfall.
Teamwork
Enter the PEC premises, in Sector 12, and you will see walky-talky carrying students all around. The way they are managing the show by communicating smartly is thoroughly professional. A 92-member team, including a convener, co-convener, 39 heads and all other joint-heads, has put up the show. The team comprises mainly the third and the fourth-year students. The team is being supported by various volunteers from junior classes.
The convener, 21-year-old Himanshu Arora, fourth-year civil engineering student, shares, “Teamwork is very important. Unlike other college fests, students run the entire show here; teachers only supervise. We don’t face any kind of interference.”
Budget
Everything goes right if you have a budget to fund the fest. From the amount provided by the college authorities to the funds generated from sponsorships, big money gives a big scale. Sharing details, fourth-year student of production engineering, 21-year-old Sahibjeet Singh, who is the co-convener of the fest, says, “The college has given us R12 lakh, while we raised another R11 lakh from sponsorships.” Though roping in sponsors is ‘the most difficult task’. “We worked very hard for four months. We think big and try to achieve our goals,” he says.
Budget
Everything goes right if you have a budget to fund the fest. From the amount provided by the college authorities to the funds generated from sponsorships, big money gives a big scale. Sharing details, fourth-year student of production engineering, 21-year-old Sahibjeet Singh, who is the co-convener of the fest, says, “The college has given us R12 lakh, while we raised another R11 lakh from sponsorships.” Though roping in sponsors is ‘the most difficult task’. “We worked very hard for four months. We think big and try to achieve our goals,” he says.
Footfall
Not only local colleges but also from metros such as Delhi are participating in the fest. The participants include colleges from across North India — NIT Jalandhar, NIT Kurukshetra, IISER, Indraprastha University Delhi, IIT Roorkee, Thapar University, SVIET, CCET, UIET and many more.
Diversity
There is a lot of variety when it comes to events. Kirti Tripathi, 21, fourth-year mechanical engineering student and the PR head of the fest, shares, “There is a range of events—literary, film festivals, bike stunts, flashmobs, events promoting Punjabi culture, competitions for singing, entrepreneurial skills, group discussions, poetry, photography, design, painting, comedy… there is a vast platform for students. We also have attractive prizes such as food coupons, nokia lumia mobile phones, cash prizes worth R500 to R10,000.”