Deepak B. Phatak

Last updated

Deepak B. Phatak
Deepak B Phatak.jpg
Born (1948-04-02) 2 April 1948 (age 76)
India
EducationB.E (EE), MTech (EE), PhD (CS)
Occupation(s)Teacher and researcher
SpousePratibha Phatak
Children2
Awards Padma Shri (2013)
Scientific career
Fields Computer science
Institutions Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science (SGSITS) Indore

Deepak B. Phatak (born 2 April 1948) is an Indian computer scientist and academic, and a recipient of the Padma Shri Award for his contribution in science and technology in 2013. [1] He is known for his notable work for upgrading Aakash, advertised by its manufacturer as the 'world's cheapest tablet'. [2] In 2009, he was ranked one of the 50 most powerful people in India. [3]

Contents

Phatak completed secondary school at Dayanand Arya Vidyalaya, graduated third in his class with a degree in electrical engineering from Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science (SGSITS) Indore, completed his master of engineering (specialising in instrumentation, control and computers), and received his PhD in computer science from Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. His thesis was titled Digital Simulation and Identification of Linear Continuous Systems.[ citation needed ]

Career

Born in April 1948, Phatak obtained his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from SGSITS Indore in 1969, and his M Tech and Ph D from IIT Bombay. [4] Phatak has worked at IIT Bombay since 1 December 1971. From 1991 to 1994, he was the Head of the Department of Computer Science; from 1995 to 1998, he was the Dean of Resource Development; from 1998 to 2002, he was the Head of the Kanwal Rekhi School of Information Technology; in 2004 and 2005, he was head of Shailesh J Mehta School of Management; and he is currently[ when? ] the Subrao Nilekani Chair Professor of the KReSIT/department of CSE.

In 1983 and 1984, he was part of a deputation to Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science in Indore to set up computer science programs. During 2003 and 2004, he was on sabbatical leave writing an e-book and touring the country visiting engineering colleges.

Research interests

His research interests include databases and information systems, software engineering, system performance evaluation, IT enabled education, and IT strategy planning. He has guided six PhD candidates, over one hundred master's level students, and several bachelor's level students.

Development projects

Aircraft maintenance training simulator

In the late 1980s, India's Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) sponsored a program to develop a 'soft panel'-based (that is, personal computer-based) simulator to train technicians and engineers in the rigorous maintenance procedures required by complex aircraft systems such as were present in the then-new HAL Tejas. 'Hard-panel'[ clarification needed ] training simulators were available only from western markets and were very costly.

The ADA chose Phatak's pilot project over two other options because it permitted greater flexibility. In 1996, work began on a 12-year project to develop a full-fledged product with Computer Vision Laboratories (now known as VISIONLABS). It is now deployed in the Indian Air Force. The ADA has showcased the simulator and it was short-listed for a national award. Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam visited the ADA lab and complimented the team for their successful efforts.

Development of smart card technology

Recognizing that smart cards are essentially low-cost computers without a monitor or keyboard, Dr Phatak started development of meaningful affordable applications of this technology. In 1996, he initiated a national project to deploy this technology for banking debit-credit applications. The project was supported by Reserve Bank of India, State Bank of India and multiple vendors. It was piloted around the IIT campus through a special permission by RBI. The standard evolved in the project was accepted as a national standard in 1998.

Dr Phatak has continued development work on smart card technology, designing low cost point-of-sale (POS) terminals and a multi-application framework[ clarification needed ]. He was invited to head the national subcommittee for standardisation of multi-application smart cards for payment systems. Specific security issues were addressed and novel deployment schemes were evolved through PhD and MTech level research. The technology, now using the near field communication (NFC) feature built into many modern mobile phones, has been successfully deployed for salary payment to people employed under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

Surveillance system for the Securities and Exchange Board of India

2004–2007 – To prevent and catch malpractices such as insider trading in stock markets, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) wanted to deploy a state of art surveillance system. An existing system operational in USA was recommended by experts from the U.S. Agency for International Development, who were advising SEBI.

After consulting Dr Phatak on the question, Indian regulatory provisions. The national surveillance system which has since been implemented, is considered today as one of the best in the world. It has cost less than one third of the original estimate of over Rs. 50  crore, and handles the world's third largest volume of daily trades.

Ekalavya Project and e-outreach program

Dr Phatak terms all these people[ who? ] modern Ekalavyas, and started a project to help them use modern technology. Initially it aimed to provide web-based mentoring to final year computer engineering students of colleges for their project work. The condition was that they must release their work in open source, so that their work could later be built upon by others. The mentors were initially his research scholars and some industry professionals. This program started receiving annual funding from the industry. Participation has grown from some 100 students from 12 colleges, to more than 3500 students from over 370 colleges supported by over 200 volunteer mentors from industry and academia.

Another important initiative launched by the project is creation and dissemination of open source audio-visual educational content. With his encouragement, the IITB School of Management set up the India Centre for Creative Commons, which provides open source license terms for the content.

Encouraged by the success of that project, Phatak planned a massive pilot project to run a training program sponsored by the Indian Society for Technical Education program, intended to train up to 1,000 engineering teachers across the country simultaneously.

Indigenous development of clicker devices

Phatak developed[ when? ] a "clicker," a portable, handheld device intended for student or presentation environments, designed to allow participants to submit answers to a quiz or poll by clicking on one of a set number of choices. The instructor uses a wireless receiver that collects answers sent by students' clickers; these are then collected for analysis by custom software.

Awards

Professional activity

Phatak has a long association with the Computer Society of India (CSI), spanning over two decades. He is a regular participant at major CSI events.

He has been a consultant and adviser to many organisations on various issues related to Information Technology. In the late 1980s he was involved in a major effort by Industrial Development Bank of India to use relational data bases on Unix platforms. He has been an I.T. adviser to the State Bank of India for several years. He has also been a consultant to several other financial and industrial organisations. He works on several advisory committees to government departments on issues related to computerisation.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">College of Engineering, Pune</span> Engineering college in Pune, Maharashtra

The College of Engineering Pune (COEP) Technological University is a unitary public university of the Government of Maharashtra, situated in Pune, Maharashtra, India. Established in 1854, it is the 3rd oldest engineering institute in India, after College of Engineering, Guindy (1794) and IIT Roorkee (1847). The students and alumni are colloquially referred to as COEPians. On 23 June 2022, Government of Maharashtra issued a notification regarding conversion of the college into an independent technological university. On 24 March 2022, both the houses of the state government passed the CoEP Technological University bill, which has conferred a unitary state university status on the institute.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science</span> College in Madhya Pradesh, India

Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science (SGSITS), formerly known as Govindram Seksaria Technological Institute (GSTI), is an institute of technology located in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is an autonomous institution funded by the Government of Madhya Pradesh, India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vijay P. Bhatkar</span> Indian computer scientist

Vijay Pandurang Bhatkar is an Indian computer scientist, IT leader and educationalist. He is best known as the architect of India's national initiative in supercomputing where he led the development of Param supercomputers. He is a Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, and Maharashtra Bhushan awardee. Indian computer magazine Dataquest placed him among the pioneers of India's IT industry. He was the founder and executive director of Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) and is currently working on developing exascale supercomputing for India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IIT Madras</span> Research Institute in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

The Indian Institute of Technology Madras is a public technical university located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of the eight public Institutes of Eminence of India. As an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), IIT Madras is also recognised as an Institute of National Importance.

Ashok Jhunjhunwala is an Indian academic and innovator. He received his B.Tech. from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur and PhD from the University of Maine. He has been a faculty member at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras since 1981. He is the President of IIT Madras Research Park and Chairman of International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad. During his career, he has contributed extensively to technology innovation and adoption in the Indian context.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kota Harinarayana</span> Indian aviation engineer (born 1943)

Kota Harinarayana is an aviation engineer. He was born in Brahmapur. He was appointed as chairman of the board of governors of IIT (BHU), Varanasi by Hon'ble President of India on 25 August 2020 till 25 August 2023. He was the vice-chancellor of the University of Hyderabad and the president of the Aeronautical Society of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samrat Ashok Technological Institute</span> College in Madhya Pradesh

Samrat Ashok Technological Institute (SATI) is a Grant-in-Aid Autonomous college in Vidisha in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It was established by Late Maharaja Jiwajirao Scindia on November 1, 1960, with a donation from Gangajali Trust fund. It is an autonomous institute, which is funded by Government of Madhya Pradesh and managed by the Maharaja Jiwaji Rao Education Society chaired by Hon'ble Shrimant Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia.
The institute started with degree courses in Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering & Electrical Engineering. The institute now offers nine full-time and six Part-time undergraduate courses leading to the degree in Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.) and sixteen Postgraduate courses in the areas of Engineering, Science and Management. The college campus is spread over an area of 85 acres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IIT Patna</span> Public engineering institution in India

Indian Institute of Technology Patna is one of the 23 IITs, located at Bihta near Patna, Bihar (India). It is recognized as an Institute of National Importance by the Government of India. It is one of the second generation IITs established by an Act of the Indian Parliament on 6 August 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IIT Indore</span> Public engineering institution in India

Indian Institute of Technology Indore is an Institute of national importance located in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, India. IIT Indore was founded in the year 2009. It was one of the eight new Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) started by the government of India in the year 2009. IIT Indore is officially recognized as an Institute of National Importance by the Government of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jabalpur Engineering College</span> Technical University in India

Jabalpur Engineering College (JEC) is an institute located in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is the oldest technical institution in central India and the 15th-oldest in India. It is the first institute of India to have started the Electronics & Telecommunication engineering education in the country, and also the last educational institution to be set up by the British in India.

Thekkethil Kochandy Alex is an Indian space scientist. He was the director of the ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC) of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) (2008–2012) and Member, Space Commission. He specialized in electro-optic systems and satellite technology. Starting with the first Indian satellite Aryabhata, he has been responsible for the sensor systems in all the Indian satellites. Under his leadership the Laboratory for Electro Optics Systems (LEOS) was established in 1993 and from the inception he was its director till 2008. He was conferred "Dr. Vikram Sarabhai Distinguished Professorship" in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Govindram Seksaria</span>

Govindram Seksaria was an Indian industrialist of the Seksaria family. He is known as the Cotton King of India. He was among the most successful industrialist of pre-independence India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">K. Sivan</span> Indian aerospace engineer

Sivan Kailasavadivu is an Indian aerospace engineer who served as the Secretary of the Department of Space and Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation(ISRO) and Space Commission. He has previously served as the Director of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Center and the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vaidyeswaran Rajaraman</span> Indian engineer, academic and writer (born 1933)

Vaidyeswaran Rajaraman is an Indian engineer, academic and writer, known for his pioneering efforts in the field of Computer Science Education in India. He is credited with the establishment of the first academic program in computer science in India, which he helped initiate at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur in 1965. An elected fellow of all the Indian science academies, he is a recipient of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, the highest Indian award in Science and Technology category for young scientists and several other honors including Om Prakash Bhasin Award and Homi Bhabha Prize. The Government of India awarded him the third highest civilian honor of the Padma Bhushan, in 1998, for his contributions to science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sushil Doshi</span>

Sushil Kumar Jain known professionally as Sushil Doshi is an Indian journalist, writer, sports commentator and the first cricket commentator in Hindi. Born to Niranjanlal and Madan Kunwar at Indore, in the second largest Indian city of Madhya Pradesh, he graduated in engineering from Shri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science (SGSITS) Indore and started his commentating career in 1968 at the Nehru Stadium for a Ranji Trophy match between Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Over the years, he is reported to have covered nine Cricket World Cups, 85 test matches and over 400 One Day Internationals, besides several Twenty20 Internationals. His contributions are reported in making cricket commentary in Hindi popular. He has also written two books in Hindi on sports, Khel Patrakarita published in 2003 and Cricket Ka Mahabharat, published in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kasturi Lal Chopra</span> Indian materials physicist (1933–2021)

Kasturi Lal Chopra was an Indian materials physicist and a director of the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. He was the founder of the Thin Film Laboratory at Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi and the Microscience Laboratory at IIT, Kharagpur and held several US and Indian patents for his research findings. Author of a number of books on thin film technology, he was a recipient of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize, the highest Indian award in the science and technology categories. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri, in 2008, for his contributions to science and engineering.

Pradeep Mathur is an Indian organometallic and cluster chemist and the founder director of the Indian Institute of Technology, Indore. He is a former professor of the Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai and is known for his studies on mixed metal cluster compounds. He is an elected fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, the apex agency of the Government of India for scientific research, awarded him the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology, one of the highest Indian science awards, in 2000, for his contributions to chemical sciences. He has also been honoured by the award of an honorary Doctor of Science degree by the University of Keele in the U.K.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sudhir K. Jain</span> Vice-chancellor of BHU

Sudhir Kumar Jain is the incumbent and 28th Vice-Chancellor of Banaras Hindu University. He is a civil engineer by education and has formerly served three terms as the founding director of the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar. He has carried out intensive research and development in the fields of seismic design codes, dynamic of buildings, and post-earthquake studies. Beside these, Jain has actively participated in teaching, research activities and development in earthquake engineering focused on developing countries. He is an elected fellow of Indian National Academy of Engineering. He was also elected a member of U.S. National Academy of Engineering (2021) for leadership in earthquake engineering in developing countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rohit Srivastava (scientist)</span> Indian scientist

Rohit Srivastava is a Himanshu Patel Chair Professor in the Department of Biosciences and Bioegineering at IIT Bombay specialising in medical diagnostic devices, nanoengineered materials and photothermal cancer therapy. He was awarded the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology in Medical Sciences in the year 2021 for his contributions to the development of affordable medical devices.

References

  1. ↑ Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs. "Padma Awards Announced". Press Information Bureau. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
  2. ↑ Vaidyanathan, Rajini. "India upgrades 'world's cheapest tablet' Aakash". BBC. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
  3. ↑ "India's 50 Most Powerful People 2009". Business Week. Archived from the original on 20 April 2009. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
  4. ↑ Dr Deepak B Phatak
  5. ↑ "INTEROP Mumbai 2014 honors Professor DB Phatak with a Life Time Achievement Award – InformationWeek – IT news & articles". Archived from the original on 6 September 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.