Fwd: Press release Baru Sahib

Akal Academies introduce AI Skills for children in rural Punjab

March 26: In a groundbreaking initiative, Akal Academy, a chain of 130 schools in rural Punjab, delivering value based education, has teamed up with renowned US-returned AI expert, Dr. Sandeep Singh Sandha, to impart Artificial Intelligence (AI) skills to its students. This new age program was blessed by Dr. Davinder Singh, President Kalgidhar trust at village Jiwan Arian

From the new academic year 2025-26, students of grade VII to XII across over 100 Akal Academies in Punjab, will have the opportunity to learn from Dr. Sandha, an IIT Roorkee alumnus who did his doctorate in AI from the University of California, Los Angeles.

"We are grateful to Dr. Sandha for agreeing to mentor and skill our students in AI, ML, Robotics, Drones, and 3D Printing," said a spokesperson, of Akal Academies, Dr Neelam Kaur, Advisor Education and Health, Kalgidhar Trust, Baru Sahib. "This shall benefit over 15,000 students and aligns with our mission of providing value-based education," she said.

 

Having led AI research at Abacus.AI, Amazon, ARM, Teradata, IBM, and Oracle,Dr. Sandha's expertise in AI has been recognized globally, with his research being implemented in production, ranging from controlling robots to designing precision agriculture strategies.

It was at California that his research work on Artificial Intelligence (AI), specifically the Mango library, is used in designing commercial CPUs powering billions of devices, including Samsung and iPhone smartphones.

Dr Sandha serves as a program committee member for top AI conferences and as a reviewer for leading journals in the field, and has over 50 research papers and articles in prestigious computer science journals. 

He has devoted himself to giving-back to his motherland and has returned from US in January this year to settle in his village home in Punjab, and has initiated Punjab AI-Excellence Programme and is not only mentoring school students but also guiding the IITs across the country on AI.

In his meeting with Dr. Davinder Singh, President Kalgidhar Trust, at his residence Dr Sandha shared that it's time that we bring the advancements in AI to our middle and senior school students for making them and the state of Punjab future ready. World wide AI is now a routine may it be agriculture, healthcare, education, industry and research. It is time that we gear-up to reap its benefits

Both, Dr. Sandha and his life partner, Dr. Inderjot Kaur, who did her Masters from North Carolina State University and Ph.D. and post-doctoral from Mississippi State University, who also empowers the students of Punjab for acquiring higher education in Universities abroad, have left their well paying jobs in USA to give back to their birthplace, Punjab, and the country.

About Kalgidhar Trust

Kalgidhar Trust is a registered non-government organisation committed to empowering the school children through value-based education, which runs over 100 Akal Academies that impart world-class education upto Class XII, as also the Eternal University at Baru Sahib, and Akal University at Talwandi Sabo, besides undertaking humanitarian service activities. https://www.barusahib.org

Caption:

Dr Davinder Singh, President, Kalgidhar Foundation, along with advisor Bhavneet Singh Bhalla, met Dr Sandeep Singh and Dr Inderjot Kaur, for their selfless service to teach AI to Akal Academies

Press Release Playwrite

Press Release Playwrite / Sports Lit Fest 2025
Hockey, Chess, Sportswomen and Sports Commentary  enchant Playwrite

Chandigarh, March 2:  8th Edition of Playwrite Sports Literary Fest Concludes Successfully at CII Chandigarh

Chandigarh, March 2, 2025 – The 8th edition of the prestigious Playwrite Sports Literary Fest unfolded at the CII complex in Chandigarh, offering an intellectually stimulating and historically rich discourse on Indian sports.
The inaugural session, titled "Sansarpur's Legacy and Beyond," was graced by Colonel Balbir Singh, the legendary Indian hockey player, in conversation with award-winning journalist Prabhjot Singh. The discussion illuminated the geographical marvel of Sansarpur, a small village that has astonishingly produced 14 Indian Olympians, all with ancestral homes within a mere 100-yard radius. Colonel Balbir Singh, drawing from his vast experience, reminisced about his tenure in the Indian Army and shared captivating anecdotes from the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. He provided invaluable insights into the evolution of hockey, contrasting the gameplay, challenges, and opportunities from his era to contemporary times.
The second session, "Net Flicks: India's Smashing Affair with the Shuttle," delved into the meteoric rise of Indian badminton and its growing dominance on the global stage. This discussion featured distinguished cricket journalist Mr. Vijay Lokapally, his son and budding sports writer Mr. Akshay Lokapally, and ten-time national badminton champion Ms. Manjusha Kanwar. Mr. Akshay Lokapally shared the inspiration behind his book Net Flicks, providing an intimate look into behind-the-scenes conversations with India's top badminton players. He shared how the book intricately weaves together untold stories of players, their struggles, and their triumphs, capturing the fraternity and dynamics within the sport.
The first Indian chess player holding the Grandmaster title Pravin Mahadeo Thipsay, and Arvinder Preet Singh spoke about their journey into international chess, in which many young Indians are challenging the world in the game.
 Playwrite highlights was the presence of two world famous sports journalists and broadcasters, namely Dr. Narottam Puri, and legendary Hindi sports commentator Padam Shri Ravi Chaturvedi, who reported from the fields shared numerous exciting sporting moments and the challenges they faced.  
Dr Puri, an ENT specialist, entered broadcasting in 1971, and advised that a good commentator should be knowledgable about the sport, the language, and the sense of broadcasting.  Responding to a question about the fate of Test cricket, Ravi Chaturvedi comparing it with music remarked that T20 is the Rock music, while 50-overs are like Bollywood songs, while Test Cricket is the classical music which has its own rhythem and melody that will continue to regale and last.
The session on evolution of Women's Sport in India shall feature young city athlete Shireen Ahluwalia, Pickleball player Gurleen Singh, cricketer Pragya Rawat, and Taekewondo  player Jyotsna.
Nandan Kamath, founder of GoSports Foundation, sports lawyer and Sports Communication Professional; G Rajaraman who had also been the Media Attache of Indian Team in Paris 2024 Olympics, talked about the art of storytelling in sports and explored future of Indian sports in a session on intersection on sports and storytelling.
Playwrite concluded in a lighter tone with Vijay Lokapally, sports enthusiasts and cardiologist Dr H K Bali, with exIAS, author and motivational speaker, Vivek Atray, shared humorous tales from the sportsfield in a session "Funny Tales".
Playwrite is a unique sports literature festival, co-founded by Vivek Atray, Hardeep Chandpuri, and Chitranjan Agarwal, in 2017 and is a regular natural feature that focusses primarily on sports literature.