The head of E-Cell for the AY 2020-21 is Ujjwal Jain, a second-year student. E-Cell, in the words of the head, has been dormant for a few years. One of the main reasons for this dormancy of the club has been the lack of revitalizing activities. Keeping this dormancy in mind, Ujjwal’s agenda for the club for this AY is: ● To organize fun activities and games for improved participation, ● To create a panel of members to represent the institute in competitions of the business strata, ● To collaborate with literature and media clubs to have movies, short films, and book review sessions related to entrepreneurship, ● To collaborate with the investor’s club to learn and teach how to manage the finances of a firm. This collaboration will include a discussion on personal finance, financial management, and their importance. Ujjwal mentions, “E-Cell has been inactive for the last few years, however, there has been a never seen before participation this year. We are looking forward to an exciting year this time.” The deputy heads for the cell for this AY are Somil Luthra (FY) and Shashwat Gupta (SY). The club has planned a lot of activities for improved participation and angagement. These activities include case studies discussions, panel discussions, expert seminars, competitions, and business policy reviews.

Walt Whitman Rostow’s work has been a great influence in the field of development economics and economic history. His pre-defined stages of economic growth are useful in breaking down the story of each national economy. According to this model, each economy must pass through five stages of development regardless of the form of its social organization or ideologies Although many do feel that in today’s times’ his work is ‘passé’. To quote Rostow, “These stages are not merely descriptive. They are merely a way of generalizing certain factual observations about the sequence of development in modern societies. They have an inner logic and continuity. They have an analytic bone-structure, rooted in a dynamic theory of production.” (On the Regional Dimensions of Rostow's theory of growth) Here, we attempt to analyze and identify the salient features and the relativity of each stage. Traditional Society: This is the stage where science and technology in an economy are crippled. Innovation and discovery are not a feature of this economy. The per-capita income continues to be at a lower level and there is an obvious hit to the growth on productivity. Resources of the economy are mainly dedicated to food supply and the remaining resources are used for non-production purposes. In such economies, one can’t expect a very high rate of capital accumulation and most authority of resources lies in the hands of the elite. This stage represents the one where little encouragement is given to initiating economic change. Pre-conditions for take-off: During this stage, economic progress is considered to be desirable and possible. Rationalization, modernization, and export of agricultural produce are facilitated along with an import of capital goods. This leads to an efficient increase in the supply of net capital. Politically this is the phase when a strong nation builds up along with the formation of commercial institutions. Take-off to sustained growth: This stage as viewed by Rostow is the most critical yet the most difficult to attain (On the Regional Dimensions of Rostow's theory of growth). This stage is known as the ‘rise of the primary sector’, which further accelerates ‘supplementary growth’ in other sectors. It also means the presence of at least one manufacturing sector and the acceptance towards the latest technology in the primary sector. The presence of an institutional framework that backs the primary sector and is capable enough to diffuse its benefits throughout the economy is suitable. This leads to progressive capital build-up and sometimes a spurt of population growth. Drive to maturity: This phase begins approximately after twenty years since the take-off stage starts. Surprisingly this period is of quite a shorter duration compared to the take-off stage. The modern techniques of production are no longer confined to just the leading sectors of the economy. This is the time when there is more technical sophistication in supplementary sectors than the earlier leading sectors. On the political and social front adjustments strive to make their way and growth are not necessarily taken for granted. Age of high mass consumption: This stage is glorified by the high accumulation of economic surplus. In the wake of clearance of this surplus, there are welfare programs, overseas investment, and at last driving the economy towards a typical pattern of consumption. There is a sudden growing importance of consumer durables, housing goods, health and recreational facilities, and the importance of higher education. Each of the above stages focussed on production while this stage focuses on consumption still giving importance to production. The Relationship of India with Rostow’s Model India is not just a developing country but also an emerging economy in the world. India’s economy is not just uniform in nature unlike what is prescribed in the model. We have 28 states and 8 union territories, and all of them have different stages of growth which is clearly reflected in their sectorial shares (Arora). Every state of India is at a different stage of economic growth. States like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are not yet fully developed for the take-off whereas some states like Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, and Maharashtra have been in the last stage of development for a long period of time. There are differences among states in terms of birth rates, urbanization, and dependency ratio etcetera. But these states are becoming less and less diversified because they have been adopting the major skill-development techniques of production (Arora). After extensive research, it has come to notice that in India there is a massive overlap in the stages (Arora). Here, we are referring to the co-existence of various features of the diverse stages of economic growth at the same time. Indian states have intra-regional and inter-regional disparities that account for a crooked development process. In the end, the criteria for reaching each stage will differ according to the country’s colonial past, history, culture, social changes, technological improvements, and initial economic development is taken into consideration. The concepts which are largely understood and analyzed at the national level may differ in their significance and implications at the regional or the state value.

Synergy is a club consisting of group of dancers and members of the crew specializing in different dance styles including contemporary, classical, Hip hop, and Bollywood. Their passion for dance has brought them together and they have never failed to amaze the audiences through their synchronized and energetic performances. The club is headed by Manvi Kedia, who has come a long way from being a non trained dancer to heading the society today. She is full of energy and never loses her calm be it during practices or on stage. Synergy has become a crowd favorite and their victories have only accelerated ever since they introduced thematic dances. Their themes varied from depicting the story of Bajirao Mastani to Acid Attack and Female infanticide. They have also performed various Bollywood and hip hop routines and have received great recognition from judges and audiences across all spheres. It has proved to be one of the most active and enthusiastic clubs at SSE. Synergy has always been through intensive training be it online or offline and given their 100% and the outcomes have always been rewarding. The members of the club has always worked towards being better each day and have helped each other grow by helping them step out of their comfort zones and learn new dance styles with the passage of time.

Small talk regarded as the Organizing club of Symbiosis School of Economics is much more than that. Its essence lies in nurturing the students of SSE and building an environment where they discuss matters based on social issues, cultures, trends, and everything else. It wishes to hear the stories of people, community, students, everything which is beyond the binding of books. The primary focus of Small Talk is nurturing the ideas of its members and organizing events. Being able to express is a problem faced by a lot of teenagers, and college students, where they can’t find a platform to express their ideas without any form of criticism or judgment. Small Talk takes up the mantle of fulfilling that for the students. It allows all its members to express all that they have and want to without any filters, without thinking twice about what others would say. The club head of Small Talk for the AY 2020-21, is Mansi Pattnaik, an exceptional individual. The most beautiful aspect of her nature which supports her in fulfilling the job of being the clubhead is that she is very friendly and approachable. She as a person embodies the essence of nurturing. Off The Clock, is the main or primary event that the club hosts every year; it involves bringing about speakers and artists from around all walks of life. They not only inspire but also motivate and make students aware of the fact that academics is not the only jack of trade that they can master. The main intention of the event is to allow students to have a peek at the struggles and adventures of experts in that field. Other events and activities that the club plans to do, remain a mystery since the Element of Surprise has always been an ally for the club. The club has an exciting new project scheduled towards the end of November. It wishes to act as a place, where whenever the students hear its name, they should feel appreciated, noticed, felt, safe, one with each other, and all other qualities that make them feel at home, away from home.

“Behind every successful woman, is a woman HERSELF” Embracing the woman that you are, embracing the substance that makes you human is enough. EMBRACING and EMPOWERING- This is what GIRL UP Urooj is all about. A club which believes that lifting each other up is not limited to just women, but it encourages both the girls and the boys to actively take part in its activities. A part of the UN Foundation, GIRL UP, is a club led by a group of women who are keen about the belief that Speech, Acceptance, Awareness, and Action, even on the so-called “Taboos” are the only ways to break the stereotypes and stand strong in the world. The Chapter of GIRL UP Urooj at SSE aims to serve as a community and a platform for the masses instead of being just a college club. They aim to inculcate a safe space away from judgmental and condescending views and have rather positive energy on campus. Urooj a Persian word means ascent or rising continuously GIRL UP Urooj at SSE has the motto- “we ascent by lifting others”. The club is headed by Kriti Saxena as President. Kriti who lives by the quote: “When women support each other, amazing things do happen.” With Girl Up Urooj, she wishes to advocate for others about societal issues, mental health concerns, and women empowerment in the hopes to build a society where everyone can be unapologetically themselves. Neelima Jestin, Akshara Reddy, and Hrithika Veenus along with Kriti comprise the Core Team for Girl Up, and aim to empower girls and grow together as stronger individuals. They have sought out that suppression will no longer continue to work and it’s about time we take matter into our own hands! They believe that their collective efforts will help surpass every hindrance in the world to reach their goal. They seek Girl Up Urooj as an opportunity to support and empower girls to see their value as leaders and to use the voices inside the team to create a social impact. Here’s to being strong women. Here’s to being strong humans. May We know them. May we become them. May we raise them.

There is some truth perhaps in considering the fact that Red Bull gives you ‘wiiings’ but then have you heard some good music? Now, that’s some real energetic vibes that the club aims to achieve. It is quite evident that Music is a language that doesn’t speak in words and is directly a medium for the soul. Inculcating the same, with an immense passion and love for music among students, the Raaga club allows students to participate in various competitions and musical programs at various levels. The Raaga club emerges as an important platform for each and every student to showcase their immense talent of instrumental and vocal music, headed by Ashuda Asija. She is immensely talented and has even made it to the prestigious show Indian Idol’s second round. While the proactive Raaga members have given musical performances on various small and big events at SSE itself, they also have won various competitions across India. One of the most talented and active clubs at SSE, Raaga consists of pure talent – Singers, Musicians, Pianists, Guitarists and you name it, it’s already there at the club! Frequent jamming sessions, music recommendations, constructive criticism, and feedback with a constant aim to guide and learn from others is what keeps the club alive and makes it one of the most unique and lively clubs at SSE. Here’s a little sneak-peek into this year’s plan: • Connect to different NGOs and organize music sessions for the NGO kids. • Increasing the social media presence. • Ensuring active and fair participation in everything – Jamming sessions to Competitions! • Continue hosting the well known and much in vogue- Un Mic nights.

Samarpan is a social club that aims at taking up all social issues and making people aware of the same. The main agenda of the club is to walk towards a better society to live in. Samarpan is a platform where one can express their concerns regarding all issues, be it for the issue or against the issue. The head of Samarpan for the AY 2020-21 is Girish Sharma, an SY student who believes that social work is as important as any other aspect of life. Keeping in mind COVID-19, his agenda for the club is: ● To promote absolute transparency in the club to increase the engagement of the student body, ● To initiate campaigns in college regarding all social issues, for example, the STOP campaign, ● To organize online competitions under the club related to social issues, ● To make SSE socially inclusive through talk sessions and social media, ● To collaborate with NGOs and ISR-SSE for various activities, ● To organize tree plantation, river cleaning, and animal protection drives in Pune. Samarpan and ISR-SSE are often regarded as one because both of them are a part of the social wing. The clubs may have similar goals, that is, to spread awareness regarding everything, however, the functioning of both is different. While ISR-SSE is a club managed and answerable to the faculty, Samarpan is an independent club and has no involvement in the management. It is a diverse club, which acts on all issues, however, ISR-SSE works specifically with defined NGOs throughout the year. Samarpan is a social club and plans its activities according to the present scenario. However, a few of the general activities that the club has planned are campaigns regarding social issues, e.g., STOP campaign (a gender-neutral campaign which was organized to express distress among the students regarding sexual harassment and rape culture), and completing NGO projects, e.g., the KSCF project (A project proposal for eradicating child labour in the country).

Debate and divergence of views are considered to be enriching for both history and culture. Symbiosis School of Economics has always embraced this culture of debate and allowed it to flourish in the form of the Debsoc. The Debate Society has done us proud numerous times and has successfully established itself in the national circuit. This year, the Debsoc is determined to achieve its aim to leave a mark in the international circuit under the guidance and leadership of Pranav Annur. Pranav is an immaculate debater and has won various national and international level debates, setting high goals for the DebSoc to achieve. As the Debsoc Head, he aims to create a more diverse environment in the society, specifically concerning gender diversity and improving the internal structure of DebSoc to make it more inclusive of the juniors. He aspires to instil a spirit of knowledge and promote healthy competition in society. Furthermore, he intends for the DebSoc to make a mark internationally through his slow, measured and planned approach while adapting to the current wave of online debates, as popularized, owing to the pandemic. DebSoc’s usual activities include various practice debates throughout the week in order to polish the debating skills of its members. The club follows the parliamentary style of debating (Asian and British) and works on helping everyone understand the different speaker roles from different perspectives through these debates. Another recent activity initiated by DebSoc is to help the FYs get a better understanding of motions that are usually debated in the national circuit in the form of informal information sessions. These sessions cover various subject areas on which motions are usually based upon. With this extensive level of practice done by the members of DebSoc weekly, the club is open to everyone interested in learning the parliamentary style of debating regardless of whether they have any prior experience or not.

If someone tells you how to become rich in a day, don’t believe that person. However, if experienced students guide you on how to invest through a year-long span, that’s Investor Club, SSE for you. Aiming to focus on giving the members a better insight into financial literacy, Tanuj Sahgal, a second-year student and the Head of Investors Club, leverages his experience and expertise in this regard. Investing since the age of 18 and having completed modules from NSE, makes him the ideal sailor of this ship! With such immense knowledge and experience, the club has ambitious plans for the academic year 2020-21. Here’s a glimpse and a more detailed insight into the club activities: 1) Investor’s Club aims to uncover the power of compounding, understand the value of money, and know why it is essential to generate a reasonable rate of return. 2) It understands the types of investors and identifies them in the market, their goals, and whether they are aligned with the long-term rather than just focusing on making a quick buck. 3) The club aims to focus on long term investing and capital appreciation through the long term. 4) It focuses on discovering the risks of the financial markets and analyses various asset classes. 5) It aims to create structured discussions with the members on the analysis of buzzing stocks in the market through different resources including annual reports, using ratios such as P/E, P/BV, ROA, ROE, PEG, EPS. 6) Investor Club aims at understanding stock screeners online which helps students understand which aspects should be considered while picking a stock. While intense financial jargon and buzzwords such as Derivatives, Hedge Funds, Options, and others might confuse you, do not fret because the Investor’s Club has got your back! Through detailed discussions at a later stage, the club also aims to delve into deeper financial markets and cover intrinsic details once the basics are covered. Lastly, the club attempts to set up a portfolio for the club, by pooling the resources of the entire club and investing the pooled amount in the market, which makes the Investor Club extremely innovative and different from all the other clubs.

Decoding the economic history and thought process behind Raghunath Nageswaran's macroeconomic webinar at SSE, Dakshita Srinivasan writes an appealing article. We live in a fast-paced world where things keep changing constantly. The world economy has been at the forefront of this change. Raghunath Nageswaran, an independent researcher who writes articles related to political economy gave the students of SSE his worldview of the macroeconomy. This webinar was his understanding of economic phenomena through the lens of history. Economics is believed to be understood by looking at past trends or what we call history. Hence, it is necessary to know the series of important economic events that took place in the 20th century. Around the 1930s the world experienced the greatest economic crisis ever, the Great Depression. This crisis initiated the progress of the general theory of employment, interest, and money and hence brought about the Keynesian Revolution in Economics. Keynesian economic ideas were essentially focused to prevent wars, and the tragic irony of the second world war validated Keynes’ economic thinking on the world stage. The repercussion of both the world wars was the mountain of debts that it left with countries, which the countries repaid by issuing increasing amounts of government bonds. Governments started printing more money to help improve their respective country’s economy, but this had a conflicting effect. This led to the emergence of financial entanglement in different economies all over the world. There was a dire need for a solution to decrease the amount of cash flow in the economy. The Gold Standard was introduced later to deal with the aftermath of war. The Gold Standard meant to place limits on the issue of paper currency and convert the existing paper currency into gold. It imposed discipline on countries and anchored the first era of economic liberalism. While this did sound good in theory, there was an immense lack of cooperation among national governments in Europe, and according to Keynes, the Gold Standard proved to be a barbarous relic and quite a fetish. A financial merry-go-round was created circling constant American protectionism and Europe’s desperation to find a way to earn dollars/gold. Raghunath goes on to reiterate his narrative by forming a triangle of war debt that was created in the 20th century which primarily revolved around war debt payments, German reparations, and the Gold Standard. National economic fortunes got interlocked and trapped within this water-tight triangle. This gave birth to the era of international financial cooperation. It helped build strong monetary foundations for economic systems all over the world. We must understand that the purpose of any historic theory is to bring forward hidden mechanisms and relationships of the economy to the surface. This webinar sharpened the understanding and will help us, as students, to have a three-sixty-degree view of the future in designing policies and building institutions that are better for society.

A recent addition to the SSE family, Dr. Niharika Singh has quickly endeared herself to the SSE community. Always ready to debate upon an economic ideology's merits and eager to support student-led initiatives, Professor Singh happily agreed to a telephonic interview with Arthniti in which she told us about her journey to becoming a teacher, why Sir Ian McKellan is her favorite actor, and what the present government should pursue to deal with the pandemic and its consequent economic crisis. Dr. Niharika Singh, Symbiosis School of Economics’ faculty of Micro Economics, EVS and Economic Thought, joined the SSE family in 2019. Niharika Ma’am has been closely involved in organizing various college events, including the book release of alum Harsh Kedia, and ‘Pride not Prejudice’ - SSE’s first official panel discussion on LGBT issues. Additionally, she serves as SSE’s gender champion. Arthniti recently had the opportunity to interview Professor Singh and it went as follows:- Niharika Ma’am tells us that she was born and brought up in the quaint little town of Siliguri. From there, she moved to Patna where she finished her schooling. She graduated from Patna University and then moved on to Jaipur for her doctorate. She laughs and tells us that she can’t specifically call one of these places her home and misses a lot of things about all these places. While in school, (this is in Patna), Dr. Singh was particularly fond of English Literature and History. JRR Tolkien continues to be her favorite author and Ma’am gleefully quips that she has read all his books. “Tolkien is like my Bible” she exclaims, “I’m in love with his knowledge, experience, his way of writing, and how he invented a completely new language!” While she didn’t like mugging up, she warmed up to History too (and anyone who has attended an Economic Thought lecture can vouch for Ma’am’s passion for history!). Given this liking for English and History, we were curious to know how she ended up pursuing Economics. Ma’am adds to the mystery by informing us that she did her honours in Economics and had English as a subsidiary subject. So what gives? Picture courtesy Niharika Ma'am It turns out that Ma’am had her first brush with Economics in 9th standard. Midway in the academic year, her economics teacher had to leave and a new teacher came in her place. “She (the new teacher) never used to teach from the book! She used to look at the topic and give lectures. Imagine at the ninth standard not teaching from the book. She would then explain everything in very simple terms and relate everything to daily life” explains Ma’am. Dr. Singh would religiously take notes in said teacher’s class. When she lost her textbook around the time of Boards, Niharika Ma’am solely depended on those notes (she didn’t tell her parents by the way) and passed with flying colors. It was this teacher and her unconventional pedagogy (for school) that ignited a love for the subject within Niharika Ma’am. On being asked about extracurriculars, Ma’am lets out that she was a keen debater (again, anyone who has attended an ET lecture and witnessed the verbal jousts between Ma’am and DebSoc members, can attest to the same!). She proudly tells us about a state-level debate competition which was attended by the then President of India Pratibha Patil. In her Master’s at the time, Ma’am bagged the top prize by outwitting participants from 13 other universities! What led her to teach as a career? Well, teaching was originally not on the radar. Niharika Ma’am originally aspired to enlist in the Navy or Army, but she could not pursue the same. After 10th, Ma’am took up Science with Maths and Biology and prepped for the grueling medical entrances for two years before resolving to take up Economics. It was a new and upcoming field at the time and given her previous brush with the subject in school, Dr. Singh felt Economics to be a logical choice for higher studies. It was while studying in university; Ma’am felt the desire to impart her knowledge to more people. Hence academia and teaching was the logical choice. The conversation then turns to the topic of favorite economists, to which Ma’am remarks, “too many to name!” with a laugh. She admires Keynes and looks up to Joseph Stiglitz (or ‘Stiggy Uncle’ as she used to call him in college) as he is very outspoken and advocates passionately for what he feels is right (Ma’am excitedly tells us that she has witnessed his intellect in person, at a panel discussion she attended in Bangalore). She further lists Abhijeet Sen (who bears a resemblance to Rabindranath Tagore - “the moment he opens his mouth you will fall in love with him”), Kaushik Basu (Ma’am is in praise of his calm demeanor), and Alakh Narayan Sharma - her mentor/guru who writes extensively on policies for the unorganized sector and unemployment. Incidentally, it was he who inspired Ma’am to learn about unorganized laborers (Ma’am’s academic specialty is Labor Economics). We then asked Professor Singh, the classic question that has been asked to every faculty so far. More government? More private control? Or a mix of both? Ma’am enthusiastically extends support for a mixed economy. “We all follow mixed economic systems and the only difference is the percentage of capitalism and socialism in the mix”. She avers that the socialistic component should be greater as capitalism leads to income gaps which can be only corrected through the government. Now, anyone who has met Ma’am will know that she harbors an abiding interest in the issues of gender. Ma’am explains to us that patriarchy was never in our culture, we never had a system to dominate the women. Women were always given a free hand in choosing their partner “It was always a swayamvar for women and not men. She had a choice even in what she studied!” This all changed, when a patriarchal social system was adopted. Ma’am talks about being a revolutionary kid who has always broken all the rules and never acted like a Shakespearean lady - “because that’s not who we are supposed to be”. “We are supposed to be women of substance who should stand up for what they feel is correct”. She adds that when she became financially independent, she was keen to study gender discrimination and added a component on the same to her Dissertation. Additionally, her love for Tolkien spills over to the movies as well. Sir Ian McKellen (who essays Gandalf) is one of Professor Singh’s favorite actors and a source of inspiration too. His activism in support of transgender rights affirmed Ma’am’s passion for the same. Ma’am narrates to us her personal experiences while living in the United States, of witnessing men being labeled as ‘gay’ or ‘transgender’ for wearing pink. The sheer ludicrosity of such acts further galvanized Ma’am to take up the cause. Given that preamble, we felt it would be pertinent to bring up the issue of discrimination against women and minorities within academia, specifically Economics. To that, Ma’am opines that economics is a subject, in which, if you don’t get into business analytics or data mining, the alternative is research and teaching. Dr. Singh argues that in our society, women have to be literate ‘enough’ to ensure that they will get married into a good family but no one wants to wait for a woman to build a sustainable career. “Even today modern men, who want to marry well-educated women, look for women who have jobs, but very few men want to marry a woman who wants to pursue a good career”. Ma’ am adds that “In economics, research is a career and not solely a job”. Women are not given the agency to invest enough time in crafting a long track record of academic publications. With respect to underprivileged classes, Niharika Ma’am believes that those who belong to this section of society are often in want of quick money which is not always the case with economics unless it’s a good college. Professor Singh thus concludes that it is the luxury of time - gifted by patriarchal mores, and access to world-class resources- an outcome of societal inequality, that allows men to build a strong academic career. While still on gender, we brought up a classic shortcoming of the GDP which all of us learned in the 12th standard. Should unpaid work performed primarily by women be included in the GDP? To that, Niharika Ma’am elucidates that while such inclusion is justified on a social and moral basis, the exact mechanics of monetization will be very difficult and there would be huge ambiguity. It’s very difficult to keep accountability of unpaid work; however, she adds that the ILO has been trying to do some work in this area. On being asked if she thought it’s important to consider gender and sexuality while studying economics, she says that to some extent the subject has been written and studied from the perspective of one gender which is the male perspective. The theories of economics would differ because of a difference in perspectives of different genders. Therefore, economics should be more inclusive as people of different genders and other minorities all interact with the economy in different ways. Ma’am further adds that to do this we should make gender studies and gender sensitization compulsory at every level of education. Given that the interview was being conducted in the midst of an unprecedented pandemic and global lock-down, we couldn’t help but ask Ma’am for her suggestions on reviving the economy. In response, Niharika Ma’am strongly feels that the agriculture sector should be given a boost. There is the unavailability of workers to cut the crops so the workers should be brought back in shifts. Further, manufacturing, dairy, and farm produce related enterprise should also be started in shifts with careful precautions. To wrap up the interview, we asked Ma’am if there were any goals and aspirations she wished to achieve through her work. Professor Singh tells us that she plans to continue learning and wants to obtain a post-doctorate and a D.Litt (yes, there are degrees to be earned even after a Ph.D.). She also wants to work for the cause of unorganized labor and transgender communities. However, she assures us that teaching is a passion and she would never leave it. We finally asked ma’am her favorite part about teaching at SSE and if she had anything that she would like to tell the students. She says her favorite things about teaching at SSE are students (thanks Ma’am!). She said that whenever she feels upset, interacting with students cheers her up. Her message to the student body is “as students of economics we should understand the origin of theory and its applications in detail”. We thank Professor Niharika Singh for participating in the interview with us. Thank you for making Micro and Thought so interesting to learn and thank you for being an inspiration and support to many students.

SSE’s Network Engineer and resident Tech Expert, Shilpi Ma’am was interviewed by Arthniti a few months back. Over the course of the interview, Ma’am gave us an insight into her personality and work. Providing invaluable support to all of SSE’s ventures, Shilpi Ma’am is fiercely proud of the niche that she’s carved for herself in a field dominated by men. Read on to find out more about Ma’am and her work. When asked whether she had picked up any tidbits of economics during her time at SSE, Shilpi Ma’am cheerily laughs and says, ‘No! I just know my codes and computers. But, yes if there is one thing I’ve always heard my colleagues say it’s - Models! Models! Models! Professor Shilpi Singh is SSE’s Network Engineer and teaches IT skills to both BSc and MSc students. She uses her expertise to ensure that SSE’s tech resources are always in pristine condition, supporting the faculty and students alike. Be it skillfully leading the IT Team at SSE’s conferences or solving an Excel query of a hapless TY, Shilpi Ma’am is there through it all. Picture courtesy Shilpi Ma'am Arthniti met with her, a few months back, with the objective of getting to know Ma’am a bit better. Ma’am is from Lucknow and shifted to Pune post her marriage. What does she miss the most about Lucknow? “Well, my parents of course, but I also miss the food!” We were delighted to know that Ma’am was just like us - after all who doesn’t miss home food (especially if it’s the delectable kebabs of Lucknow)? In school, Ma’am developed a liking and passion for Math and Computers. While she would score well in other subjects, she was irrevocably drawn to the logic-driven tools and techniques of those 2 subjects - “I did not like mugging up!” quips Ma’am. She was eager to take her love for the subjects further by specializing in them through her further studies. However, the BSc Mathematics program at Lucknow University did not include any subjects related to Computer Science. Determined to pursue her passion, Ma’am simultaneously enrolled for a Bachelors in Computers through IGNOU. In this way, Ma’am simultaneously completed two degrees! Reflecting on her college days, Ma’am remarked that she would barely have any time to attend family functions for she would be tied up with her academic commitments to two degrees. “One degree’s exam would get over and then I would start studying for the other degree’s exams!” Ma’am continued juggling two degrees at the postgraduate level too - Ma’am did an MSc in Maths and Computer Science. But Shilpi Ma’am assures us (with a twinkle in her eye) that despite her hectic schedule, she too would have her share of fun (Ma’am shares that she has bunked classes with her friends!). Ma’am also adds that she was very active in extracurriculars. She regularly participated in club activities and volunteered for college events with gusto. Shilpi Ma’am tells us that she never set out to become a teacher originally. However, she had always enjoyed teaching. Her first job was in a school where she taught Math and Computer Science to fifth graders, later moving on to UG and PG students. Her current profile at SSE combines both teaching as well as technical responsibilities, and she is very happy that she gets to do both. At this point, we were curious to know what Ma’am felt about the dearth of women taking up STEM careers. As someone in a technical field, did she perceive any bias? To this, Shilpi Ma’am believes that there does tend to be a gender bias in the tech community. She argues that it is simply wrong to think that women are not ‘suited’ for fields such as Hardware and Networking. Everyone should be allowed to pursue what they are passionate about, just as she pursued her passion for Math and Computers. Coming to hobbies, Shilpi Ma’am tells us that she loves cricket. While she doesn’t get the time these days to watch full-fledged matches, there was a time when she would set alarms and wake up early to catch a match taking place in Australia or New Zealand. Such is her love for cricket, that she has even bunked lectures to catch a match! Apart from that Ma’am likes to unwind by listening to music. Ask her if she has any favourite programming language, Ma’am laughs and says that it is probably C++ as she has studied it extensively and used it the most. She is also happy to note that her love for numbers and IT has passed on to her daughter as well; her favourite subjects in school are Math and Computer Science as well. When asked if there should be any change in the way Computers is introduced and taught to children, Ma’am observes that schools nowadays teach a lot of topics that she herself studied only later in college. She feels that the subject should be taught from a practical bent with a focus on imparting important skills to students that can be used in the future. This extends to programming languages as well. Java or Python should not be taught just because they are ‘there’; rather their practical applications should be emphasized. On a parting note, Ma’am advises us to never lose sight of who we are. She cautions against doing something out of compulsion and believes that whatever one does, one should be happy and truly love the task at hand. Being true to yourself is all that matters! We thank Ma’am for sparing her valuable time for this interview, for her kind advice and for motivating us to pull up our socks and work harder.