As VESIT celebrates its Ruby Jubilee in this academic year 2024-25, the core values of academic excellence, holistic growth, innovation, social responsibility, and unwavering commitment to integrity continue to guide its mission of developing well-rounded individuals. The Ruby Jubilee celebrations were officially launched with a grand inauguration on 8th July 2025, presided over by Dr. Vinod Mohitkar, Director of Technical Education, Maharashtra State.

This year is also significant for our parent society, Vivekanand Education Society, as it marks the birth centenary of late Shri. Hashu Advani, the visionary founder of VES. The year 2025-26 will be dedicated to celebrating his 100 years of inspiration, legacy, and vision. The centenary celebrations began with a Satyanarayan Pooja conducted at the VESIT amphitheatre on 22nd February 2025 and followed by weeklong activities conducted at VES level. Maharashtra Chief Minister Shri. Devendra Fadnavis graced the grand centenary celebrations and honored the extra ordinary legacy of Hashuji with the launch of a coffee table book, highlighting his contributions to society and his lasting impact on education and public service. 

As part of the Hashu Advani Centenary Celebrations (HACC), VESIT hosted a weeklong symposium titled TAS – Technological Advancements for Sustainability. This included expert lectures, workshops on emerging technologies, and a hackathon, followed by a Ph.D. colloquium. Mrs. Lekha Memon, IT Sustainability Lead at Tata Consultancy Services, delivered the keynote address, discussing IT sustainability trends and solutions. Other prominent speakers included Mr. Rajesh Sahasrabudhdhe, who spoke on Quantum Machine Learning, and Dr. Deepak Patkar, who explored the role of Medical AI in transforming diagnostics and patient care. 

The symposium also featured discussions on energy, AI, and sustainable innovation, with presentations from global experts such as Dr. C.V. Prasad Rao and Dr. Sasikumar M. The workshop on integrating MATLAB with UAVs for real-world impact was a major highlight. Additionally, the Ph.D. Colloquium, jointly organized by VESIT and the Mumbai University IDEAS Foundation Incubation Centre, provided a platform for research scholars to showcase their work. 

The intercollegiate hackathon, part of TAS, received significant attention, with 43,000 impressions on the Unstop platform and participation of 390 software teams and 51 hardware teams from colleges across Maharashtra. The hackathon, focused on sustainability, was a remarkable success with 181 students from 60 engineering colleges participating in the final 30-hour round. 

VESIT also hosted an E-Summit on entrepreneurship, inaugurated by Mr. Ram Kunchur, ExHead of Product Innovation at Digi Yatra Foundation. The event brought together industry leaders, alumni, and budding entrepreneurs to exchange ideas and inspire one another. 

The year was also marked by various achievements. The VESIT student chapter of the International Society of Automation (ISA) received three awards, including the Best Faculty Advisor award for our faculty Mr. Gopalkrishnan Narayanan. Our students, Mr. Atishkar Singh and Mr. Rashid Sarang, were recognized with ISA Best Student Awards for their contributions to technical events. We also take pride in Ms. Drushti Nagarkar, who represented India in the International Automation Games held in Canada. 

VESIT’s Artificial Intelligence and Data Science department received a research grant of Rs. 4 lakhs for a project on “Digital Innovations for Zero Hunger” and another Rs. 5 Lakhs startup grant from NASSCOM. Additionally, two of VESIT’s teams secured 1st place in the Smart India Hackathon 2024, each winning a cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh. 

Our students also excelled in sports and literary events. Ms. Kamya Gupta, an ECS student, represented Maharashtra at the Viksit Bharat Young Leader’s Dialogue in Delhi. Ms. Preetika Khilnaney, a second-year computer student, was declared the best speaker at the Hindustan Times Centennial Debate. Our NSS students made remarkable achievements, including qualification for the recent edition of State Youth Parliament, and Mr. Amogh Khatavkar’s, second-place finish at the district level. 

Furthermore, Ms. Shrushti Urankar, a second-year Automation and Robotics student, was selected for the Maharashtra State Republic Day Camp, and Mr. Anish Godse, a final-year student, represented VESIT in the West Zone Inter-University Chess Tournament. 

We are also immensely proud of Dr. Pooja Kundu, our NSS faculty coordinator, who was selected as the Contingent Leader for the NSS National Adventure Camp 2024, where she completed an extraordinary 80 km trek, reaching 10,000 feet. 

As we look forward to India’s 100 years of independence, VESIT is committed to driving transformative change through research collaborations and technological advancements. In this centenary year of our founder, VESIT takes a solemn pledge to carry forward Hashu Advani’s vision, ensuring that VESIT continues to be a beacon of hope, learning, and innovation.