Guwahati (Assam) [India], December 24 (ANI): As a part of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MoYAS) upcoming Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue (VBYLD) 2026 scheduled to be in January 2026, the Department of Design at Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati hosted the State Level Exhibition for Design for Bharat – VBYLD 2026 at its campus.
Under this initiative, Design for Bharat has been launched as a national design challenge to inspire young innovators to contribute to Viksit Bharat 2047 through creative solutions addressing social, cultural, and economic concerns.
The challenge seeks to nurture critical thinking, teamwork and innovation among youth while providing mentorship from experts and an opportunity to showcase projects at the national platform. This year’s theme, “Duality (Dwividhta),” encourages participants to explore the in-between spaces–where transformative ideas often emerge. 
The competition includes seven thematic categories: Health, Wellness, and Mental Health; Education and Learning; Connectivity and Transport; Agriculture; Sports and Hobbies; Safety and Protection; and Sustainability.
Pratul Chandra Kalita, Professor and HOD, Department of Design of IIT Guwahati, said that – “As the nodal institute for our state, we received 15 submissions from young designers. After initial evaluation by our departmental jury, 13 promising entries were shortlisted for participation in the state-level exhibition. On 22 December 2025, the State Level Exhibition was successfully conducted with 10 teams participating in the competition.”
Notable dignitaries who were present in the event were Rahul Dev Sharma, Chairman and Managing Director, Gargya Group of Companies, as Chief Guest; Pranabjit Hazarika, Assistant Vice President, TCPL Packaging, and Neelkamal Das, Administrative Officer, Assam State Space Application Centre (ASSAC), as Guests of Honour.
Prof. Pratul Ch. Kalita, HOD of Design, welcomed the participants and guests and briefed them about the design challenge initiative. Prof. Devendra Jalihal, Director, IIT Guwahati, emphasised building a culture of innovation for academic and professional excellence for inclusive development. The distinguished guests delivered insightful and inspiring addresses, sharing valuable perspectives from entrepreneurship, industry, governance, and academia.
Their collective words of encouragement provided immense motivation to the participants, broadening their understanding of practical problem-solving as well as contributing to national development.
The exposure significantly strengthened their confidence to engage in design-led initiatives, contributing to Viksit Bharat 2047.
During the exhibition, the shortlisted participants presented their design concepts through detailed posters and product demonstrations.
The internal jury of the Department of Design, comprising Prof. Pratul Chandra Kalita, Head of the Department of Design, Prof. Amarendra Kumar Das, and Prof. Supradip Das, along with the invited dignitaries, interacted with the student teams and reviewed each entry across all evaluation parameters.
Following the assessment, the jury declared the top three rank holders.
Priyam Jyoti Das from Golaghat Engineering College secured the First Rank with his project ‘Waste to Green energy and Organic Fertiliser’, and he will represent Assam at the Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue 2026 scheduled for January 2026.
Team North Lakhimpur University, comprising the members Aryan Kashyap, Saurav Biswas and Dikshita Chakraborty, secured the Second Rank with their prototype ‘Terrabot – Agricultural Rover’.
The Third Rank was shared by Partha Protim Patir of IIT Guwahati with his prototype ‘Ad-Well’ and Kashyap Gogoi of Swahid Peoli Phukan College, Sivasagar, with his project ‘Natural Dye Extraction from Locally Available Plants’. (ANI)
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