With APOGEE looming around the corner, one might expect the General Secretary Shivam Jindal to be completely occupied and too busy to provide an interview. Thankfully, this was not the case. As the inventory CoStAAn of APOGEE, Shivam Jindal is responsible for ensuring that every department’s and club’s equipment and inventory needs are met. While this is true for Oasis too, the increased role of disciplinary associations in APOGEE and their unique requirements makes handling inventory in Oasis and APOGEE completely different beasts.

‘Since APOGEE is a technical fest, it makes sense to have a multitude of exhibitions and that is exactly what we have done in this iteration’ said an elated Jindal. ‘But quantity isn’t everything. We, the CoStAA, have also worked on making the exhibitions more interactive which will hopefully increase their allure to participants in the fest’.

An exhibition, featuring two humanoid robots, Nao and Mitra, will be held. Furthermore, the Indian Navy will be organizing a virtual reality exhibition. Possibly the most exciting of them all, however, is a demonstration of a mind-controlled toy helicopter and car.

When asked about how the scheduling of APOGEE in February has affected him, Jindal calmly replied ‘Honestly, since we started preparing well in advance in anticipation of an early APOGEE, it hasn’t affected me too much. You should probably ask the CoStAAns of PCr or Sponz about how having fewer working days affects work for the fest.’

As for why APOGEE was held early in the first place, the reasons are twofold. Firstly, it’s to drive up participation by avoiding clashes with fests hosted by other colleges. Secondly, having APOGEE prior to the mid-semester examinations lets students focus more on their papers and projects without having to worry about studying for their exams as well.

‘Having one of the only purely technical fests in India is something to be proud of’ said Jindal. ‘However, we need to understand that a fest like APOGEE can only be successful if the student body partakes’, he adds. One hopes that the participation in the fest reflects the work that has been put into it. The APOGEE English Press wishes Jindal and the rest of the CoStAA the very best in their endeavor to make APOGEE 2018 a success.