Dr. KC Sivaramakrishnan is an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at IIT Madras.

The Award is given by ACM Special Interest Group on Programming Languages (SIGPLAN), to an institution or individual(s) to recognize the development of a software system that has had a significant impact on programming language research, implementations, and tools.

Languages

Many programming languages such as C++, Java, GoLang, etc., have ‘multicore support,’ which refers to the ability to run multiple tasks at the same time on different cores on the same processor.

Unlike many of these languages, the unique challenge that Multicore OCaml project was trying to address is the fact that multicore support was being added to a programming language that is more than 25 years old, one which is favoured for its correctness, with millions of lines of industrial strength code out there, say sources from IIT Madras.

Department of Computer Science and Engineering at IIT Madras

Congratulating Dr. KC Sivaramakrishnan on the recognition, Prof. V. Krishna Nandivada, Head, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, IIT Madras, said task parallel languages that let the programmer express the program logic in a parallel manner is the mantra for exploiting the power of the current multi-core era.

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Extending OCaml with parallelism is an important step towards this, especially considering the increasing interest among academics and industry practitioners in OCaml. And the current award attests to that, said Prof Krishna of IIT Madras.

Retrofitting

Dr. KC Sivaramakrishnan along with a team of students and project staff at IIT Madras, and collaborators from University of Cambridge, INRIA and Jane Street, worked on retrofitting native support concurrency and parallelism to the OCaml programming language.

The effort was started originally in the University of Cambridge in 2014, where Dr. KC Sivaramakrishnan was a Senior Research Fellow and continued for 8 years, say sources from IIT Madras.

During the course of the work, the team published several seminar papers including award winners, say sources from IIT Madras.

The success of Multicore OCaml project is that it added fundamental capabilities to the OCaml language while preserving its favoured qualities, said Prof Sivaramakrishnan of IIT Madras.

Testament

The award is a testament to the importance of open-source software development. OCaml is a truly international project with core developers belonging to France, UK, India and Japan, spanning multiple institutions both in academia and the industry and many other individual contributors from all over the world, said Dr Sivaramakrishnan.

Focus

Dr. KC Sivaramakrishnan’s research focusses on designing better ways to write programs for modern multicore processors and distributed systems, say sources from IIT Madras.

There are several aspects to this such as correctness, efficiency and oft overlooked aspect – the maintainability of such programs as part of a large software project, say sources from IIT Madras.

The activities of the Institute in various fields of Science and Technology are carried out in 17 academic departments and several advanced interdisciplinary research academic centres.

The technology was developed by Prof. Jayant Kumar Singh and his team from the Department of Chemical Engineering in IIT Kanpur.

To facilitate its widespread adoption, IIT Kanpur has signed a technology transfer MoU with ScaNxt Scientific Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

The pact was signed in the presence of Prof. Raja Angamuthu, Associate Dean of Research & Development, IIT Kanpur and Prof. Jayant Kumar Singh (Inventor).

Device

The Soil Nutrient Sensing Device is a compact, smartphone-compatible innovation that provides real-time soil nutrient analysis, addressing the critical gap in timely soil testing for Indian farmers, say sources from IIT Kanpur.

Traditionally reliant on district laboratories, farmers often face delays in receiving soil health assessments, say sources from IIT Kanpur.

Portability

Designed for portability and ease of use, the device can assess multiple soil parameters simultaneously, storing data on a cloud server, with a single charge supporting up to 250 tests, say sources from IIT Kanpur.

This pioneering device leverages Near-Infrared (NIR) Spectroscopy to deliver instant soil health insights directly to a smartphone, eliminating the need for chemical reagents and complex testing processes.

By enabling precise nutrient management, the technology has the potential to transform agriculture, enhancing crop productivity, reducing fertilizer overuse, and contributing to both improved farmer incomes and environmental sustainability, say sources from IIT Kanpur.

By providing instant, reagent-free testing with Near Infrared Spectroscopy, this technology empowers farmers to make informed decisions, optimize fertilizer use, and boost productivity, he said.

Through our collaboration with ScaNxt Scientific Technologies, we aim to transform Indian agriculture and take this pioneering innovation to global markets, supporting the vision of sustainable farming practices, he said.

I extend my heartfelt congratulations to Prof. Jayant Kumar Singh and his team for this groundbreaking development, he said.

Inventor

Prof. Jayant Kumar Singh (inventor) said their development is a culmination of years of research and hard work aimed at addressing the real challenges farmers face in soil health assessment.

It’s truly gratifying to see this innovation, which offers immediate and accuratesoil analysis, now being transferred to ScaNxt Scientific Technologies for broader adoption, said Prof Jayant Kumar of IIT Kanpur.

This device not only empowers farmers with instant insights but also supports the creation of a national soil stack, aiding in better fertilizer management and promoting sustainability, he said.

I am excited to witness the positive impact it will have, both on the ground and at the policy level, as it contributes to a more sustainable and efficient agricultural landscape, he said.

Their collaboration with IIT Kanpur through the joint MoU will allow us to advance soil testing technologies further, integrating micro and secondary nutrient analysis into our BhuParikshak device, he said.

By combining NIR Spectroscopy, IoT, and AI/ML, we aim to provide farmers with even more precise and actionable data to optimize nutrient management and drive sustainable agricultural growth, he said.

Market and collaboration

The Indian soil testing equipment market, currently valued at approximately USD 114.43 million as of 2024, is set for significant expansion.

Driven by the increasing demand for efficient agricultural productivity solutions and the need for climate resilience, this market is projected to reach USD 145.83 million by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 4.08%.

This collaboration sets the stage for a transformative shift in soil health management, equipping farmers with immediate, data-driven insights and promoting sustainable agricultural practices both in India and globally.

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