THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

BHUBANESWAR, SEPTEMBER 14, 2026

Manas Nayak, a student of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering at the National Institute of Technology (NIT), Rourkela, has been awarded the Dr Bansidhar Panda Gold Medal for 2026 in recognition of his academic excellence.

The prestigious medal was presented to Nayak at the institute’s 24th Annual Convocation held on September 12. Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Member, NITI Aayog, was the chief guest at the convocation.

Instituted in 2019 in memory of Dr Bansidhar Panda, founder of Indian Metals and Ferro Alloys (IMFA), the gold medal is awarded every year to the topper of the B.Tech batch in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering at NIT Rourkela.

The award seeks to promote academic excellence in metallurgy while carrying forward the legacy of Dr Panda, whose contributions to technical education, industry and institution-building left a lasting imprint on Odisha’s metallurgical landscape.

A research scientist educated at Harvard University and Michigan Technological University, Dr Panda had a lifelong commitment to advancing technical education. He served as Chairman of the Board of Governors of NIT Rourkela from 2002 to 2007. In recognition of his contributions to industry and the metallurgical sector in Odisha, the institute conferred an honorary doctorate on him in 2015.

IMFA established the endowment to honour Dr Panda’s association with NIT Rourkela and to inspire future generations of engineers to pursue excellence in metallurgy and materials engineering.

Congratulating Nayak, Sanjaya Kumar Satapathy, Chief Human Resources Officer, IMFA, said the medal represented both a recognition of academic achievement and an effort to encourage young engineers to pursue excellence with purpose.

 “The Dr Bansidhar Panda Gold Medal recognises academic excellence in the field of metallurgical and materials engineering, and encourages young engineers to pursue excellence with purpose,” Satapathy said.

 “It is particularly meaningful to honour Dr Panda’s legacy at NIT Rourkela, an institution with which IMFA shares a long and valued association,” he said, congratulating Nayak and wishing him success in his future endeavours.