Current Affairs - Education - Discussion

IIT Kharagpur conferred the Nina Saxena Excellence in Technology Award 2026 on Dr Nishanth Dongari on August 18, 2026, during its Platinum Jubilee foundation day. Dr Dongari, an Associate Professor at IIT Hyderabad and founder of PURE Energy, was recognised for developing PuREPower, India’s first all-in-one integrated Battery Energy Storage System (BESS). The system combines solar charging with lithium-ion storage and features an automatic switchover in under 10 milliseconds, along with AI-driven battery management. The Nina Saxena Award is presented annually by IIT Kharagpur to recognise outstanding technical innovation and commercialisation.