DR. K P MOHANDAS AT REC NIT CALICUT

 Dr. K P Mohandas served REC  of our times and NIT of today for many decades with diligence and distinction.A product of  College of Engineering Trichur and later doing advanced education at IIT.He could be easily labelled as one of the few academic experts in the area of Control System Theory of which he was a specialist. I mentioned somewhere earlier that I used to get high grades at the exams in his subjects.I was planning to visit the College of Engineering Trichur but will do so some time soon.COE Trichur is one of the earlier Engineering colleges put up in Kerala.

He had a methodical approach to teaching most of the time bringing notes to the class and progressing through the session in a systematic style and also was an intellectual in his own right.My Father used to share good rapport with him.

If I were to remember some of my teachers in the list would be Mrs. Starry who  used to teach Science at Lowry Memorial School in Bangalore, Mr Chandrashekar who used to teach Sanskrit at Sri Sathya Sai Arts Science and Commerce college in Whitefield and Mr. H K Nagaraj who used to teach Trigonometry and Mr. Hegde who used to teach Physics both of the above at Whitefield. In this list would come two more people Dr. P S Srinivasan  who used to teach Induction Machines at REC NIT Calicut and Dr. K P Mohandas who used to teach Control theory at this place.

If there is one thing Professors can learn from him around the world, never go into classes without some description or document which pertains to that particular session, so that classes can be effective a lesson one can learn from Dr. K P Mohandas.

FACADE IMPROVEMENT OF REC NIT CALICUT

https://youtu.be/hf1VAeB1gxc

POWER FACTOR CORRECTION IN LARGE ELECTRICAL NETWORKS

POWER FACTOR  correction is an important component of Electrical Engineering concerning Alternating Currents.When DC is passed through a coil the coil only gives resistance. When AC is passed through the coil it gives a vector sum of resistance and reluctance. Reluctance is the Magnetic component of the opposition to the flow of Alternating current. Reluctance comes because of the self induction component because the coil creates an opposing electro-motive force or emf because of self-induction. What is self induction? Alternating current passing through a coil induces voltage in the coil opposing the flow of current which is called Self-induction.

When I was a student of Electrical Engineering I used to constantly read Edward Hughes,Vincent Del Toro and Charles Siskind in whose books the fundamental concepts of Electrical Engineering are dealt with in fine detail.Added to that the very experienced faculty at the Regional Engineering College Calicut (NIT) of our times Dr.Prabhakaran ,Dr. P P Gerwadis, Dr K P Mohandas and Dr. P S Srinivasan all of whom did involved teaching in their own style with commitment for a long stretch of time leaving Electrical Engineering indelible from my mind.

What are the consequences of  high inductance in an AC circuit. It increases current leading to power losses and creates heat from magnetization just like the heat created by a microwave -owen.It creates loss of power and adds to various forms of transients. It creates insulation failure and dis-orients electrical networks.

When an Alternating current is impressed upon a coil the current lags behind the voltage which literally means it struggles to catch-up with the Voltage. Larger the lag due to higher inductance lesser the fraction of useful power and higher the fraction of reactive power which is wasted in magnetisation and radiation of heat.

What is one of the solutions for this problem? Itis to shunt the circuit with an appropriate Capacitor. The Capacitor regulates voltage and reduces the lag of the earlier current passing through the coil literally absorbing reactive power and converting it into useful power.Such a measure reduces heat dissipation and increases circuit delivered power. The situation is similar to the relation between BHP,IHP and FHP in an engine. IHP is the integrated horse power the actual power created in the engine..FHP is the frictional horse power which creates heat and losses and BHP is Brake Horse Power the actual power delivered by the engine. FHP is akin to the reactive power in an electrical circuit which can be reduced by using Capacitor shunt which reduces this component.But how? Current through a Capacitor leads the Voltage.Capacitors block Voltage but its dielectric depending on the frequency passes current. Exactly opposite to inductive circuits in capacitive circuits Voltage tries to catch up with the current.

When I used to work in Electrical Maintenance long back I had developed a simple formula for arriving at the value of the Shunt Capacitor needed for any given Electrical network and also tested it with the hand book of Electrical Engineering and to my glee found that they match ditto.I was excited but left this area of Electrical Engineering for a short while to dabble with Information technology. Recently I tried to re-invent the formula few days back with some measure of success and I would like pundits of electrical engineering to put it to some form analysis to confirm if it works.

Note that large Electrical Networks are three phase and on the load side they have meters that indicate Current, Voltage and Power Factor and laso the Power. Our job is to note the Power factor and increase it to the level necessary.The basic analysis of such a situation can be done using a simple single phase diagram. 

The above is an illustration of the above discussed matter.The whole thing needs scrutiny and testing.Two circuits of a simple kind are shown which are r-l circuit and in diagram B they are shunted by a capacitor. Power and Voltage are held constant. The phasor diagrams are shown  and note the impedance diagram. ɸn is the new angle after correction and  cosɸn  is the new power factor.

NOTE  TANɸn = (XL - XC)  /   R

XC = Xl   -   R Tanɸn

XC IS CAPACITIVE REACTANCE
XL IS INDUCTIVE REACTANCE

PREM VATHORE AT NIT REC CALICUT

PREM used to be my senior at REC Calicut I think by one year.He was a tall Man with sharp and frightening looks.He used to frighten us when we were freshers with his menacing approach and mannerisms.

But later I used to get along well with him.He used to be my neighbour in the top floor of the C hostel and I used to run into him almost everyday.

But an incident still lingers in my mind in the D hostel I think where we used to stay later.Both of us were playing cricket in the corridor and one of my shots hit one of the tube lights shattering it. Both of us ran into our rooms in panic.Later the Warden appears to have discussed the matter with Prem. I remember Prem calling me out of the class room and telling me some small fine has been imposed on both of us which we landed up paying.I still remember what he told me.Accept that we did it first. Dont dispute it at all. I did so and got out of any further crisis.

Prem where-ever you are you might remember this incident and how we solved it.

subash po photo rec nit calicut

This is the old signpost of NIT Calicut when it was REC.We revere this post.It is like a light house.The very first time when we students did not know where REC Calicut was and travelling by local bus from Calicut city constantly searching for our destination and suddenly from out of the blue as the bus takes a turn near the dispensary this sign board pops up from nowhere. It was such a relief.

The present authorities at the campus must be praised for preserving this edifice and giving it the respect which it richly deserves and it is one of the finest pieces of display ever created by anyone anywhere in the world for its conciseness and background.

The Audio Visual Club at REC NIT Calicut

The REC NIT CALICUT of our times had a very active audio-visual club.This club was manned by student volunteers who did a very good job.My room mate Binodanand Mishra also was part of this committee once if Iam not mistaken.Most of the times Hindi and English movies were displayed.

The auditorium of our times were used for this purpose.Under normal circumstances the auditorium would work in one direction with with seats facing the pedestal or the podium or the elevated platform.On this elevated platform skits and dramas were played.But when it is movie time the auditorium would function in the reverse mode facing the screen and the elevated platform used for seating girl students.The chairs in the auditorium were movable steel chairs which could be reversed as and when needed.

I think the first movie I saw was Madumathi. I had decided not to go for the movie but seeing that the entire hostels partook in it I made a last minute dash to the Auditorium.Most of the movies shown were good and I think there was a Faculty coordinator for the club who authenticated films. 

Some of the movies that I saw here are Manchali,Sathyam Shivam Sundaram,Masoom,Sadma,Tootsie,Double Trouble,Dard Ka Rishtha  and may be many more which I dont recollect now.

In retrospect I think it is a good thing to have such clubs which bring entertainment right into the campus.

Mr.Narayanan Mathematics teacher at REC Calicut NIT in 1982

In 1982 when we were first year students at REC Calicut NIT  there was a Mathematics Professor who used to do an excellent job by the name of Mr.Narayanan..He hails from Kannur Cannanore he had told me. He also taught us Fourier Transforms in 1983 in the third semester and did a wonderful job. Later on he left REC and did not teach us in further semesters.

Where ever you are Mr. Narayanan there are some who still remember you.

The KSRTC bus stand at Calicut

The KSRTC Kerala State Road Transport Corporation bus stand of Calicut fills me with both agony and ecstasy considering the various hits and misses of Buses while travelling out of Calicut. This bus station is a small L shaped structure that can handle some six columns of buses with congestion. A announcer constantly announces on the microphone the buses parked at the bus stand and those about to leave. KSRTC buses are a genre by themselves and a marvel of Maintenance ; most of them being old buses but refurbished from time to time and made highly road worthy.

By the way the best bus station I bear evidence of surprisingly is Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh. This bus stop is spacious and elegant in design with a well maintained dorm in the first floor and I have found the general behavior of the staff of APSRTC more courteous and considerate.

I mentioned "hits and misses"  above..this means that I narrowly missed boarding some buses in a hurry by a whisker and rarely on being at the bus stand got a bus inadvertently. Calicut city of our times in the mid 1980's had two bus stands..the KSRTC bus stand and a private bus stand at Palayam junction. A new bus stand at the end of Mavoor Road came up in 1987 and was designed by Dr. Vincent Paul of the Civil Engineering Department of REC they say.

My earliest brush with this bus stand and its affairs was in 1983 when somewhere out of the blue Giri my room mate and myself planned to visit Bangalore and reached the bus stand planning to take the 10:00PM bus which is also called the Paper bus meaning that this is the bus that brings Malayalam newspapers to the city of Bangalore and we has also bought coupons for the same but could not board the bus as it was already full. I beseeched  the conductor using many ways possible to let us inside but leading to no avail. Both of us could not hide our disappointment. This means waiting until 3:00 Am in the bus stand for a deluxe bus that comes from Ernakulam and bound for Bangalore via Calicut. I cannot forget this sordid experience hanging around in a bus stand just walking up and down trying to while away five hours. At around 2:45 I noticed the bus entering the premises and jumped into it at the earliest opportunity and I found there were many contenders for the few seats in the back. Previously having had experience jumping in and out of the BTS buses of Bangalore the experience came handy. I seized seat number 23 and reserved 24 for my friend and both of us felt relieved when the bus finally crawled out of the stand reaching Bangalore at 12:00 PM.

The second ordeal was few years later reaching the bus stand in the night from Ernakulam well after the last bus to REC had vanished. This means waiting up to 4:00 AM from 10:00 PM a full six hours or so at the stone benches of the Calicut bus stand. I find one thing very good at this bus stand and I appreciate it and request that the same trend be maintained...namely the punctuality and rigor for schedules. Some kind of Six Sigma works here unlike some other bus stands of our country. I reach REC Calicut at around 4:45 AM when it was unearthly and quiet . The nights are ruled by Jackals in REC and I found myself encircled by a few jackals one of them howling at me and I howled louder than them and within some seconds found no trace of them. Few months later I missed the 3:00 AM bus I was talking about by a whisker seeing the bus make a quiet exit from my Auto and I could do nothing about.

My senior David from Coimbatore and myself share a common experience waiting in the bus stand for about  two hours early in the morning ...I having reached the spot from Bangalore by the 6:00PM Ernakulam bus and he having reached from Coimbatore and both of us walking to our respective hostels from the bus stop of REC.

This is the Kozhikode Calicut bus stand of our times and an important nerve center for students of our college ...REC buses coming at the right end of the stand and the ticket costing Rs 1 :65 to REC and some Rs. 35/- to Bangalore..the green color express bus..the red colored Fast passenger bus..some white colored Deluxe buses..the drivers clad in khaki uniform with their shirts partially unbuttoned occasionally puffing a beedi ..the continuous announcement on the public address system ..the tea and fried banana in the tea store at the corner..some foreigner tourists asking for the route to Mysore or ooty..the inquiry counter constantly grappling with schedules and the bursting sound of a suddenly cranked engine the Calicut Bus stop of KSRTC had them all. 

Unforgettable Damu Kutty

In the office of   REC Calicut  of our times in the first floor of the MB (main building) used to be a college clerical staff by name Damu Kutty. He was very different for he shared a genuine concern for students and to a large extent was a data base of students both past and present. Very often dressed in a white mundu and shirt he was resplendent with enthusiasm for students largely sharing and providing crucial information as the situation demanded.

I remember the day I got my provisional certificate from the university and he gave me a general idea of the offices in the university that i should approach and he was filled with glee too.Many other students of our times would endorse for sure what I have written about him. Once in a while I used to meet him in the college bus.

Damukutty ..no matter where you are now and what you are up to let me disclose to you that your concern for the student populace was not in vain and many student alumni across the length  and breadth of this country must definitely be reminiscing your kind gestures and genuine concern for the student populace.