One of India’s most coveted national level science competitions Praj-IISER Pune’s Mimamsa was officially launched for the year 2021 last week in an online ceremony. On the back of resounding success of Mimamsa 2020, this year’s competition promises to scale greater heights going by grand plans and overwhelming response from institutions across the country. 

Mimamsa 2021 has now got a mascot – Athena, which represents the spirit of Mimamsa as an endeavor to spread the quintessence of science worldwide. The competition will have a three-rounds format – Prelims, Qualifiers and Mains, unlike two-rounds format in the past. Significant design changes are being made to enhance the overall experience in terms of intellectual stimulus, diversity and logistics among others.

As an event with no registration fee and prize money of Rs two lakhs, Mimamsa 2021 is expected to elicit participation from over 2500 institutions across 20 locations all over the country. The prelims round will be held on April 18, 2021, the qualifiers round will take place on June 13, 2021, and the grand finale will be a 3-day event, taking place at the IISER Pune’s campus in August 2021.

Registrations are now open on the competition website – http://mimamsa.iiserpune.ac.in

Notwithstanding challenges owing to the pandemic outbreak, Praj-IISER-Pune Mimamsa 2020 experienced significant growth a three-fold increase in participation, 75 percent increase in the competition rewards, and 200% increase in the competition’s reach across the country. The defending champions, IISc Bangalore, ended up retaining the title for 2020.

Speaking about Mimamsa 2021, Dr. Pramod Chaudhari, Founder & Executive Chairman, Praj Industries said, “Mimamsa is gaining prominence with every passing year and I am delighted to note that it is drawing a large number of budding scientists to further the noble cause of science, innovation and technology. Mimamsa inculcates scientific temper in young minds and creates the right ecosystem for innovation to thrive, which would go a long way in the technological progress of the nation. We have conceptualised proposal to provide our technology and research platform to team members making it to final round by way of formal engagement”.

On this development, Prof. Jayant Udgoankar Director of IISER Pune, said, “Association with Praj Industries has helped transform the scale and magnitude of Mimamsa. This game-changing partnership has enabled record participation at Mimamsa 2020 and, in the process, in establishing Mimamsa as one of the top national level science competitions. The online nature of the initial stages of the competition means that more student teams can participate without having to travel to competition centres. One hopes that this will go a long way in unearthing the scientific talent in the country.”