Chennai Campus students felicitated during National Space Day celebrations in Ahmedabad; team receives Rs.7 lakh cash prize Team Quantum Realm, an interdisciplinary student team from Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham Chennai Campus, has secured second position nationally in the ISRO Robotics Challenge–URSC (IRoC-U) 2026, a prestigious student robotics competition organised by the U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC), a lead center of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). The team was awarded a cash prize of Rs. 7 lakh for its achievement.
About the Challenge
The third edition of IRoC-U attracted nearly 590 teams from across India, with 20 teams qualifying for the final field round held at URSC, Bengaluru. Themed “Towards Swarm Expedition: Autonomous Surveyor Challenge for Exploration, Navigation and Dynamics (ASCEND)”, the challenge required participants to design and demonstrate a fully autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and base station capable of performing surveying, navigation, feature detection, autonomous landing, data transfer and charging in a GPS-denied environment.
The challenge closely simulated the technological conditions and operational requirements associated with future planetary exploration missions. Participating teams progressed through a rigorous multi-stage evaluation process comprising preliminary, qualification, elimination and final field rounds.
The Final Field Round of IRoC-U 2026 was conducted at the U R Rao Satellite Centre, Bengaluru, from 21 to 23 July 2026. Launched in 2024 to commemorate the successful soft landing of Chandrayaan-3 near the Moon’s South Pole, IRoC-U has evolved into a national platform for nurturing student innovation and providing exposure to technologies relevant to India’s future space exploration programs.
Felicitation During National Space Day Celebrations
Following its outstanding performance in the final field round, Team Quantum Realm was felicitated during the National Space Day celebrations held in Ahmedabad on 23 August 2026.
The results were announced in the presence of Hon’ble Union Minister Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. The award was presented by Hon’ble Cabinet Minister of Gujarat Shri Arjunbhai Modhwadia, along with Chairman, ISRO, Dr. V. Narayanan.
The recognition marks a significant achievement for the students of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, placing the Chennai Campus among the leading institutions participating in this national-level space robotics challenge.
Team Quantum Realm comprises ten students: Thanush J, Sakthi Sri Kumaran, Sanjay Sree, Ram Srikanth, Kevin Victor, Kavish V, N. Sunil Varma, Manoj Gangadharan, Rahothaman M, and Dharmadhaashan.
The team was mentored by Dr. Piyush Pratap Singh and Dr. Abhishek Jha.
Administrative Director of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham Chennai Campus, Sampoojya Swami Vinayamritananda Puri Ji, Campus Director, I. B. Manikantan, and Principal, Dr. V. Jayakumar congratulated the team for their achievement
A Milestone in Student Innovation
The achievement of Team Quantum Realm reflects the institution’s emphasis on interdisciplinary learning, hands-on innovation and participation in challenging national-level competitions. The team’s performance also demonstrates the value of combining expertise in robotics, autonomous systems, aerial vehicles and intelligent technologies to address complex problems inspired by real-world and space-exploration scenarios.
Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham congratulates the students and their mentors on this significant national achievement and continues to encourage its student community to pursue innovation, research and technological excellence through national and international competitions.
