Guyanese student studying in India selected for UNESCO forum in Saudi Arabia
Tejyas Singh with his IIT Bombay supervisor
Guyanese student Tejyas Dasa Singh, studying at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay) in Mumbai under the ICCR (Indian Council for Cultural Relations) Scholarship for his master’s in Engineering Degree, has been selected for a fully-funded UNESCO World Heritage Young Professionals Forum.
This event will be hosted by the Ministry of Culture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between September 2 and 13, 2023.
Singh, an MTech student, has been working for the last year on heritage conservation and preservation via consolidative treatments, compatibility, and performance of these treatments on various types of heritage construction materials, such as fired clay brick and stone samples.
His work could guide decision-makers in charge of preserving structures, more so heritage structures, and those who wish to use consolidants to make proper selection of consolidative treatments based on the severity of deterioration, property of the materials, and what is required.
In June 2023, Singh’s paper, currently under review with a reputable journal, was recognised and accepted by the IABSE International Conference in New Delhi for a presentation in September 2023. Now it has been selected for the UNESCO Forum.
Singh has conveyed that he will be proudly representing Guyana at the forum, and will be giving a presentation on Guyana’s own local natural heritage: the Kaieteur National Park, which he believes deserves to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the future.
During a telephone interaction with the High Commissioner of India to Guyana, Dr. K.J Srinivasa, he expressed gratitude to the High Commission, IIT Bombay and ICCR, for the opportunity to study and conduct research at one of the world’s most prestigious institutions, and for the recognition of his achievement by IIT Bombay and the UNESCO Forum.
High Commissioner Srinivasa congratulated the Guyanese student, and urged him to keep the Guyana flag flying high, and also to represent the land of his ancestors – India – at the Forum.
