IIT Kharagpur student wins Rs 5 lakh for AI that steers satellites away from debris
By TUF News Desk · Published 1 November 2026 · 4 min read
Fact-checked against 2+ independent sources · Editorial policy
A satellite that can get out of the way of debris by itself, in seconds rather than hours, has won a fourth-year student at Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur Rs 5 lakh. Adeetya Uppal, who is studying for a dual B.Tech and M.Tech degree in Aerospace Engineering, took first place in the Viasat Space for Good India Challenge 2026 with DRISHTI: AI Guardian for Sustainable Orbits.
The idea tackles a plain problem. Space around Earth now carries a large amount of debris, and a working satellite in the path of a fragment has to move. When people handle that warning by hand, the response can take hours. DRISHTI is built to spot threatening debris, calculate a safe avoidance move, and send the command over the Viasat satellite network without waiting for a human operator to work through each step.
That speed is the point of the design. A faster move can save fuel, and it lowers the chance of a collision damaging a satellite used for communications, navigation, and disaster response. Uppal said he had already been working on space debris problems before the challenge. “I have been working on problems related to space debris, which paved a way for me to give a shot at automating the collision avoidance today,” he said after the win.
The top three
Second place went to Shashank Kumar Singh of Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, a PhD researcher in Biological Sciences and Engineering. His project, ChronoSentinel, monitors the internal biological rhythms of plants through satellite data, so signs of disease or stress can be picked up before they are visible to the eye.
Third place went to Aryan Gupta of Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, a pre-final year Mechanical Engineering student. His project, Sentinel, is a framework for securing remote sensors used in infrastructure such as railways and agriculture.
The three winners shared a total prize pool of Rs 11.5 lakh. Uppal will receive Rs 5,00,000 to develop DRISHTI further. The competition was organised by Viasat Inc in strategic partnership with the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe), and the finals were held in New Delhi on October 27, 2026.
Six finalists, six different problems
The final round had six student projects. Nived Krishna, a PhD student in Computer Science at IIT Kharagpur, presented MARK, a system that uses satellite relays to send emergency alerts to remote areas where mobile networks are unavailable or easily disrupted.
Tanatswa Manjeya, an engineering student at Aditya University, presented Aegis, a solar-powered communication hub that can send SOS messages when networks fail. His work drew on the 2019 Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe, which showed how quickly ordinary communication can break down in a disaster.
Parth Bhagwat Kharat, from Dr D Y Patil Institute of Technology in Pune, presented BhuKavach, a sensor system that detects building collapses and sends precise GPS coordinates to rescue teams. The finalists came through a multi-month evaluation process, with mentorship from Viasat engineers and industry professionals. A panel of space industry experts, government representatives, and satellite technology leaders judged the entries on innovation, practicality, scalability, and potential social impact.
For students, the contest shows that a strong project can start with a clear problem, in this case debris in orbit, and a working answer that a panel can test. Those weighing research strengths while choosing a university for research can look at how often students get to build and defend work outside the classroom. The official Viasat announcement names the winners and the prize, and the IN-SPACe website describes the agency that partnered on the challenge.
Frequently asked questions
Who won the Viasat Space for Good India Challenge 2026?
Adeetya Uppal, a fourth-year Aerospace Engineering dual degree student at IIT Kharagpur, won for DRISHTI, an AI system for satellite collision avoidance.
How much prize money did the winner receive?
Rs 5,00,000, to further develop the innovation and advance its real-world application. The total prize pool for the top three was Rs 11.5 lakh.
What does DRISHTI do?
It detects threatening space debris on its own, works out a safe avoidance move for a satellite, and sends the command over the Viasat satellite network, cutting response time from hours to seconds.
Who organised the challenge?
Viasat Inc organised it in strategic partnership with the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe).
Frequently asked questions
Who won the Viasat Space for Good India Challenge 2026?
Adeetya Uppal, a fourth-year Aerospace Engineering dual degree student at IIT Kharagpur, won for DRISHTI, an AI system for satellite collision avoidance.
How much prize money did the winner receive?
Rs 5,00,000, to further develop the innovation and advance its real-world application. The total prize pool for the top three was Rs 11.5 lakh.
What does DRISHTI do?
It detects threatening space debris on its own, works out a safe avoidance move for a satellite, and sends the command over the Viasat satellite network, cutting response time from hours to seconds.
Who organised the challenge?
Viasat Inc organised it in strategic partnership with the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe).
Sources: Viasat, CXO Today, Mirror Now