Chennai: Students of SIMATS Engineering have won the Smart India Hackathon (SIH) 2025, securing first place at the national level and a cash award of ₹1.5 lakh, for their technology-driven solution developed for the Government of Sikkim’s Tourism Department.
The winning project addressed the official problem statement titled “Digitize and Showcase Monasteries of Sikkim for Tourism and Cultural Preservation.” The challenge witnessed participation from multiple teams across the country, reflecting strong national-level competition. Following a rigorous multi-stage evaluation process, only five teams were shortlisted for the grand finale, where the SIMATS Engineering team emerged as the overall winner.
The SIMATS students developed a comprehensive digital platform focused on cultural preservation, tourism accessibility, and visitor security. The solution digitised monasteries using immersive 3D models and 360-degree virtual walkthroughs, supported by VR integration, enabling remote access to heritage sites.
To enhance security and monitoring, the platform incorporated location-based access features. Addressing connectivity limitations in remote and hilly regions, the solution also enabled offline and anywhere-access functionality, ensuring uninterrupted availability of content.
In addition, the platform integrated end-to-end tourism services, including transport booking, accommodation reservations, monastery entry ticket booking, and digital access to historical manuscripts. An AI-powered tour planner, developed using agentic AI principles, provided personalised travel itineraries aligned with user preferences.
The jury commended the SIMATS team for the solution’s technical depth, scalability, and real-world deployability, noting its effective integration of heritage conservation with modern tourism infrastructure.
Organised by the Government of India through the Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell and AICTE, the Smart India Hackathon is the country’s flagship initiative to promote innovation, problem-solving, and industry-ready skills among students by crowdsourcing solutions for challenges faced by government departments.
Congratulating the team, SIMATS University Hon’ble Chancellor Dr. N. M. Veeraiyan said the achievement reflects the institution’s strong emphasis on experiential learning, innovation-led education, and empowering students to solve real-world problems through technology.
The victory marks a significant milestone for SIMATS Engineering, reinforcing its growing national reputation for hands-on learning, industry-integrated curriculum, and student-driven innovation.
