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This paper reports on the effects of the great Sumatra earthquake and tsunami of December 26, 2004, in and around Port Blair, the capital city of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. The earthquake shaking and subsequent tsunami caused substantial damage to structures that include buildings, harbors, overhead water tanks, seaport control towers, and so on. Other important structures, for example, dams, bridges, hangars, and so on, also suffered minor damage without disrupting their functioning. Reinforced concrete structures on the islands were the worst performers, while traditionally constructed timber and masonry structures performed well in response to ground shaking. The mandatory Indian Standards were not complied within the design of many recent structures on the islands located in the most severe seismic zone in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes an initiative to enthuse undergraduate Civil Engineering (CE) students in India about the profession. Various issues impacting CE students are addressed in a novel approach, the 2001 Summer Camp at IIT Kanpur. A select group of undergraduate students who had completed their second year of the Bachelors program in CE were chosen for the camp from different engineering colleges across the country. The objective of the camp was to provide an exposure to technology through motivation, personality development, fun-filled schedules, and excursions. For one month, through a series of activities, these students (1) interacted closely with the captains of CE industry in India to share their present concerns and future dreams in the CE profession and to understand expectations of the industry and society, (2) visited various sites with impressive engineering projects and some outstanding projects under construction, and (3) took part in diverse technical, nontechnical, and extracurricular activities, such as technical video shows, personality development workshop, debates, quizzes, sports, and entertainment. The camp proved to be an eye opener to all participants, the CE industry, and institutions imparting CE education. A questionnare administered at the end of the camp revealed that the perceptions of the students about the CE profession and their self-esteem underwent a positive change. The camp also helped bring the industry and academia in India onto a common platform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]