UNIVERSITY OF MAURITIUS

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING

E Current
3
ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENT

4 Paving the way to International Recognition

7 Spotlight on IEEE ELECOM 2020
8-12 Focus on Students
14 Notable Alumni
16 Industry Focus

September 2020 Edition 1

1
Message from
the Head of Electrical and Electronic
Engineering Department
3 October 2018-2 October 2020

Dr Y K Ramgolam

The Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department

(EEED) is thrilled to issue the very first edition of
its newsletter. Its aim is to provide our students,
partners and all stakeholders more information on the
achievements of EEED.

Year 2020 has been a very challenging one for However, due to the pandemic, the visit has been
everybody. COVID-19 pandemic has affected all the postponed to 2021.
academic activities of the Electrical and Electronic
Engineering Department. Following the lock-down in We are also working closely with the University of
March 2020, all in-person instructions were cancelled Arizona (UA) for the development of a BSc Electrical
at the University of Mauritius (UoM) and we moved and Computer Engineering programme. The latter will
to remote learning. Thankfully, the department had be serviced jointly by UA and UoM and students will
already prepared itself for online teaching and learning. benefit from a joint degree after successful completion
Two Masters level programmes were developed of the course. Students may also have an opportunity to
with our international partners for online delivery as study at UoM and at UA as well during the course of the
from January 2020, and all staff of the department degree.
had followed in-house trainings on “Online Teaching Staff of the department are continuously attracting
and Learning Platforms” by the staff of the Centre of research funds from local and international institutions
Innovative & Lifelong Learning (CILL) in June 2019 for in order to engage in high-end research and we
the development and servicing of the programmes. are keeping pace with international institutions by
We are pleased to announce that all the engineering producing high-impact factor publications. We are
programmes offered by the department, namely the also actively involved in a number of committees and
BEng (Hons) Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE), boards of a number of institutions in Mauritius. Staff of
BEng (Hons) Electronic and Communication Engineering the department have also been recently appointed as
(ECE), BEng (Hons) Telecommunications Engineering consultants in a number of projects for other institutions
with Networking (TEN), and BEng (Hons) Mechatronics in Mauritius. Our staff are passionate in their endeavour
Engineering (MTX) (jointly with the Mechanical and and are committed to high standards of teaching and
Production Engineering department), have been revisited learning in order to enhance our students’ experience at
in order to enforce internationally bench-marked the University.
standards for engineering education and expected Lastly, we are very thankful to alumni and friends of
competence for engineering practice. EEE and ECE were our department for the gifts which have helped us to
revisited in 2016, TEN in 2019 and MTX in 2020. improve our laboratories. The department is indeed very
The department had already prepared itself for grateful for this.
accreditation of EEE and ECE programmes and a visit
for provisional accreditation was planned for 18-19 June
2020 by the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA).

2
Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department

in the mid-1990s. The Department now offers a number

of undergraduate programmes to meet the requirements
of the electrical, electronic and telecommunication
industries. The Department has a group of sixteen
highly motivated academic staff who are passionate
and committed to provide high level education to
the engineers of the fourth industrial revolution.
The department strives to keep pace with leading
universities by continuously improving the quality
of education and engaging in high end research. We
provide a vibrant learning environment to our students
with state of the art and well equipped laboratories.
The Electrical Engineering Division was initially set Seven technical staff look after the four laboratories
up with the foundation of the School of Industrial of the department. The department makes every effort
Technology in 1968. In the early 1970s, the school to produce graduates with all the attributes required to
started to offer a joint Diploma in Mechanical and make a positive impact in the society. The total number
Electrical Engineering to cater for the shortage of of students enrolled in programmes offered by the
engineers in Mauritius and the growing demand for such department in 2019-2020 was 288 and the total number
professionals by the industry. of graduates from the department in 2019-2020 is 73.
The B.Tech Electrical Engineering course was first Graduates from the department find their place in the
offered in September 1976. The division became working environment very quickly and significantly
known as the Department of Electrical and Electronic contribute to the economic, social and sustainable
Engineering in the early 1980s. The B.Tech programme development of the island.
was converted into BEng (Hons) Electrical Engineering

Front row: R Ah King, R Ramjug-Ballgobin, V Bassoo, Y Ramgolam, K Jhugursing, P Bhugawn, N Sujeebun

Second row: A Jugurnauth, H Shamachurn, B Rajkumarsingh, S Sayed Hassen, A Muttea, Y Bissessur, I Jahmeerbacus, D Cuppoor,
M Beekaroo, A Purahoo, V Oree, M Hosany

3
Paving the way to
International Recognition
Message from the
Accreditation Coordinator of EEED.
Assoc. Prof. R T F Ah King

Engineers contribute both to economic development Design and

of the country and services to the society. Since the synthesis, and
establishment of the Department of Electrical and Complementary
Electronic Engineering at University of Mauritius in studies. A very
1968, the aim is to provide quality education to students important criterion is the Assessment of Exit-level
to enable them to prepare for career in the electrical, Outcomes to ensure that all graduates satisfy each
electronic and communication engineering sector. exit-level outcome defined in the relevant standard
Our departmental programmes have evolved over at the level indicated by the range statement. Quality
the years to adapt to the ever changing requirements of Teaching and Learning is verified by ensuring that
for engineers in this modern society. An important the programme provides an effective teaching and
milestone was the decision to go for accreditation of our learning process toward achievement of the outcomes
BEng (Hons) Electrical and Electronic Engineering and as evidenced by the content, learning objectives and
BEng (Hons) Electronic and Communication Engineering expected outcomes. Resourcing and Sustainability is
programmes in 2013. Subsequently, other programmes fulfilled by the Programme being adequately planned,
have been revised to follow pace with the accreditation resourced, led and executed to ensure that it is
process with our BEng (Hons) Telecommunication sustainable over the period of accreditation.
Engineering with Networking in 2019 and the BEng
(Hons) Mechatronics Engineering which is run jointly The accreditation process has substantially brought
with the Department of Mechanical and Production changes to the structure of our programmes and lead
Engineering in 2020. to the development of new modules such as design
projects and the harmonisation of modules involving
The obvious choice was through the Engineering natural sciences and mathematics. Specific modules
Council of South Africa (ECSA) which is a regulatory in the third year and fourth year have been identified
body in South Africa for accreditation of engineering to assess Exit Level Outcomes. Outcome-based
qualifications. The Washington Accord provides learning enables our graduates to be equipped with the
for recognition of engineer graduates of accredited required skills to succeed in their professional career.
programmes of each signatory, of which South Africa A quintessential skill of an engineer is to Identify,
is one. Accreditation ensures recognition of our formulate, analyse and solve complex engineering
programmes for future mobility of engineers given that problems creatively and innovatively. Through the
the world has become a global village. four years of study, students learn to apply knowledge
of mathematics, natural sciences, engineering
Outcome-based criteria have been developed by fundamentals and an engineering speciality to solve
Accreditation bodies for evaluating engineering such complex engineering problems. Through three
qualifications. Thus, our programmes have moved from different levels, student builds up design skills to
a performance-based to an outcome-based assessment. finally undertake a group design project to perform
According to ECSA, accreditation criteria are defined for creative, procedural and non-procedural design and
three stages in the lifecycle of a programme: planning, synthesis of components, systems, engineering works,
students at halfway point and producing graduates. The products or processes. In the final year, students
department has recently completed the first cycle of carry out an individual final year project which
the BEng (Hons) Electrical and Electronic Engineering assess their aptitude for investigations, experiments
and BEng (Hons) Electronic and Communication and data analysis. Student have to demonstrate
Engineering programmes (which started in academic competence to use appropriate engineering methods,
year 2016/2017) in academic year 2019/2020 and ECSA skills and tools, including those based on information
visit is expected for its evaluation. ECSA uses a number technology. Professional and technical communication
of criteria for Accreditation of Programmes. The Credits, are essential for an engineer to communicate both
Knowledge Profile and Coherent Design criterion focus orally and in writing his solutions to engineering
on the content of the programme when analysed by audiences and the community at large. With today’s
knowledge area must not fall below the minimum credits ever increasing adverse impact that man has created
in each knowledge area comprising of Mathematical on the environment, students have to demonstrate
sciences, Natural sciences, Engineering sciences,
4
critical awareness of the sustainability and impact Moderation is a form of review to ensure quality
of engineering activity on the social, industrial and and consistency in an assessment. Thus, in our
physical environment. Student’s competence to departmental programmes, every assessment is
work effectively as an individual, in teams and in internally moderated except where there are Exit Level
multidisciplinary environments is assessed in group Outcomes, an external moderator who is a professional
projects. In the final year project, students demonstrate engineer is appointed. Overall, each programme is
competence to engage in independent learning overseen by an External Examiner who is an established
through well developed learning skills. Student have academic appointed from overseas.
to demonstrate critical awareness of the need to act
professionally and ethically and to exercise judgment Through the process of accreditation, the department
and take responsibility within own limits of competence. has improved its infrastructure in terms of equipment
Finally, students have to demonstrate knowledge and for its laboratories. The Electrical Power and Machines
understanding of engineering management principles Lab, Electronics Lab, Microprocessor, Instrumentation
and economic decision-making in their future role at and Control Lab, and Communication Lab have all
management level. received new hardware and software to better develop
the practical skills of our students.

A note
from the External Examiner,
Prof. Beatrice Lacquet,
University of the Witwatersrand,
South Africa.

I have been involved as the external examiner for two of You have made huge strides towards the goal to provide
the programmes in electrical engineering since 2017. accredited programmes that would be recognised under
Having performed this service at a number of other the Washington Accord. You should all be very proud of
universities on the sub-continent I was excited to be the advances you have made. I have seen the growth
afforded the opportunity to get to know the electrical and the improvements. Of course, there are some gaps,
type engineering programmes offered by the University mostly to do with consistency of documentation, very
of Mauritius better. few cases where the level of assessment still has to
match the year of study, etc – at times experienced
In preparation for this task I read up on the goals and departments in the rest of the world also struggle. As
strategies of this island government and its people to they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating.
take its rightful and probably larger than life role in the
African continent development as expressed in the If you can embed the outcomes-based education and
Africa2063 strategy. It was clear that the strategy was assessment of outcomes firmly in the programmes and
to place Mauritius at the forefront of the digital era your systems such that it is not something that is paid
development and to modernise to exploit all revolutions attention to every five years just before accreditation,
from 4IR and beyond. you would have achieved the perfect state!
It was good to see that the University of Mauritius Good luck with the accreditation visit by ECSA. You
responded to this challenge and other reasons to are well positioned to present your programmes to
become known to provide internationally accredited peer evaluators. They will give you valuable feedback
professional qualifications also in engineering. and recommendations – it is part of the development
process. Ensure that they talk to your graduates, many
Over the past few years the Department held several of whom I have had the honour to interview for their
seminars and workshops to prepare their new workplace projects. They are your best products and evidence to
relevant curricula for presentation to the Engineering put on the table. You should be proud of these young
Council of South Africa (ECSA) for accreditation. I men and women that you have shaped to become
noted with interest the thought and energy that went valuable engineers.
into the development of the new curricula, the change
of mindsets to adopt outcomes-based engineering Beatrys Lacquet
education, the struggles to get to grips with the
assessment of outcomes, and the other challenges to August 2020
think differently about the education process.

5
Optimising students’ learning
experience
with accreditation of B.Eng. (Hons)
programmes
Dr Iqbal Jahmeerbacus holds a B.Tech (Hons.) Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the
University of Mauritius, an MSc in Power Electronics and Control from the University of Bradford,
UK, and a PhD in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Mauritius. He is
currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. His
research interests include Power Electronics and its applications in motor drives, power systems,
renewable energy and power quality.

Since the last seven years, the first two years and apply their knowledge
department of Electrical and Electronic in the engineering modules during
Engineering has actively taken part the third and final years. Moreover,
in the process of application for complementary studies draw towards
accreditation of its B.Eng. (Hons) concepts outside engineering (e.g.
programmes. As such, the following economics, management, professional
four-year undergraduate programmes communication and sociology), while
have been thoroughly reworked to meet being essential for broadening the is the achievement of graduate attributes
international standards: student’s perspective of the world and (also called Exit Level Outcomes or
for practising as an engineer. ELOs). ELOs are core competences
B.Eng. (Hons) Electrical and required for engineering practice
Electronic Engineering 2. Notional hours and have been classified into eleven
B.Eng. (Hons) Electronic and Since time flies really fast during the categories as follows:
Communication Engineering four years of undergraduate studies, it Problem solving, Application of scientific
B.Eng. (Hons) Mechatronics is important that students learn how to and engineering knowledge, Engineering
Engineering (offered jointly with the effectively plan their study and free time. design, Investigations, experiments and
MPE department) Proper time management is essential data analysis, Engineering methods,
B.Eng. (Hons) Telecommunications for coping with heavy workloads and skills and tools, including information
Engineering with Networking meeting with deadlines. The notional technology, Professional and technical
hours prescribed for each B.Eng. (Hons) communication, Sustainability and
One key objective of this ambitious programme gives a good indication of impact of engineering activity, Individual,
project is to align the programme the time required by a typical student to team and multidisciplinary working,
content with the requirements of achieve the learning outcomes. The time Independent learning ability,Engineering
the Washington Accord, set by the allocation for each module covers both Professionalism and Engineering
International Engineering Alliance contact hours (lectures, labs, tutorials), Management
(IEA). The above programmes are going and self-study time. The programmes Demonstration of ELO achievement
through a stringent quality assurance have been designed so as to decrease is made through a range of modules,
process with the aim of receiving the contact hours and increase especially in the third and final years of
full accreditation. Consequently, the independent learning time as students each programme. For instance, open-
programme quality has been remarkably advance from the first to the final year of ended design projects in interdisciplinary
enhanced and would further facilitate study, hence giving them better flexibility team or individual modes enable
the mobility of our future professional to plan their time allocation for study. students to analyse engineering
engineers across the globe. problems, as well as develop, build and
3. Exit Level Outcomes test working solutions. In the process,
In this article, we consider three aspects Engineering practice often requires
of the programme features under they discover and learn on their own,
working in collaboration with people while recognising the importance of
accreditation, and show how they add from non-engineering backgrounds,
value to the learning experience of our team work for providing sustainable
or with engineers from other fields of solutions to complex engineering
current and incoming undergraduate expertise. Engineers are also called
students. problems. They also demonstrate
upon to solve complex, previously un- competence to communicate their
encountered problems that demand findings effectively through technical
1. Knowledge areas
an understanding of fundamental reports and oral presentations.
It is essential that students develop the principles as well as specialized
necessary skills, including creativity, technology. These engineering problems To conclude, the alignment of our
innovative aptitude, understanding might also be vaguely defined and B.Eng. (Hons) programmes with
of theory as the foundation for demand interdisciplinary collaboration. the requirements for accreditation
practice and effective communication, Our B.Eng. (Hons) programmes and has significantly improved the
which they can eventually apply as assessment procedures are designed so learning experience of our students,
professionals. To meet the educational as to ensure that students demonstrate by developing multidisciplinary
requirements for the accredited B.Eng. these skills in a university-based, competences throughout their studies.
(Hons) degree, the knowledge profile emulated workplace situation. Student The skills acquired through independent
to be acquired by students should learning is assessed through laboratory learning, time management, effective
satisfy five knowledge areas, namely: works, assignments, tests, oral teamwork and complementary areas
Mathematical sciences, Natural presentations (continuous assessments) of study would certainly contribute to
Sciences, Engineering Sciences, Design and examinations in modules related to make future graduates more competitive
and Synthesis, and Complementary the field of specialisation of the B.Eng. and better prepared to practise as
Studies. Such a distribution enables (Hons) degree. The effectiveness of professionals.
students to acquire a solid foundation these assessments is ensured through a
in science and mathematics during the set of well-defined criteria, among which
6
Spotlight on IEEE ELECOM 2020

International Conference on Emerging

Trends in Electrical, Electronic and
Communications Engineering (ELECOM)

The Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering has organised two editions of its International Conference
on Emerging Trends in Electrical, Electronic and Communications Engineering (ELECOM) in 2016 and 2018.

In line with the main objective of ELECOM 2016, ELECOM 2018

has also brought together industry professionals, academics,
and individuals from government agencies and other
institutions to exchange information and ideas on electrical,
electronic, communications engineering and computing.

The conference theme was “Smart and Sustainable

Engineering for Next Generation Applications” and thirty-
eight papers were accepted following a rigorous blind review
process and screening using Turnitin. Among the accepted
papers, three papers formed part of a special session on Open
Research Challenges in 5G Multimedia Communications and
four of them were from the workshop on Fascination with
The first International Conference on Emerging Trends in Systems Engineering.
Electrical, Electronic and Communications Engineering
(ELECOM 2016) was held at Voila Hotel, Bagatelle, Mauritius There were four keynote addresses by the following experts:
during 25–27 November 2016. Prof. Saeid Sanei from the Nottingham Trent University
(Multitask Cooperative Networks and their Applications); Prof.
The main theme of this conference was “Advances in Research Beatrys Lacquet from the University of the Witwatersrand
Through Innovative Technologies” which covered a wide (Bridging the Skills Gap for Industry 4.0); Prof. Nikola Djuric
spectrum of theoretical and applied issues in electrical, from the University of Novi Sad (Continuous Electromagnetic
electronic, communications engineering and computing/IT. (EMF) Investigation Using Wireless Sensor Network (WSN));
Twenty eight papers were accepted following a rigorous blind and Mr. Stuart Michie, ABB Ability Manager, Southern Africa
review process and screening using Turnitin. (How to Run the World Without Consuming the Earth (How
Digitalisation Will Help Secure Our Future)).
There were three keynote addresses by the following experts:
Prof. Michael Faulkner from the Victoria University (Fifth The conference proceedings were again published by Springer
generation frontier, mm-waves); Prof. Miloud Bessafi from in their Lecture Notes in Electrical Engineering series.
University of Reunion Island (High spatial resolution mapping
of the monthly climatology of global solar radiation observed The third edition of ELECOM conference (ELECOM 2020) will
in Mauritius); Prof. Krishna K. Busawon from the Northumbria be held as a virtual event during 25–27 November 2020. The
University (Design and implementation of chaos based conference is technically sponsored by IEEE Mauritius Section
communication systems). The conference proceedings were and the conference proceedings will be published by IEEE.
published by Springer in their Lecture Notes in Electrical
Engineering series. Visit us at www.elecom2020.com/

The second International Conference on Emerging Trends Dr. Robert T. F. Ah King/General Chair
in Electrical, Electronic and Communications Engineering
(ELECOM 2018) was held at Maritim Crystals Beach Hotel,
Belle Mare, Mauritius during 28–30 November 2018.

7
 Huawei Seeds for the Future

The ‘Seeds for the enhance knowledge

Future’ is Huawei’s transfer, promote a
greater understanding
biggest global of, and interest in, the
flagship Corporate telecommunications sector,
Social Responsibility improve and encourage
program in which regional building and
participation in the digital
Huawei leverages community.
its world-leading
ICT technologies The University of Mauritius
to nurture ICT was selected for the
program and it was first
professionals. launched in May 2017
Participating students with ten students going to
have the opportunity to China for training. Many
gain valuable experience University of Mauritius
within a global business students have benefited
environment, and from the Seed for the Future
experience cross-cultural Programme since 2017, and
work practices and Chinese most of them were from the
culture. Department of Electrical
and Electronic Engineering.
Initiated by Huawei in
2008, the program seeks
to develop local ICT talent,

8
 Huawei Seeds for the Future

Seeds
Se
S eed
eds for
ffo
or the
the Future
th Futu
Fu ture
re 2017
20
01
17

Seeds for the Future 2018 Seeds for the Future 2019

The Dean’s Merit Top performer in each programme in 2019 -

2020
BEng (Hons) Electronic and Communication Engineering:
Dean’s merit list recognizes and celebrates the academic
excellence of our highest achieving undergraduate Vikram Doorgakant
students. This list includes all students who have passed BEng (Hons) Electrical and Electronic Engineering:
in all modules as prescribed in the curriculum, have
Chiranjeev Ramlukon
achieved a Cummulative Point Average (CPA) of 70 or
above in an Academic Year and who are not graduating. BEng (Hons) Telecommunications Engineering with
Networking:

Pravish Kumar Chiniah

BEng (Hons) Mechatronics Engineering:

Pravind Vellapanaiken

BSc (Hons) Electronics with Computer Science:

Pushkal Bechoo

The Department congratulates the best performers. Please

visit the Dean’s Merit List for additional best performancers of
each level.

9
Student Project
“Cocktail Vending Machine” was designed and implemented
as part of the project assessed for partial fulfillment of
the module Electronic Systems Design.
Team Members: Yashtir GOPEE; Yogindersing GAJADUR; Krishna KULLOOTEE

The machine allows users to select a

combination of flavors of juices through a
touch screen instead of traditional buttons
and allow the user to pay for the drink
through coins widely used in Mauritius (1, 5,
10, 20). The system consists of 3 peristaltic
pumps, a coin detector, a touch screen, and
a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) to
process the different operations. The FPGA
was programmed using VHDL, a Hardware
Description Language.
FPGA is a semiconductor IC where a large
majority of the electrical functionality inside
the device can be changed prior to or during
operation of the machine. FPGAs are used
in autonomous cars, aerospace and defense
industry, medical devices, communication
systems, data centers and mining of
cryptocurrencies. FPGA is quickly rising to
become the first choice of computation in the
implementation of data mining and machine
learning projects. The project was exposed
at the Swami Vivekananda International
Convention Centre (SVICC), Pailles during
Innovtech 2019 to showcase the potential of
our students.

10
IEEE UoM Student Branch Revival

The IEEE UoM Student Branch at the Science/Engineering show

Founded in 1884 with Alexander Graham Bell and

Thomas Edison, the IEEE interconnects engineers
around the world and serves over 400,000 members
worldwide.
The IEEE student branch of the University of Mauritius
(IEEE UOM stb.) was revived in December 2019 with a
goal to promote engineering through fun and enriching
activities. The vision brought forward by the newly
elected branch officers was to bring equity and equality
through various community outreach projects as
well as provide a panoply of opportunities to foster
development and hone the leadership skills of the
young engineering students.
The first project co-organized with the Faculty of
Science at the level of the student branch, was the
Science/Engineering Show 2020 from the 17th to
the 20th of February. The aim was to expose young IEEE UoM Student Branch promoting STEM
teenagers to STEM subjects as a means of arising to ninth grade studentsneering show
their interest in Science/Engineering field. The
branch officers met with over 600 students hailing The activities of the IEEE UoM stb. are not limited
from different colleges throughout the country, and in terms of scope. Brainstorming on new ideas to
showcased various engineering projects tailored innovate and improve the lifestyle of the local people
to the targeted audience through aesthetical visual is highly encouraged. During the Covid-19 pandemic,
presentations and demos. a group of dynamic engineering students worked on a
At the IEEE UOM Student Branch there is a deep ventilator prototype when the impact of the virus was
culture for gender inclusion. On this line of thought, at its peak on the island. Seeking help from the IEEE
women participation is highly encouraged during all Mauritian section and the engineering communities,
the activities and talks are organized to encourage the project was highly appraised by the Ministry of
the feminine wing to rise. For the occasion of the Health.
International Women in Engineering Day (INWED 2020), While the IEEE UoM stb. is still growing and learning,
young female engineering students and lecturers from we strongly believe that we are on the right track in
UoM collaborated along many female engineers across order to provide support to young minds and to help
the world to showcase their individual contribution as them excel and grow as an all-rounder.
to how they shape the world.
11
 Bright minds from Rodrigues
The EEE department regularly hosts a number of
outer-island and international students. Here are
a couple of students from Rodrigues who have
made quite an impression on our staff through
their academic performance, and above all their
remarkable personality. See what they have to say
about studying at UoM.

Jacques Alex Larry EMILIEN, BEng(Hons)

Mechatronics Engineering, 2016-2020
“University life was exciting and challenging.
Time felt slow in the beginning, but by
the time I blinked, four years had gone by.
Independency is the most suitable word to
describe my experience here. I was given
opportunities to express my ideas and more
importantly defend them. For sure, time
management was chaotic, lunchtime was
mostly ‘kan gagne ene letemp’, but it only
made the ‘roti’ taste ten times better. I believe
I found myself during the process, it adjusted
my outlook on the world. I’ve had the chance
to meet great people and learn from great
minds.
Jean Alberto SUNGLEE, BEng(Hons) Telecommunications
Don’t be mistaken, it is not all sunshine Engineering with Networking, 2016-2020
and rainbows, you will come across many
hardships, as did I, but I pushed through “I am Sunglee Jean Alberto, a student from the Faculty of
driven by passion. Coming to university has Engineering studying Telecommunication Engineering with
to be your choice, and it has to be done with networking. I am from Rodrigues, an Island situated 500km
passion and dedication. from Mauritius. I enrolled in this course in 2016, the University
of Mauritius was a place where I learnt so many things. It
When you come to university, don’t set allowed me to learn both academic and interpersonal skills.
yourself the goal to leave with a paper Throughout my journey at the University I discovered different
saying you have a degree/diploma, rather cultures and being a student at this University allowed me to
aim to leave as a matured individual with the increase my networks and discovered amazing individuals
mindset and capabilities of a degree/diploma from whom I learnt lots. I started playing badminton, a sport
holder. While it might not be an easy journey, not known to me and for which I have developed a passion. To
it is worth the hassle.” sum up, I can say that it was a great adventure to be part of the
University of Mauritius.”

12
 Dr Yogesh Beeharry

Awards
Improved iterative Turbo decoding
strategies for LTE and DVB-RCS
receivers
With the advent of high-speed logic circuits
and the ever increasing demand for data
communications, digital communication
systems have become extremely
attractive. The greatest advantage of
digital communication is that it offers more
reliability in a noisy communications environment through
the application of channel coding. Channel coding became
a very dynamic research area since the publication of a
landmark paper by Shannon in 1948 in which asymptotic
bounds on the performance of channel codes were
established. Another theorem put forward by Shannon
which is called the separation theorem advocates the
separate optimization of the source and channel coding
blocks. Nonetheless, several research studies have
demonstrated that the combined optimization of the
source and channel coding blocks, especially in iterative
decoding schemes such as Turbo codes, can provide
significant gains in error performance over separate
decoding schemes. Turbo codes (binary and non-binary)
are founded on the concept of message passing technique
in an iterative manner between two concatenated
decoders. Their astounding performance has led to
their widespread adoption in several telecommunication
standards such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) and the DVB-
RCS standard. This work proposed novel mechanisms for
enhancing the error performance of the Turbo decoding
algorithm.

Dr Vishwamitra Oree

A multi-criteria decision-making
framework for the integration of
variable renewables in generation
expansion planning.

Traditionally, generation expansion planning

has focused on ensuring adequate capacity
to meet the generally predictable system
demand at minimal cost. During the last two decades,
new paradigms in power systems planning have emerged
that are mainly driven by commitments to decarbonise
the power sector. In particular, there has been fast
growing integration of variable renewable energy sources
in the electricity grid, leading to increased variability
and uncertainty in the net demand which is supplied
by conventional generation. As a result, power system
planners are now compelled to account for operational
constraints of generating units in their models in the form
of operational flexibility.
The latter describes the ability of the power system to
respond to enhanced fluctuations in net demand. Yet,
operational flexibility has been largely overlooked or
EEED congratulates Y Beeharry & V Oree for the award of considered only for limited planning horizons to reduce
Doctor of Philosophy by the University of Mauritius the prohibitive problem size resulting from the integration
of operational dynamics at much shorter timescales in
a generation expansion planning exercise that usually
spans over decades. This work proposed an effective
framework to integrate operational flexibility in the long-
term generation expansion planning of power systems
with high levels of variable renewable energy integration in
a computationally tractable way.

13
Notable Alumni
Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Leckraj Raja Rai BASGEET
1990 -1994

Tell us about yourself. was greatly compensated by fabulous

lecturers such as Dr. Lam, Mr.Burton
I am Rai BASGEET and have been and Prof. Katakol just to name a few …
a student in Electrical & Electronics We also setup the IEEE chapter and all
Engineering from 1990 to 1994, the great documentation we obtained
whereby I graduated with a First Class thereafter. I am still a proud member of
Honours and was also a Gold medallist. IEEE.
I also hold an MBA with specialisation
in Marketing from the University of Also as the documentation was limited
Mauritius. I am also a Certified and at that time, this forced us as students
Professional Registered Engineer, with to push ourselves and understand better
the Council of Registered Professional the underlying principles of engineering
Engineers (CRPE) Mauritius. … and here I recall of Maxwell’s
equations … which I still now feel, are
I have just turned half a century old … very close to God’s writings of how the
. Married with Sudha since Y2K, I have (MT) where I have been working for the
universe functions … past twenty five years.
2 wonderful children Yashveer (who
has just turned 18) and wants to be a EEE students were always known as I started my career at MT, as a Junior
computer engineer and Dhoopshikha 17 the “nerds” and the ones you don’t Engineer in the Access Networks and
years, who still looking for her way in the mess us with … I don’t know how I was responsible of the Installation &
brave new world … much same is true today; however this Maintenance Control Centre (IMCC). At
perception existed as the EEE students, first, I felt there was little engineering in
I am also very much involved in social were really focussed on achieving
activities through JCI international up to what I was doing; however it turned out,
their objectives and create out a new that these were the years where I built
2010 and since 2011 through Lions Club whole world. Also the second year
of Port Louis Doyen. I was President of skills to interact better with both internal
examinations were always considered and external customers. Eventually I
LCPLD in 2015/2016 and still am a very as the most challenging ones and if you
active member. was requested to step in and lead the
succeeded same, it was a guarantee for access construction network, whereby I
Share your experience as a student at you to complete your degree with flying was leading a team of 60-70 staff, many
EEED. colours… of them being twice my age at that time
However, I can ascertain you that we … and again this helped me to build my
The memories I recall of being a student
had great time and fun too; when first character and better understanding of
at the EEED are wonderful ones ,
year students were joining university human relationship in place of work. One
challenging, but time is a wonderful high
and the “ragging” which happened, but thing, which is for sure, is that as much
pass filter, as it allows us to recall only
always in the positive spirit, great parties as it is easy to design, implement and
the good old days – The time spent
for the students’ nights and camaraderie optimise networks … it is altogether so
has forged me the way I am today. In
with students form the other faculties, much more challenging, the way humans
the early 90s’, there were around 400
which we still share as they also have think, behave and act …
students on the campus and 20 students
reading for EEE. grownup to be great professionals. With I had a career break in April 1997, when
some friends, we had formed a hiking Cellplus Mobile Communications Ltd.
The facilities we had were limited – team to know our island better … and was created to manage the mobile arm
laboratory equipment, access to books, one of our achievements was to climb of Mauritius Telecom. I was amongst the
opening to the world – These were the the Pieter Both … first four engineers to join Cellplus and
pre-Internet days … prehistory if we just
How did your EEE degree help you in the years, which followed, were really
think of what has happened over the past
paving your way to success? “crazy ones” whereby we were working
three decades.
at least 16 hours every day to create a
However these limitations did not prevent After my EEE degree, I joined Ireland new world. I was responsible of Mobile
all of us to excel and this is what I would Blyth Ltd and worked in the contracting Networks Planning and eventually in
refer to as “frugal innovation”. The department for one year, whereby I 2001, became the Head of Cellplus
friendship, but intense competition which implemented a Building & Management Mobile Networks Division. In the next five
existed amongst fellow students, pushed System (BMS) for the 3 new towers years, we transformed Cellplus by,
forward our will power to succeed and which were being constructed namely
MCB Tower, State Bank Tower and · Being the best network in the island
always be creative and innovative into an
Medcor (Air Mauritius building). and thereby became market leader in
environment where there is always lots
2001.
of noise and you learn how to filter these As I had specialised myself in
out, get the pure signal and amplify it … Communications Engineering – my · Implementing 3G in Rodrigues island
end of year project being on Wideband in 2003 under the brand name
Also the limitation in documentation,
CDMA, the basis for 3G and forthcoming “Celloh!”
(today’s students would never
understand this as they have on the communications systems – I had the · Introducing the 3G technology in 2005
other side a tsunami of information), opportunity to join Mauritius Telecom

14
amongst others. I would recall those days · Implemented a Tier 4 Uptime your degree. In fact it is where the whole
of being extraordinary ones and all these certified Data Centre at Rose Belle. story, of your life starts.
was achieved through an extraordinary
team of only 40 – from the rigger to · Implemented the SAFE City project One thing, which is for sure, is that no
myself leading the technical department – with some 2000 video and 75 traffic one will be responsible for your career,
sites. The Prime Minister himself except yourself. You would have well-
In 2007, following a restructuration in MT, inaugurated the project in August wishers and naysayers; however know
I became the Head of Networks Planning 2019. what you want to achieve in life and work
for Mauritius Telecom and with my team relentlessly towards it …
we were responsible to implement the · Setup of an island-wide 350 Free Hot
broadband infrastructure, NGN networks, Spots, Wi-Fi Mauritius, which My advice, to fellow students, is to have
evolve the ISP network, introduce FTTC provide a free service for an open mind especially in the new
(Fiber to the Cabinet), implement the underprivileged Mauritian. upcoming fields whereby EEE, Computer
IPTV infrastructure etc… Science and Robotics are all merging to
· Upgraded the ISP network with create a new whole world. Stay open and
From 2011 to 2015, I was requested to virtualised and SDN (software tuned to,
lead the Business Development Division defined network) elements.
of Mauritius Telecom, which as its name · Artificial Intelligence
· Implemented a state of the art 4G/
suggests was very much related to LTE across the whole island and pilot · Blockchain & Cryptocurrency
seeking new Business opportunities in testing 5G in Ebene area.
the ICT field. During my tenure in this · Cloud Technologies
department, MT · Implemented award-winning
application Traffic Watch in 2016. · Big Data & IoT
· Acquired Telecom Vanuatu Ltd. · Cybersecurity
· Implemented the csu.mu application
· Setup the Innovation team which for the PMO’s office. Always be an active learner, as after 5
created great apps such as years only 20% of what you have learnt
These achievements namely for the
o 7 to 8 digits conversion (when all FTTH project were recognised by the in your university days remain relevant
mobile numbers had a leading 5) FTTX Council Africa 2017 and 2018 and so more so, with the acceleration
and most importantly during the event in happening in all technology fields these
o Speed Cameras Location and Alert days.
AfricaCom 2017. Mauritius Telecom also
· Provided Ministry of Education with won an award at AfricaCom 2016 for the My final recommendation would be –
26,000 Tablets for secondary students. Traffic Watch application. LEARN ALWAYS and LEARN FAST -
Eventually in 2015, I was promoted Post COVID-19 lockdown, Mauritius Can you comment on the performance
as Chief Technical Officer (CTO) for Telecom has again undergone a of EEED graduates who are currently
Mauritius Telecom whereby the following reorganisation as the focus is on working at your institution?
were the key achievements, GROWTH. I have thus been entrusted
since May 2020, the responsibility to lead The culture of excellence that was on-
· Through an acceleration programme, the International Business Development passed to us when we were students
Mauritius Telecom was able to achieve Department of Mauritius Telecom and my at EEE Faculty, continues to be the key
the implementation of FTTH (Fiber to main responsibility now is how to make motivation factor of the great engineering
the Home) across the whole island Mauritius Telecom grow inorganically graduates, we have at Mauritius Telecom.
in a record 3 years when the initial through acquisition or promotion of new
plan was over a 7 years period. Today all the achievements, that you hear
key technologies and know-how. happening at Mauritius Telecom, certainly
· Implemented the Mauritius to What is your message to prospective has the workmanship and culture of
Rodrigues Submarine (MARS) Cable students who may wish to pursue a excellence, that is ingrained into these
again over a record period of 2 years degree in our department? passionate engineers, during their
instead of the 3 years, that was formative years at UoM.
initially planned. EEE is a fabulous adventure. The
Learning does not stop when you finish

15
Industry Focus
ABB is a leading global engineering company that energizes the transformation of society and industry
to achieve a more productive, sustainable future. By connecting software to its electrification, robotics,
automation and motion portfolio, ABB pushes the boundaries of technology to drive performance to
new levels. With a history of excellence stretching back more than 130 years, ABB’s success is driven by
110,000 talented employees in over 100 countries.
EEED is very thankful to ABB for the donations of a Variable Frequency Drive and an Inverter. The
equipment are being used for laboratory experiments.

As part of its ongoing collaboration with industry, the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
received a Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) Demo case from ABB (Mauritius) Ltd. The ACS580 VFD is
housed at the Microprocessors, Instrumentation and Control Laboratory and is fitted with an inverter-fed
3-phase asynchronous motor, adjustable loading unit, control panel and computer interface. The demo kit
enables students to get hands-on experience on the operation of industry standard motor drives. In the
process, students reinforce their knowledge of variable speed drives technology, drive set-up procedures,
speed control and safe working practices.

An inverter is a power electronic device which is connected to a PV system for converting the DC power
into an AC power. The inverter offered by ABB has been mounted on a stand and interfaced with an energy
meter and overcurrent protection equipment for a demo kit. Inputs to the inverter are taken from a variable
power supply to mimic a PV string. The kit is then used to simulate the operation of a grid tied PV system
in the lab sessions of the module Renewable Energy Systems.

INVEST IN EEED
We are a group of highly motivated colleagues who are We invite industry partners to collaborate with the department
passionate and committed to provide high level education to in research and development.
the engineers of the fourth industrial revolution. In addition,
we are actively involved in cutting edge research in the We also invite Industry Partners to invest in EEED. Your
fields of Electrical Engineering, Power Systems, Renewable investment in the Department of Electrical and Electronic
Energy, Electronics, Signal Processing, Control Systems, Engineering plays a critical role in our ability to fulfill our
Telecommunication Engineering, Networking, Internet of mission and provides essential support for teaching and
Things, Energy-Efficient Buildings, Imaging Techniques research activities.
and Applications, Wireless and Mobile Communications, Investment Opportunities are:
Networking and Security, Robotic systems, Cloud Computing
amongst others and contribute to the advancement in the • Awards and Prizes to students.
society. We strive to maintain a constant growth of the • Funding of Laboratory Equipment and Lab naming
department by forging collaborations with local partners and opportunities.
leading institutions globally.
• Patronage of workshops and flagship conferences
organised by the department.
Over the past year, we have been able to attract funding for a
number of research and consultancy activities as below:
Contact Details
• Value of ongoing externally funded projects - Rs 1.8M
Head, Electrical and Electronic Engineering
• Value of ongoing internally funded projects - Rs 2.7M
Department
• Value of consultancy for the period Jan 2019 to July
2020 - Rs 1.2M Email: hodfoe_eee@uom.ac.mu
Visit us at: www.uom.ac.mu/foe/eee

Note of Thanks
The Newsletter team would like to seize this opportunity to sincerely
thank all those who have contributed to the first edition of E3 Current.
It has been an amazing experience to sit down together, brainstorm
and come up with this piece of work. The team is highly grateful to Dr
Bissessur for his support and photography, Dr Bassoo for working on
the formatting of the document and Dr Beeharry for chasing everybody
and getting the information ready.
The department would like to thank you, the contributors and readers of
E3 Current,16for your interest in the newsletter and we encourage you to
send us your invaluable feedback and ideas for further improvement.