The 11th edition of Mahindra BAJA has just been concluded at IIT, Ropar. This is the first time that the off-road event has been organised in two legs. The latest edition of the event has been organised on 10th and 11th March. The 2018 edition of the BAJA SAE India event has seen the participation of 60 teams out of which 25 managed to qualify for the Endurance race. The said race lasts for four race and the vehicle that covers the maximum number of laps emerges as the winner. Students from across the country take part in the competition and the current year has witnessed the participation of close to 1500 students. The purpose of organising the event in two phases is to offer exposure to more and more students. The participants are asked to pick choices from the two venues. Mahindra has recently announced that it will be coming up with the third leg of the event after a couple of years and it will be conducted somewhere in the Southern part of India.
For those not in the know, BAJA SAE India is a student level competition that has its roots outside India. The event was originally started in the United States by SAE International as the Mini BAJA. BAJA SAE India event primarily focuses on out of the classroom education as participants have to design their own vehicle to take part in the endurance race that is essentially the final stage.
BAJA SAE India was kick-started in India in the year 2007 and Mahindra has been the title sponsor of the event for the last five years. Teams of 20-25 students take part in the event. Mahindra even offers on-the-spot jobs to the students from the BAJA event based on their knowledge and skills. For this purpose, two written tests are conducted followed by the final HR round.
Here are the winners of the BAJA SAE India 2018:
Winner of endurance race: Govt college of technology, Coimbatore
1st Runner-up of endurance race: Govt college of Engineering, Aurangabad
