OVERVIEW

As Sikkim marks 50 years of statehood (1975–2025), the state reflects on its remarkable transformation from a Himalayan kingdom to a progressive state of India. Over the past five decades, Sikkim has emerged as a model for sustainable development, organic farming, eco-tourism, and digital innovation. 

In recognition of this milestone, the hackathon challenges participants to develop technology-driven solutions that contribute to Sikkim’s continued growth. From agriculture and environmental sustainability to digital governance and tourism, the event seeks innovative ideas that align with the state’s vision for the future. 

Through this hackathon, participants have the opportunity to be part of Sikkim’s evolving journey, creating impactful solutions that honor its past while driving it towards a smarter, more sustainable tomorrow.

 

ABOUT THE HACKATHON

The 2-Days National Level Hackathon is being jointly organized by Department of Information Technology, Government of Sikkim and Institution’s Innovation Council, E-Cell, Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering, Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology. It aims to bring young minds from across India to build innovative solutions in addressing challenges faced by various state departments. The hackathon provides a platform for students and young professionals to apply their technical skills towards solving problems shared by various department in the Government of Sikkim.

Supported by mentors from the government departments, academia and industry, the event encourages practical, high-impact solutions that align with the state's goals for sustainable and digital growth. Selected teams will receive cash prizes, certificates, and opportunities for further development through incubation and continued mentorship.

 

ABOUT SIKKIM MANIPAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Located in the beautiful Himalayan foothills beside the banks of river Teesta, Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology (SMIT), established 1997, fosters innovation through tech events, design sprints, and prototype development. Blending technology with sustainability, SMIT drives locally rooted, globally relevant projects, shaping future-ready innovators.

 

ABOUT Institution's Innovation Council, SMIT

The Institution's Innovation Council (IIC) at E-Cell, SMIT, under the aegis of Ministry of Education's Innovation Cell, fosters innovation, entrepreneurship, and problem-solving through workshops, hackathons, and mentorship. Supporting Sikkim’s focus on sustainability, organic farming, tourism, and rural development, IIC SMIT collaborates with local bodies and national programs to drive awareness and outreach on innovation, start-up and entrepreneurial activities for impactful solutions.

 

Team Formation

• All team members must be from the same college
• No inter-college teams members permitted.
• Each team must consist of 3 members including the team leader.
• A faculty mentor is mandatory for students only.

 

Who can register?

• Any college student is eligible to register as part of a team. Each team must consist of at most three students and one faculty mentor. Individual registrations are not allowed; a faculty mentor is mandatory for participation.
• Young Professionals, each team must consist of at most three members. Individual registrations are not allowed for participation.
• Startup ,each team must consist of at most three members. Individual registrations are not allowed for participation.

 

Registration Details:  

Registration Begins (Prelims)	23rd March 2025
Last Date for Idea Submission (Prelims)	10th April 2025
Submission Link	https://forms.gle/TSssnBJyQALZR3CH6
Idea Submission Template_CodeSumMIT@Sikkim'50	https://drive.google.com/file/d/1J9SBGvH0lLPShsoeg2vcA323XAQQsDhg/view
Nomination Letter link	https://drive.google.com/file/d/1snifNlx2iIxzgTwGsF8TxOPp3G4_KQ6G/view?usp=sharing

 

How to register?

The faculty mentor / team leader is responsible for completing the registration process on behalf of the entire team. They must fill out the official registration form provided, ensuring that all required details for each team member and the mentor are accurately entered.

Only the faculty mentor / team leader is authorized to submit the registration though his email id and mobile number, and incomplete registrations will not be accepted.

 

Idea Submission Process

Choosing Problem Statement

• Teams must select a problem statement from the given list provided by various departments from the Government of Sikkim.
• Based on the problem statement, the team must develop a solution and present it through a structured presentation (template shared).
• The proposed solution should be well-researched, innovative, and aligned with the selected problem statement. Teams are required to submit their solution strategy using the designated submission link before the deadline.

 

Team Nomination

The hackathon will be held in two rounds:

Round 1 : Idea Submission (Online)

Start: 22^nd March 2025

End: 10^th April 2025

• Teams must submit their proposed solution for the selected problem statement.
• Submissions will be evaluated based on predefined criteria (detailed ahead).
• Only the teams that meet the evaluation criteria will qualify for the final round.
• A maximum of 25 teams will be selected from the online round to advance to the final round.

 

Round 2: Finals (2-Day Hackathon, Offline)

25^th – 26^th April 2025

• Teams that qualify from Round 1 will participate in a 2-day offline hackathon.
• They must develop a working prototype of their proposed solution.
• Each team will present their prototype to a panel of judges for final evaluation over the period of 2 days.

 

 General Guidelines

GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR EVALUATION

Submitted ideas will be evaluated by a team of experts from the Government departments’, academia and industry. The ideas will be evaluated on the novelty, sustainability, practicability, scale of impact, user experience and others with potential for future work progression.

FINAL ROUND

The final round will be held in offline mode at Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology, Majitar, Rangpo, Sikkim during 25^th – 26^th April 2025. It will be a 36 hours continuous development and evaluation of the final prototype along with mentoring by the mentors/evaluators from various departments.

GENERAL INFORMATION REGARDING THE FINAL ROUND

• To and Fro, 2nd Class Sleeper (SL) train fare for the shortest route will be reimbursed upon submission of original tickets.
• College photo ID and Nomination Letter from the Institute in original is mandatory during reporting.
• For startup DPIIT certificate is mandatory.
• Accommodation of students and their mentor will be arranged.

PROBLEM STATEMENTS

Problem Statement Code	Name of Department	Problem Statement	Description	Sample Data available (Yes/No)
PS-1.	Excise Department	Digitized Monitoring System for Field Raids and Seizures	The Excise Department of Sikkim conducts field raids to combat illegal liquor activities, but manual record-keeping causes delays and inefficiencies. A digital solution is needed for real-time data entry, centralized tracking of raids and offenders, automated reporting, GIS- based hotspot mapping, and legal documentation automation to enhance enforcement and revenue collection.	No
PS-2.	Rural Development Department (HQ), Gangtok, Sikkim	Reengineering of Sikkim’s Spring Web Portal	The existing Spring-based web portal for Sikkim’s springs database has become outdated. A modern, robust solution is needed to ensure efficient data management and accessibility.	Yes
PS-3.	Rural Development Department (HQ), Gangtok, Sikkim	Development of GIS based MIS for Sikkim Garib Awaas Yogana (SGAY)	The lack of an MIS for SGAY prevents effective tracking of house construction progress under the scheme. A GIS-based MIS is needed for real-time monitoring and management of SGAY to ensure timely implementation.	Yes
PS-4.	Gangtok District Administrative Centre, Land Revenue and Disaster Management Department	Interactive Platform for Effective Dissemination and Support for Government Schemes	The reliance on social media for government scheme updates leads to information loss and ineffective public engagement. A dedicated interactive platform is needed to provide structured, accessible information, track feedback, and offer systematic support to citizens.	No
PS-5.	Gangtok District Administrative Centre, Land Revenue and Disaster Management Department	Al-Powered System for Automated Complaint Recognition and Redressal.	Social media lacks a structured mechanism for routing citizen complaints, leading to delayed responses. An AI-powered system is needed to automatically recognize, categorize, and direct complaints to relevant authorities for timely resolution.	No
PS-6.	Horticulture Department	Al-Powered Seed & Nursery Management System.	Farmers in Sikkim face challenges in accessing certified organic seeds due to limited nurseries, poor seed tracking, and climate uncertainties. An AI-powered Seed & Nursery Management System is needed to provide real-time seed availability, quality assessment, and advisory support, ensuring better yields and sustainable farming.	No
PS-7.	District Administrative Centre, Mangan District	Real Time Disaster information, Response and Crisis management.	The lack of real-time disaster information leads to delays in response, inefficient relief distribution, and difficulty in tracking casualties. A robust system is needed for real- time infrastructure status, collaborative incident reporting, emergency alerts, casualty tracking, and AI-driven disaster response to enhance preparedness and crisis management.	No
PS-8.	District Administrative Centre, Mangan District	Digital police verification system for citizens and local governance.	The current police verification process is slow, paper-based, and inconvenient. A digital system is needed for online applications, secure record- keeping, e-Governance integration, multilingual support, and AI-driven verification to improve efficiency, transparency and security.	No
PS-9	Office of the Advocate General	Legal Document Retrieval and Virtual Legal Assistant	Legal professionals and researchers often face difficulties in quickly finding relevant judgments, rulings, and other legal documents. Traditional search systems tend to rely on keyword matching, which can be inefficient and time-consuming, especially when the user’s query is phrased in different terms or lacks precise keywords. Furthermore, many legal documents are lengthy and complex, making it challenging for users to identify the specific sections or content relevant to their query. This problem can be solved by creating an AI-driven solution for understanding natural language queries, whether in the form of keywords or complete sentences. The AI should be able to accurately search through vast collections of digitized judgments and legal documents, identify the most relevant content, and provide users with easy access to specific sections or the entire document. Additionally, the system should feature an interactive Virtual Legal Assistant interface, allowing users to refine their queries through natural conversations. The Virtual Legal Assistant should refer to the content of the judgments and documents and provide the user with direct access to the required legal content. This solution would make the legal research process faster, more intuitive, and efficient.	Yes
PS-10	Department of Information Technology	Unified Document Access and Search Assistant	The sikkim.gov.in website is a consolidated point of access to documents and information from virtually all departments from Sikkim government. It contains an array of significant files, arranged into diverse sections based on file type, topic, and government department. While having these sections is useful, users frequently run into obstacles in finding and obtaining the documents they are looking for. Challenges: 1. Searching for the Right Document -Multiple departments categorize documents based on a myriad of sections, so if the user is unsure of the department or section, sifting through files can be quite tedious and overwhelming. 2. Search does not Yield Effective Results - The process of just searching by keywords usually presents irrelevant documents, which is frustrating and takes significant time. 3. A Centralized Search should be Develop - Users should not have to go through multiple sections to search for a file that is organized by various departments. 4. Most Users do not Know how to Search for a Document Effectively - Many users lack the knowledge to search for files effectively overall. An intelligent assistant that could give context and advice would greatly increase the experience.	Yes

 

 

PRIZES

The winner of the hackathon will receive a prize of ₹50,000, followed by the 1st runner-up with ₹25,000 and the 2nd runner-up with ₹15,000. Certificates will be provided to all the Finalists.

 

Contact Details

+91- 7908068299 / 6291959854 / 9933302808 / 9609885336                                            

iicsmit.smu@gmail.com / ecell@smit.smu.edu.in / dit-sik@nic.in

50yearsofstatehood.sikkim.gov.in