In the year 2021, during the COVID-19 lockdown, the Department of Mathematics of The Heritage College, Kolkata took the initiative to organize a National Level summer internship in Mathematics, focusing on training and guiding students to pursue research in mathematics in higher studies. It was decided that the program would accept applications from undergraduate and postgraduate students across India. Convened by Prof. Anjan Debnath, Head of the Department of Mathematics at The Heritage College, the Summer Internship Program - 2021 (THC_SIM21) witnessed tremendous success among students. Within 6 days of opening registrations, the program received 100+ applications, including many from prestigious institutions across India. Due to the lockdown, the program was conducted online in two phases: Phase-I and Phase-II.

In Phase-I, around 70 students actively participated in the online program. Despite the circumstances, the attendees showed great enthusiasm for learning various aspects of research work, problem-solving, presentation skills, article writing, and obtaining references from various sources. Under the guidance of three more instructors, Dr. Brasanna Devi, Dr. Samir K. Hazra, and Mr. Vivek, the program became immensely popular, necessitating the preservation of class sessions for future reference. Phase-I concluded in the first week of July 2021, awarding course completion certificates to the interns.

During July, Phase-II commenced, where each intern selected a supervisor designated by the THC_SIM21 organizing team. Several online meetings were held between supervisors and interns to foster the concept of conducting minor research within one month. At the supervisors' request, the timeline was extended later by two months, and Phase-II concluded successfully at the end of September 2021.

Following the internship's successful conclusion, numerous requests were received to continue the program in subsequent years, though this was not feasible due to unavoidable reasons. The program garnered attention from several institutions that adopted its structure. Many proposals have been received to restart the research training program, as THC_SIM21 offered attendees the rare flexibility to choose their own research topics, distinguishing it as a unique summer internship program across India.

With the introduction of the National Education Policy (NEP) by the UGC from 2020 onwards, and with the University of Calcutta implementing NEP curriculum from the academic year 2023-24, an initiative has been taken to relaunch THC_SIM21 under a new name: Summer Internship in Graduate Mathematics - 2024 (SIGMA24). This time, the initiative primarily targets undergraduate students pursuing Mathematics as either an Honours subject or a Generic Elective. For program details, please refer the brochure.  

The entire internship program is dedicated to students with a strong interest in Mathematics and a zeal for extraordinary work beyond their regular syllabus, aiming to nurture young minds to explore exciting new ideas in the mathematical universe. Prospective applicants are encouraged to reconsider before applying, as this will not be a typical classroom experience. Participants will engage in rigorous activities such as extensive writing, advanced topic-wise study materials, presentations, information gathering from diverse resources, tutorials, problem-solving sessions, and more.

To motivate interns, prizes and awards await participants at the end of each phase. Each participant will receive an internship completion certificate. Additionally, awards will include 5 Best Presentation Awards (Phase-I and Phase-II), 2 Interns of the Year 2024 (Male + Female, in Phase-I and Phase-II), and those completing Phase-II will be eligible for the SIGMA24: Student Research Award (top 5 in Phase-II).

Best wishes and regards to all prospective interns.