Young sci-fi fans have much to rejoice as 180 teams from 68 schools across India will be able to test their skills as they attempt to build robots to withstand the rough, unfriendly terrain and climate on Mars as part of Tricks 2012, a national robotics championship that will be held at IIT’s Mumbai campus on December 1.

Robot rendezvous
While the 2011 edition had tackled environmental issues, this time, the Mars mission theme stood out as the organisers felt it was important for the human race. “Looking at our rapidly increasing population rates, we would soon need another planet that is conducive to human life. So far, Mars seems like the most likeable choice,” explains Gagan Goyal, an IIT-ian and founder, CEO of ThinkLabs, the organisers of the competition.