Summary

• The course will be conducted from January 24 to April 15, 2022 on the NPTEL platform
• It will cover the basic design principles of blockchain technology and its application in different sectors

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur is inviting applications from students for a 12-week free online course on blockchain technology, mostly used in cryptocurrency and secure sharing of data.

The course will cover the basic design principles of blockchain technology and its application in different sectors. The course also provides tutorials on setting up blockchain applications using one of the well-adopted permissionless blockchain platforms, Ethereum, and one permissioned blockchain platform, Hyperledger.

The course will be conducted by Sandip Chakraborty, who is working as an associate professor in the department of Computer Science and Engineering at IIT Kharagpur, and professor Shamik Sural, a full-time professor at the department of Computer Science and Engineering at the institute.

In order to be eligible for this course, participants will need to have basic knowledge in Computer Networks, Operating Systems, Cryptography and Network Security.

The course will be conducted from January 24 to April 15, 2022. Interested candidates will have to register before January 31, 2022 in order to pursue this online course.

Course layout:

• Introduction to blockchain technology and its importance.

• Basic Crypto Primitives: Cryptographic hash and digital signature.

• Evolution of blockchain technology.

• Elements of a blockchain.

• Blockchain consensus: Permissionless and permissioned models.

• Smart contract hands on: Ethereum smart contracts and Hyperledger fabric.

• Decentralised identity management.

• Blockchain interoperability.

• Blockchain applications.

The course has been developed with the knowledge that blockchain technology has sparked widespread interest among governments, enterprises, and academics owing to its capability of providing a transparent, secured, tamper-proof solution for interconnecting different stakeholders. The course also carries three credit points.

There are no enrollment charges for this course. However, those who wish to obtain e-certificates with logos of IIT Kharagpur and the National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) will have to pay Rs 1,000 and appear for an examination on April 23, 2022.