Figuring out the Navrang Puzzle

          And in came our ever-energetic Prof. Prasad with a spring in his stride and with yet another goody for us. First look at that 9-sided block and I thought that it was a Rubik's Cube. Started to think about the number of times I had tried solving it but to no avail. Then we were introduced to this new simple yet thoughtful model- Navrang Puzzle. As the name suggests, the Navrang Puzzle is made up of small blocks of 9 different colors. In all, there are 27 pieces, of which every three pieces have the same color. Yes, unlike a standard Rubik's Cube, the Navrang Puzzle can be dismantled and reassembled. So fascinated were all of us, that everybody wanted to get their hands on the Navrang puzzle. The Professor happily obliged and started throwing the individual pieces of the puzzle at the students. Everybody began to relish the beauty of the puzzle.

          But the Game had just begun. We were given a challenge to find a way to reassemble the puzzle in such a way that each side of the puzzle would contain 9 pieces of different colors i.e. on any one side of the puzzle, no two pieces can have the same color. People started taking up the challenge one after the other, but none was able to put together the puzzle according to the directions specified. And then came in Prof. Prasad, who showed us how the task needed to be done by solving the Puzzle in about 2 minutes using a well-defined 3-step method as follows:

1. Pieces to Groups

2. Groups to Rods

3. Rods to Plates and finally a 3X3X3 puzzle

Let's understand how to assemble a Navrang puzzle using the above 3 steps through the following video:

          We were then introduced to two important concepts: (a) Organizational Structure and (b) Unity of Objective. An organizational structure consists of activities such as task allocation, coordination and supervision, which are directed towards the achievement of organizational aims. It can also be considered as the viewing glass or perspective through which individuals see their organization and its environment. Organizations are a variant of clustered entities. An organization can be structured in many different ways, depending on their objectives. The structure of an organization will determine the modes in which it operates and performs. Organizational structure allows the expressed allocation of responsibilities for different functions and processes to different entities such as the branch, department, work-group and individual. Organizational structure affects organizational action in two big ways. First, it provides the foundation on which standard operating procedures and routines rest. Second, it determines which individuals get to participate in which decision-making processes, and thus to what extent their views shape the organization’s actions. According to the Unity of Objectives, every individual and every process in an organization should aim to fulfill the a common objectives, which is nothing but the objective of the Organisation.

          What we understood from the session was that whenever we come across any problem, we should try to understand it, should use our creative potential and arrive at a solution. Problems are neither easy nor difficult. But, for sure, there are people who use their minds and the other who don’t. We can find solutions to all the present and future problems - If only we apply a small fraction of our creative potential.