About Schedule Instructors Installation Register
IIT Madras In-Person

National Workshop on
Computational Metagenomics:
Methods and Applications

A three-day immersive workshop at IIT Madras designed for researchers, faculty, and students ready to decode complex microbial communities using state-of-the-art computational pipelines — led by Computational Systems Biology Lab.

Registration Closed View Schedule
Dates
7–9 April 2026
Duration
3 Days
Venue
NAC 2, IIT Madras
Deadline
30 March 2026
IIT Madras
IIT Madras
IBSE
IBSE
NPTEL+
NPTEL+
WSAI IITM
WSAI, IITM
IIT Madras Paradise
IIT Madras · Forest Campus
IIT Madras Trees
Shaded Pathways · Lush Green
Deer at IIT Madras
Wildlife · Spotted Deer
About the Workshop

Three Days of
Metagenomics

This national workshop covers the entire computational metagenomics pipeline — from raw sequencing data to biological insights. You'll work hands-on with real datasets and the exact tools used in published research.

  • 16s Amplicon sequencing analysis
  • Shotgun sequencing, genome assembly, and functional annotation
  • Statistical analysis, Machine learning in microbiome research
  • Hands-on practicals every day with real datasets
  • Certificate of participation provided
📅
Dates
7th – 9th April, 2026
📍
Venue
Room No.601, NAC 2, 6th floor, IIT Madras, Chennai
🕘
Timings
09:00 AM – 06:00 PM IST
🎓
Mode
In-Person Only
✉️
IIT Madras Campus
Banyan Avenue · IIT Madras
Spotted Deer at IIT Madras
Spotted Deer · Forest Campus
IIT Madras Forest
Greenery · Protected Urban Forest
🙏 A Warm Welcome Awaits You

We are delighted to welcome you to IIT Madras — one of India's finest research campuses, nestled inside a protected urban forest.

Whether you're joining us from across India or just across the city — expect brilliant science, wonderful peers, and a truly one-of-a-kind campus experience.

🌿 Protected Forest Campus 🦌 Blackbuck & Deer 🍽️ Campus Dining 🚌 Free Shuttle 🏥 On-Campus Hospital
Our Collaborators

Brought to You By
Four Pillars

This workshop is a joint effort across four programmes at IIT Madras — each bringing unique expertise, resources, and reach.

Computational Systems Biology Lab
Research Group
Computational Systems Biology Lab
Prof. Karthik Raman's computational biology group at IIT Madras — leading the scientific programme of this workshop.
ramanlab.github.io ↗
WSAI
Host School
WSAI, IIT Madras
Wadhwani School of Data Science & AI — providing institutional infrastructure and academic support for this workshop.
wsai.iitm.ac.in ↗
IBSE
Research Centre
IBSE, IIT Madras
Centre for Integrative Biology and Systems Medicine — IIT Madras's hub for computational and systems biology research.
ibse.iitm.ac.in ↗
NPTEL+
Platform Partner
NPTEL+
India's premier online learning platform — providing official registration, certification, and national outreach for the workshop.
elearn.nptel.ac.in ↗
Workshop Schedule

Programme
Overview

Click a day to expand the full session plan. Each day runs 9 AM – 6 PM with hands-on practicals throughout.

📄 Download Workshop Flyer
Day 01 16s Amplicon sequencing analysis
April 7, 2026 ▼
09:00 – 10:00
Registration
Morning Session 1
10:00 – 10:15
Opening Remarks: Welcome & Workshop Vision
10:15 – 11:00
Foundations of Metagenomics
Understanding the “what, why, and how” of metagenomics
11:00 – 11:15☕ Tea Break
Morning Session 2
11:15 – 12:15
Introduction to 16S Amplicon sequencing: Theory & Discussion
Principles, experimental design, workflows, and common challenges
12:15 – 13:00
Installation & Getting Started
Command line interface (CLI) basics, Hands-on setup of tools and environments for amplicon analysis
13:00 – 14:30🍽️ Lunch Break
Afternoon Session 1
14:30 – 15:30
Data in Action (Part I): Guided Hands-on Practicals
Working with real datasets and understanding core analysis steps, interpretation
Afternoon Session 2
15:30 – 16:00
Data in Action (Part II)
Workflow Completion Guided analysis, troubleshooting
16:00 – 16:30
Evaluated assignment
16:30 – 16:45☕ Tea Break
Evening Lecture
16:45 – 17:30
Guest lecture by Dr. Rama Vaidyanathan
Day 02 Shotgun sequencing, genome assembly, and functional annotation
April 8, 2026 ▼
Morning Session 1
09:00 – 09:30
Introduction to shotgun sequencing
Choosing sequencing strategies
09:30 – 11:00
Transforming raw reads to abundance data
Quality control and taxonomic classifications
11:00 – 11:15☕ Tea Break
Morning Session 2
11:15 – 12:15
From reads to genomes
Assembly and binning
12:15 – 13:45🍽️ Lunch Break
Afternoon Session 1
13:45 – 14:30
Validating recovered genomes
Assess bin quality and assign taxonomy to MAGs
14:30 – 15:30
Decoding Microbial Functions
Identify genes, pathways, and metabolic potential in your MAGs
15:30 – 15:45☕ Tea Break
Afternoon Session 2
15:45 – 16:45
Evaluated assignment
Evening Lecture
16:45 – 17:30
Guest lecture by Dr. Meiyappan Lakshmanan
Day 03 Statistical analysis, Machine learning in microbiome research
April 9, 2026 ▼
Morning Session 1
09:00 – 10:00
ML in metagenomics (Online session)
10:00 – 10:15☕ Tea Break
Morning Session 2
10:15 – 12:00
Statistical Analysis with R
Data pre-processing, diversity and differential analysis
12:00 – 13:30🍽️ Lunch Break
Afternoon Session
13:30 – 15:00
Hands-on Analysis
Applying statistical methods to demo data
15:00 – 15:45
Assignment
15:45 – 16:30☕ High Tea
Evening
16:30 – 17:15
Guest lecture by Dr. Karthik Raman
17:15 – 17:30
Valedictory
Faculty & Experts

Learn from
the Experts

Led by researchers from Computational Systems Biology Lab & at the frontier of computational biology in India.

Prof. Karthik Raman
Lead Instructor · Principal Investigator
Prof. Karthik Raman
Professor, Dept. of Data Science & AI · Wadhwani School of DS & AI (WSAI), IIT Madras

Prof. Karthik Raman leads the Computational Systems Biology Lab at IIT Madras, working at the crossroads of computational biology, systems biology, and machine learning. His research spans metabolic network modelling, microbiome data analysis, and ML-driven biological discovery — with numerous high-impact publications and open-source tools widely adopted by the research community.

🌐 Website 👥 Lab Members 🔗 LinkedIn 💻 GitHub
Instructor
Dr. Aarti Ravindran
Postdoctoral Researcher · Computational Systems Biology Lab, IIT Madras
LinkedIn Profile
Instructor
Dr. Pratyay Sengupta
Postdoctoral Researcher · Computational Systems Biology Lab, IIT Madras
LinkedIn Profile
Who Should Attend

Built for
Curious Minds

If you work with biology and want to apply computational power for microbial research, this workshop was designed for you.

🎓
UG Students (3rd Year+)
Background or interest in biology, keen to work with metagenomic data.
🔬
Researchers & PhD Students
Working with metagenomic or microbiome data, ready to level up your toolkit.
🧑‍🏫
Faculty Members
Looking to bring computational metagenomics methods into your research group.
Setup & Installation

Get Your System
Workshop-Ready

Step-by-step instructions to install all required tools before the workshop. Follow these guides to set up WSL, Conda, QIIME 2, and other essential software.

📥 Complete Installation Guide
April 7, 2026
Day 1
Amplicon Sequencing & Taxonomy
Open Guide ↗
April 8, 2026
Day 2
Shotgun Sequencing & MAGs
Open Guide ↗
April 9, 2026
Day 3
Statistics & Machine Learning
Open Guide ↗
On-Site Guide

Venue & Logistics

Everything you need to know before you arrive — location, transport, dining, and campus life.

Quick Guide
📍 Location
🗺️ How to Reach
🚌 Campus Bus
🍴 Dining
🏥 Hospital
⚠️ Requirements
🦌 Campus Life
📍Venue Location
VenueNAC 2 — New Academic Complex, Block 2
IIT Madras, Chennai 600036
RoomRoom No.601 — 6th Floor
Preferred GateMain Gate (Sardar Patel Rd)
↗ View on Google Maps
🗺️How to Reach IIT Madras
✈️
By Air
Chennai International Airport — ~14 km away. Take a cab/auto to IIT Madras Main Gate on Sardar Patel Road.
🚆
By Train
Nearest stations: Chennai Central or Chennai Egmore. Take the MRTS to Kasturba Nagar/Taramani or Metro to Guindy, then an auto/cab to the campus.
🚌
By Bus
MTC buses (Routes 21G, 5C, 47G, 19B, 47) stop at IIT Madras Main Gate. Routes from Adyar, Guindy, and Taramani are convenient.
🚗
By Cab / Auto
Uber and Ola are widely available. Enter via Main Gate (Sardar Patel Road) — mention the Computational Metagenomics Workshop at NAC 2. Plan your travel accordingly to reach the campus at your convenience.
↗ Directions on Google Maps
🚌Getting Around Campus
🚗 Own Vehicle / Self-Drive

You can enter IIT Madras campus with your own vehicle via the Main Gate (Sardar Patel Road). Simply mention you're attending the Computational Metagenomics Workshop at NAC 2 (DA601).

🚦Campus Speed Limit: 20 km/h inside the campus at all times.
Gate to Use
Main Gate, Sardar Patel Rd
Parking Near Venue
NAC 2 Building
🚌 Campus Shuttle (Free Bus)

Free shuttle buses run frequently between the Main Gate and NAC. Frequency is approximately every 20 minutes.

🗺 Live Bus Tracker ⬇ Download Campus PDF Map
🍴Dining on Campus
1
Campus Canteen (CC)
Near the academic zone · Quick meals, snacks & beverages
2
CCD — Cafe Coffee Day
Inside campus · Coffee, sandwiches & light bites
3
Isthara Food Court
Multi-cuisine food court on campus · Order via app
Get Isthara App on Play Store
4
Zaitoon Restaurant
Inside campus · North Indian & Mughlai cuisine
5
Mess (Hostel Dining)
⚠️ Tokens required — purchase at CCW one day in advance for all 3 meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
🏠
Hostel Facility: For accommodation & hostel-related queries, visit the Centre for Cultural and Welfare (CCW) on campus.
🏥Medical Facility

IIT Madras has a full-service hospital on campus — available to all students, staff, and registered workshop visitors.

🏥
IITM Campus Hospital
On Campus · Open 24/7
Location Near NAC I, IITM
Services General OPD, emergency care, pharmacy
OPD Timings 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM · Emergency 24 hrs
For Visitors Workshop participants may access during the event
↗ Hospital on Google Maps
⚠️Mandatory Requirements

To receive your Certificate of Participation, the following are strictly enforced:

✓
100% Attendance
Present for all sessions — April 7–9, 2026 (09:00 AM – 06:00 PM IST)
✓
Daily Assignments
Completion of all hands-on practicals and assigned tasks each day
✓
Laptop with Setup
Bring a laptop with WSL, Conda and QIIME 2 pre-installed — see Installation guide
🦌Campus Life

IIT Madras is set inside a protected forest — state-of-the-art labs coexist with resident Blackbuck and spotted deer often spotted near the academic blocks. The campus also has a cricket ground, swimming pool, gymkhana, and the iconic Gajendra Circle.

🌿
Enjoy the Environment Responsibly
Please do not disturb the natural habitat and do not feed the animals — the deer and Blackbuck are wild and their diet and behaviour should not be altered by human contact.
Get in Touch

Have Questions?
We're Here.

✉️
📍
🏢
Registration Closed
Deadline is Over

For future updates, please follow us on LinkedIn.

We look forward to meeting all registered participants at:

📍
NAC 2, 6th Floor
Room Number 601, IIT Madras