National Chemical Lab’s mentor programme for children till August

His colleagues Dr Chetan Gadgil and Dr B L V Prasad,a chemical engineer and a chemist by training,have volunteered to talk to students and help them develop project ideas.

“These projects are fun,and we feel that doing science and independent research is the best way for students to feel the excitement of science and technology and for them to get connected to this. Also,we hope that we will be able to help Pune put in a good performance at the IRIS this year,” said Kumaraswamy.

Several other institutions have been working to make science more fun for students. This summer,the inter-university centre for astronomy and astrophysics will bring in a lot of students from rural areas to attend lectures on its campus as part of its summer programme.

Around 80 students,several of whom will be from rural schools,will undergo special training at the IUCAA.

“We will interact with students from rural areas. From mid April,these students will attend specialised training,lectures and seminars on several topics,” said Arvind Paranjape,an officer with IUCAA.

“We interacted with many students from Ambegaon taluka during our science day celebrations,many of these students will attend our summer programme,” Paranjape said.

The National Centre for Radio Astrophysics is also conducting summer special programmes for students interested in science. There will be talks related to astronomy and astrophysics,” said an NCRA officer.

It is also accepting applications from PhD and Mphil students interested in attending a one-month advanced programme at the NCRA till April 5. Students can contact serc2010@ncra.tifr.res.in or call 2571 9111/ 2571 9000.