Exhorting students to develop scientific temper, Indian space agency's top executive K. Sivan on Monday hoped the space programme for the youth would produce a good number of scientists every year.
"I wish our novel Yuvika space programme to produce a good number of scientists every year as it leads to national integration and nation building," Sivan told about 110 students from across the country through a video mode from here.
The state-run Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) unveiled the maiden two-week long India Young Scientist Programme (Yuvika-2019) for the students selected from 29 states and 7 Union Territories across the country.
"Science and technology are essential for the development of any country and play a major role in improving the quality of life, besides our safety and security," said Sivan in his address to the students.
Terming the programme important for the students, the chairman said space applications were helping the common man in daily life and in ensuring the safety of life and property during natural disasters.
The students are attending the residential training programme at the space agency's four centres -- Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre at Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala; U R Rao Satellite Centre in Bengaluru, Space Applications Centre (SAC) at Ahmedabad in Gujarat and North Eastern Space Applications Centre (NESAC) at Shillong in Meghalaya.
The students will also visit on May 17 the Satish Dhawan Space Centre spaceport at Shriharikota in Andhra Pradesh, about 80km northeast of Chennai.
"They will be taken to the launch pad and integration facilities to understand spaceport operations," said ISRO in a statement here.
The programme will impart basic knowledge on space technology, space science and space applications to the students with a view to arousing interest in the emerging areas of space activities.
Eminent scientists will deliver talks and share their experiences with the students, who will get hands on training at the space labs.
"The course content has been curated keeping the curiosity of the students and the need for linking academic lessons to practical applications," said the statement,
Diverse topics ranging from environment science, renewable energy, astronomy, rocket engineering, space applications and soft skill improvement modules such as team work, communication and leadership are part of the curriculum.
The course material has been pre-loaded in Tablets given to the students.
"Students will also visit our labs for first-hand experience on how team-ISRO works to accomplish complex missions," added the statement./Eom/405 words.
--IANS
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