Bedford-based charity helping to connect students from rural villages of Punjab (India) with Aeronautical Science

A Lecture cum Demonstration (LecDem) on Principles of Flight using Chuck Gliders was conducted at Dhrishti Dr. R. C. Jain Innovative Public School, Narangwal, Distt. Ludhiana, Punjab, India last month.

This event was conducted under the aegis of SEVA Trust UK (India) by Prof. Rajkumar S. Pant of the Aerospace Engineering Department of IIT Bombay, who is currently a visiting Professor at Plaksha University, Mohali (Punjab).

Prof. Pant completed his PhD. from Cranfield University, Bedford and serving as an Advisor for SEVA Trust UK. SEVA Trust UK is Bedford based a registered charity in England and also working in India.

All charity work in India is lead by SEVA Trust UK (India), a registered NGO in India working on Education, Health, Environment and Social Welfare in the states of Punjab & Haryana for the last 9 years. In addition to social welfare & health support projects, the NGO focuses on rural and disadvantaged children and communities and girls and women empowerment.

This educational event was the first such session in this region of Punjab to motivate and guide rural students about 'Principles of Flight'. This session was greatly appreciated by all who attended.

The two-hour event was attended by nearly 65 students of Class-IX to Class XII of the school, and the Science teachers.

In this LecDem Prof. Pant explained how a plane fly, giving the example of the world's heaviest aircraft, viz., An 225 Mriya. He showed several video clips explaining how Drag (which is the enemy of flight) can be reduced, and how Lift (which is the enabling factor) can be increased. He went on to remove the misconceptions about how lift is generated, and gave a demonstration of various aspects related to flight using thermocol gliders.

The event was highly interactive, in which the students also launched the gliders to get a first hand experience of how a plane flies. Further events are planned to include sessions on 'Flameless Indoor Hot Air Balloons (FIHAB)'.

The school honoured Dr Pant & the Founder of SEVA Trust UK & India Charan Sekhon MBE who attended the event along with Mr Baljinder Singh Grewal (SEVA Trust Coordinator and a Social Activist).

Principal of Drishti School, Dr Manisha Gangwar thanked Mr Sekhon and the SEVA Trust management for selecting their school for this session. She said "The way this session was lead by Dr Pant is a great example how to maximise interaction with students and allow their participation in a relaxed and fun packed session on a scientific topic that can be complex but our students gained so much knowledge. I have requested SEVA Trust and Dr Pant to arrange another session involving all teachers to guide them to implement similar teaching techniques for their regular teaching classes."

SEVA Trust Founder Mr Sekhon said "SEVA Trust UK (India) Team lead by Chairman Mr Naresh Mittal are working on many educational projects focusing on rural students who got huge potential to progress in life but sometimes they lack opportunities to connect with wider scientific topics. SEVA Trust is trying to bridge that gap.

"I would like to thank Dr Gangwar and all Drishti School Team for their participation and commitment to be part of future sessions. SEVA Trust is building a new muti-facility home near Saha (Ambala) and I would like to request all to be part of SEVA Trust mission to support disadvantaged & rural children & families", said Mr Sekhon.