Patna, April 20: The moon project of nine students of Birla Institute of Technology (BIT) has run into choppy waters. The group needs Rs 8.5 lakh to go to National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) but has been able to arrange only Rs 6.5 lakh so far.
While funds and promises are pouring in for IIT, BIT students are craving for funds. During the foundation stone laying ceremony of IIT, Patna on Tuesday, both chief minister Nitish Kumar and Union human resource development (HRD) minister Kapil Sibal promised all possible financial help. They wanted IIT to be one of the institutes of excellence in the state.
While all the promises are being made for IIT, students of BIT are facing a fund crisis.
While all this was happening, the techies of BIT were facing a fund crunch over their ambitious moon project.
Nine students from BIT Patna have been invited to Nasa to participate in the second annual Lunabotics Mining Competition to be held at Kennedy Space Centre, Florida, from May 23 to 28.
The Telegraph carried out the report on the lunar mission of the students on February 17.
Nasa experts would judge the models of the BIT students, which is a remote-controlled autonomous excavator that can collect a minimum 10kg lunar stimulant within 15 minutes.
Peetak Mitra, the team leader of the project, told The Telegraph: “We are facing a fund crunch. The total cost of the project is Rs 8.5 lakh and till now, we have received grants of Rs 6.5 lakh from various agencies.â€
Peetak said: “We have approached science and technology minister Gautam Singh with our project for funding as this is the first time in Bihar that students have been invited to Nasa. The minister asked us to wait for three days and finally refused to provide grants claiming the state government has no money for such projects.â€
Minto Hassan, the director of Bihar Council of Science and Technology, told The Telegraph: “We are unable to fund the project as we have no government schemes to fund such projects. Out of Rs 6.5 lakh collected for the project, the 1983 batch alumni of Birla Institute of Technology (BIT), Mesra has provided Rs 4 lakh. Similarly, some alumni living in Calcutta also provided Rs 75,000 for our project. The BIT Mesra alumni working in the US have provided Rs 25,000.â€
He said some public sector units, including State Bank of India (Patna branch) and Central Coalfield Limited (Ranchi), have provided Rs 1 lakh and Rs 40,000 respectively for our projects.
Subhomoy Ghosh, another team member and a second-year undergraduate student of civil engineering, said: “It is a big achievement for us that we have made it to the international competition. We expect the people of the country to support us.â€
He said he was disappointed with the state government for not providing funds.
“Even though we are facing a fund crisis, money would not some in our way as we have approached several agencies. But we were very disappointed with the state government.â€
Mitra said: “Other state governments regularly finance students for such projects. In 2009, the Karnataka government provided Rs 5 lakh to students from their state who were working on a satellite project — Studsat.†Similarly, the Delhi government provided Rs 13 lakh to students of Delhi College of Engineering who were working on a solar car project.â€
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