CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, conducted the Young Innovators Programme for the 12th consecutive year. 24 students studying in grades 8-10 were selected from 24 different schools in Hyderabad among 326 applicants. The selection test took place on 23 December 2024 following the inaugural lecture by Dr Mudrika Khandelwal from IIT-Hyderabad.
The selected students spent a week in the different labs and research facilities at CSIR-CCMB. They were shown how DNA is used to detect genetic diseases, how infectious diseases are understood better through the biology of pathogens, how the state-of-the-art cryo-electron microscope shows details of biomolecules even up to atomic levels and how such tools are used both for understanding living systems better but also for making improved crop varieties and conserving nature.
“This programme is strategically done for high school students until grade 10 because that is the point where they need to make their choice of studying biology. Their imagination of biology is very limited to natural history. The programme intended to give them a glimpse of the excitement and opportunities that modern biology offers,” said Dr Somdatta Karak, Head of Science Communication and Public Outreach, CCMB.
One of the participants, S Hitesh from Oak Valley School, said, “The Young Innovators Programme was a wonderful experience. I got to see how scientists actually work. I discovered a whole new world of research. Meeting the researchers and hearing them talk passionately about their work was truly fascinating. I also got to meet other students my age and formed bonds with them throughout the programme.”
Underlining the importance of building cohorts of young people, Dr Vinay K Nandicoori, Director, CCMB, said, “Through this programme, every year, we connect brilliant young people. Only a few of them might change their career plans and become scientists. But the real value of the programme is instilling in them the love for finding out more and solving challenges. It is then irrelevant for us, as a society, what careers they pursue. We want them to become citizenry inspired by science.”
