PUNE: A science model making exhibition, 'Jigyasa', has been organised to promote young innovators to showcase their talent.

The Agastya Foundation, in association with Sakal Media Group, has organised the exhibition. This is the first time Agastya is holding it in the State.

The exhibition is being held at IISER, Pune auditorium and opened on Friday. It will conclude on Saturday. The timing is from 10.30 am to 5.30 pm.

Speaking about the idea behind the exhibition, Sai Chandrashekar, Operational Head, said, "We want to motivate children to be innovative. It is observed that practical education goes a long way. When children make something, they have problems and find a creative way out of it. We aim to put more emphasis on practical education."

"We had received almost 2,000 entries from 18 districts across Maharashtra, of these 120 have been selected to be displayed here. Many of the entries are from rural areas. It is amazing to see the creativity of these students," added Chandrashekhar.

Jairaj Borate, a participant, who came all the way from Phaltan, said, "Our teachers encouraged us a lot. They had conducted many workshops to help us make our models. We have constructed a model that will reduce the number of solar panels required to generate energy. Our model detects the direction in which light is more and moves in that direction.”

Rituparna Choudhary, a visitor and a student from IISER, Kolkata, said, "These children have done a really nice job for their age. A majority of them come from rural areas, where they have limited access to resources, fascinates me even more."