Government promotes new low-cost microscope

Many schools and colleges all over India submitted their proposals to DBT. As there was an overwhelming response, the funding agency decided to sanction projects with better impact and better utilisation of Foldscope. The prime objective of the project was to make people aware of the Foldscope which is an optical microscope made of paper and is durable, cost-effective (less than 1$ US), easy to carry and provides high resolution of about 140X and can be used by children from a young age.

The awareness programme about this affordable microscope was made mandatory and those schools and colleges which were sanctioned projects were to conduct workshops about the assemblage, usage and utilization of the Foldscope by observing minute creatures in the environment.

Among many other schools and colleges, Stella Maris College (Autonomous), Chennai has been sanctioned a project managed by K Veena Gayathri, assistant professor, Department of Biotechnology. As a part of this project, principal investigator, K Veena Gayathri will conduct a one-day workshop on ‘Maximal Usage of Foldscope to explore the miniatures in the world’ in the college premises for school students of class IX and X on Thursday.

The chief guests for the workshop are Rameswara Murugan, Director of School Education, Chennai, Tamil Nadu and Manas Das, assistant professor, Department of Zoology, Guwahati University, who will deliver the key note address.