Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, recently hosted the 75th edition of the Yusuf Hamied Chemistry Camp, designed specifically for 59 visually impaired students from government schools in Mumbai, Nashik, Pune and Solapur. The landmark event reaffirmed a powerful message: chemistry is for everyone.
Supported by the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) and funded by Dr Yusuf Hamied, the camp provided a first-of-its-kind, hands-on opportunity for blind students to explore the wonders of chemistry through the senses of touch and smell. This year’s camp — developed under the leadership of Dr Swetavalli Raghavan, Head of Innovation Strategy and Government Affairs at RSC — featured a brand new module developed by Prof C Subramaniam of IIT-Bombay.
“Given that chemistry is about colour and visual perception, designing the experiments to convey concepts with clarity was intellectually stimulating and provided a unique peek into the day-to-day lives of these children,” says Subramaniam.
The camp focused on fun, sensory-based experiments — tactile molecular models, scent-based chemical identification, concepts in physical chemistry such as levitating magnets, and safe experiments that allowed students to feel textures and temperature changes during reactions, says a press release from IIT-Bombay.