Jalandhar, August 24, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Lovely Professional University (LPU) marked National Space Day 2026 with a series of innovation-focused activities centred on the theme, “Towards Viksit Bharat: Innovating, Collaborating and Aspiring to Global Space Leadership.”
Organised by the Centre for Space Science (CSS) under the university’s R&D Cell, the celebrations featured space innovation challenges, geospatial competitions, expert sessions and interactive activities aimed at encouraging students to explore India’s achievements in space science and emerging technologies.
Dr Monica Gulati, Executive Dean, LPU, said India’s space programme had become a strong symbol of scientific confidence and self-reliance. She said the future of space exploration would involve not only astronauts and scientists but also engineers, researchers, entrepreneurs, designers and innovators from diverse disciplines, adding that universities had an important role in preparing young people for this national mission.
The keynote session, “India’s Journey in Space, Future Missions and Career Opportunities in the Space Sector”, was delivered by Dr Rishitosh K. Sinha, Scientist/Engineer SF, Planetary Remote Sensing Section, Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), Ahmedabad. He discussed India’s expanding space ecosystem, planetary research, future missions and career opportunities in the country’s growing space sector.
The Inter-School Space Innovation Expo was among the key attractions, with students showcasing working models and technology-based solutions inspired by space science.
The top project, ORRAS (Operational Risk & Regional Alert System), was developed by Arpit Gupta, Abdullah Arman and Amit Yadav. The disaster-intelligence platform uses space-based Earth observation and integrates more than 13 open data sources, including NASA FIRMS satellite fire and thermal data and USGS seismic data. It is designed to analyse threats, identify anomalies and generate confidence-based regional risk assessments covering fires, earthquakes and humanitarian emergencies.
An agriculture-focused innovation by Yashkumar, Yashwardhansinghhada, Lokesh and their team was also recognised for demonstrating the potential of space technologies in sustainable farming through precision agriculture solutions.
The Space Debate Championship focused on the role of artificial intelligence in space exploration. Participants concluded that although AI has become an essential tool for modern space missions, human judgment, adaptability and accountability remain critical in mission-sensitive environments requiring reliability and fault tolerance.
The celebrations underscored LPU’s focus on developing future space professionals through research, innovation and industry exposure, while providing students with opportunities to engage with space science through specialised programmes, innovation platforms and collaborations connecting academic learning with real-world space technologies.
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