Kerala engineering students to launch indigenous rocket in Idukki

Kottayam (Kerala), Dec 16 (PTI) From a quiet college ground in Kerala’s hill district of Idukki, a group of engineering students will attempt to fire a piece of their own history into the sky on Wednesday morning.

The Mar Baselios Christian College of Engineering and Technology in Peermade is poised to launch a technology demonstrator rocket built not by a national agency, but by its own undergraduate students.

Named ‘Basilian-01’, the launch of the rocket marks the culmination of a dream led by a former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientist who turned teacher in the institution.

College authorities said the rocket project has become a reality under the leadership of Dr Oommen Tharakan, a former ISRO scientist who is now serving as a dean of research and development at the college, they said.

Students from multiple departments—including Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Communication Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, and Civil Engineering—collaborated on the design, fabrication, and testing of the rocket, they told reporters here.

The development process involved complex stages covering four major systems: propulsion, guidance and control, structural and avionics systems, and payload deployment, the academics explained.

According to college authorities, the launch will facilitate scientific studies on aerosols to evaluate the effectiveness of spice cultivation and an analysis of atmospheric temperature in the Kuttikkanam region here.

A dedicated ground station has also been developed by students for control and data collection during the mission.

Officials said the initiative marks a significant milestone for the institution in research and technological innovation.

This is the first instance in Kerala where an educational institution has undertaken rocket development as part of its academic programme with full student participation, the college authorities added.

Mar Baselios Christian College of Engineering and Technology operates under the management of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church.

Dr Oommen Mammen (Director, MBC), Dr V I George (Principal, MBC), Dr. Oommen Tharakan (Dean, R&D), John Samuel (Bursar), Prof. Elias Janson K. (Vice Principal) and so on were among those who attended the press conference. PTI LGK ROH