- By Anshika Verma
- Tue, 21 Oct 2025 03:17 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
A 12 year old girl, Aditi Parthe has created history by achieving milestones in her life. She is one of the 25 students that are shortlisted for Pune Zilla Parishad’s (ZP) planned visit to NASA. Aditi Parthe has created a history at such a young age of 12 years as she is one of the 25 students that are shortlisted for Pune Zilla Parishad’s (ZP) planned visit to NASA. Aditi Parthe sets off from her house at 9:00 am for a 3.5 km hour-long walk to the Nigudaghar Zilla Parishad school in Pune’s Bhor taluka.
At 5:00 pm, she walks the same route back to her maternal aunt’s hut. Her father is a daily wage porter at Market Yard in Pune, while her mother lives with her elder brother at the father’s village. Aditi, a student of class 7, has never travelled via train, but is now selected to visit the NASA headquarters in the United States, an iconic moment.
Indian Students visit to NASA:
According to several reports, the NASA visit is a part of an initiative taken by the Zilla Parishad, in collaboration with the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA). Not even in her wildest dreams did Aditi think of boarding a plane or haven’t traveled by train. Aditi and her family are overwhelmed with the news.
Meanwhile, there are various reports that state that all the selected students including Aditi are expected to embark on their journey to NASa to the United States in October. Additionally, the passport and visa obtaining process is currently underway.
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Those students selected for the programme are from rural backgrounds and humble families. Thousands of students have appeared for the first MCQ round, and the students selected had to give an online Multiple Choice Question Examination. The last round to select students for this initiative was a personal interview at IUCAA, which included questions ranging from maths and science.
IUCAA to track Students' Academic Progress:
The Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics will continue to track the academic progress of the students. ‘Our responsibility is not just to facilitate the trips. We want to ensure their talent and knowledge is nurtured and cherished. Based on this year's experience, we plan to prepare a booklet of questions for next year.’ Srianand mentioned.