Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi has launched the second batch of its STEM Mentorship Programme, aimed at inspiring high school girls to pursue careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields. The programme was celebrated on the International Day for Women and Girls in Science, which takes place on February 11, states an IANS report

In a statement, the Director of IIT Delhi, Prof Rangan Banerjee, said, "We want our bright young girl students from schools to experience the joy of research. They will have an opportunity to work in our laboratories and interact with a faculty mentor and research students. We hope this will help encourage more women to science and engineering and improve the diversity of the campus."

The second batch of the STEM Mentorship Programme is structured in two phases. During the first phase, 32 selected participants from government and private schools in Delhi will attend online lectures and demonstrations by the faculty and students of IIT Delhi. These lectures and demonstrations will cover a wide range of STEM topics and will be held on weekends in March and April.

The second phase, which will take place in May, will be a more hands-on experience for the participants. They will spend a week at IIT Delhi, visiting various labs and getting first-hand exposure to cutting-edge research at the institute.

The first mentorship programme comprised 10 school girls and was initiated by the Office of Academic Outreach and New Initiatives at IIT Delhi, starting in December 2021 and successfully finishing it in June of the following year.