Science Day 2025

About NCRA and GMRT

National Centre for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA), a center of the school of natural sciences of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India has set up a unique facility for radio astronomical research using the metre wavelengths range of the radio spectrum, known as the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT). It is the world`s largest Radio telescope of its kind. It is located at a site about 80 km north of Pune. GMRT consists of 30 fully steerable gigantic parabolic dishes of 45m diameter each spread over distances of upto 25 km. GMRT is one of the most challenging experimental programmes in basic sciences undertaken by Indian scientists and engineers. GMRT is a very versatile instrument for investigating a variety of radio astrophysical problems ranging from nearby Solar system to the edge of observable Universe.

About National Science Day

Throughout India, February 28th is celebrated as National Science Day. National Centre for Radio Astrophysics - Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Pune (NCRA-TIFR) celebrates Science Day by organising 2 days' Science festival at its GMRT campus in Khodad, which is one of the biggest Science festivals in the country.

This Science festival attracts around 20,000 to 25000 visitors, including students from various schools (5th to 10th grade), colleges (BSc, MSc, Engineering), teachers, software professionals, major science research organisations, scientists and research scholars throughout the state/country.

Every year the government organizations like National AIDS Research Institute (NARI), National Institute of Virology (NIV), National Centre for Cell Sciences (NCCS), National Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), Pune, Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO, SAC), Ahmedabad, Institute of Plasma Research, Gandhinagar, TIFR Balloon Facility Hyderabad as well as non-profit organisations like Pune FOSS User Group, Free Software Community of India, Debian India, Mozilla India and 20 other organizations participate in the GMRT Science Exhibition.

Request for Sponsorhip

The Pune FOSS User Group (PFUG) wants to use this opportunity (by setting its stall) to showcase the importance of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) and its use in everyday life. We intend to promote FOSS such as Debian, Raspbian on Raspberry Pi, Mobian, CentOS, Diaspora (an alternative to social media platform based on FOSS principles), OpenJDK, Python, Moodle, git, Trac, LaTeX, Emacs, etc., and awareness about its philosophy among students, teachers, software professionals, researchers, and the general public. Additionally, our focus is also on creating awareness about digital literacy, privacy, and technical debt-related issues.

For the above-mentioned purposes, we request you to sponsor our efforts for promoting Free and OpenSource Software at Science Day. Pune FOSS User Group does not engage in commercial activities and these FOSS promotions are organized purely voluntarily.

We depend solely on donations from users and benefactors. Since the event will involve around 10-15 volunteers hence, your support can enable us to bring the FOSS community volunteers together. Your sponsorship would greatly assist us in covering the costs of promotional items like Flex, Banners, FOSS Stickers, Posters, T-Shirt printing, DVDs/Pendrives of Debian, Rented Monitors, and Computers, and some operational expenses, etc. The funds raised for Science Day will be used for this purpose only. Any remaining surplus will be used for funding future Free and OpenSource Software related activities under the banner of Pune FOSS User Group only.

In appreciation of your support, we will acknowledge your contribution on event materials, as outlined in the attached Sponsorship Brochure. We believe that your company's support will significantly contribute to the success of our event and further the promotion of Open Source technologies. If you are interested in sponsoring our efforts for National Science Day 2025 at GMRT or would like more information, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am available to answer any questions and provide additional details.

We kindly request your esteemed support as a Platinum or Gold Sponsor for our event. For detailed information on sponsorship opportunities, please refer to the attached Sponsorship Brochure. Additionally, you may explore our website for further insights

Sponsorhip Brochure

Click here to access the Sponsorhip Brochure

Event Brochure

Click here to access the Event Brochure