VES College of Pharmacy unravels the fantastic dimension of chemistry through Chemtastic

Mumbai:Those who feel that chemistry is a boring and rote science subject would have begged to differ if they had a chance to visit Chemtastic 2016. An initiative of Vivekanand Education Society’s College of Pharmacy (VESCOP) and conceptualized in totality by students of the college to popularize the subject, the event was a celebration of the uniqueness of chemistry whose applications we find in our everyday life right from the process of breathing to nuclear fission.

The event received valuable guidance from Dr. A.K.Tyagi, noted scientist and HOD, Solid State Chemistry Department (BARC) who stated that chemistry has been as old as mankind itself and is omnipresent in our life.

Around 300 students from more than 12 Pharmacy and science degree colleges across Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra like Ratnagiri, Palghar and Chiplun participated wholeheartedly and enthusiastically in the event which stressed on the fact that chemistry is a fun subject to learn and not boring as commonly perceived. The students also took part in specially planned chemistry-related activities like Chemskit, which involved short skits performed by students in a humorous manner to spread awareness about several chemistry concepts, Chemochrome ; making of Rangolis centering around various chemistry processes, Chembuzz which was a quiz to test the quizzer’s knowledge on chemistry, Procreation comprising 2 minute video presentations on chemistry and a model making camp in which students prepared models lending focus to popular chemistry theories. These activities showed that beyond conventional teaching methods and practical learning methodologies, chemistry is a wonderful subject which can be easily understood, learnt and taught through the use of effective visual media and specially curated programs.

“Chemtastic is an amalgamation of chemistry and fantastic, intended to bring out the fantastic dimension of chemistry. Students usually associate chemistry with boring theories and rotund textual knowledge. Teachers also teach the subject in a staid, academic manner which makes learning a theoretical process. The whole purpose of organizing Chemtastic 2016 was to create an atmosphere in which learning chemistry would not only be fun but would be filled with various knowledge-enhancing activities meant to revive interest in the subject. The overwhelming success of the event can be gauged from the fact that it was conceptualized by the students for the students, a complete student initiative,” said Dr Rakesh Somani, Professor& HOD, Dept of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, VES College of Pharmacy, who is also the convenor of the event. The event is his brainchild.

Stressing on the need to hold more such events to popularize chemistry, Dr (Mrs). Supriya Shidhaye, Principal, VES College of Pharmacy said, “We are extremely happy to note that Chemtastic 2016 received an enthusiastic response and participation from the student fraternity. It was equally heartening to note that diverse concepts of chemistry were explained in a simple and easy manner through various skits and models which were initiated by the students. This event lays emphasis on the fact that chemistry is an interesting and easy to learn subject. One only needs the formulation of unique ideas, simple learning concepts and easy executable processes to popularize the subject.”