Engineering college pays tribute to alumna Kalpana Chawla

Chandigarh, February 1

The Punjab Engineering College (PEC) paid tribute to a distinguished alumna of the institute, Kalpana Chawla, on her 21st death anniversary.

Chawla graduated from the Aerospace Engineering Department of PEC in 1982 and went on to become the first Indian-origin woman to go to space in 2003. She lost her life in the same year when Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated as it re-entered Earth’s atmosphere.

The head of alumni and corporate relations at the institute, Dr Rajesh Kanda, talked about Chawla’s academic journey at the institute and said she would remain an inspiration to everyone in the fields of engineering and aerospace.

The institute’s deputy director, Siby John, said Chawla was the embodiment of woman empowerment. He also paid tribute to a centenarian PEC alumnus Bikram Singh Grewal, who died on January 31.

The head of the aerospace engineering department, Rakesh Kumar, said before Chawla started at school, her name was Montu. She later renamed herself Kalpana, which embodied her imaginative skills.

Prof SC Sharma, who was the head of the aerospace engineering department when Chawla was studying at the institute, said she was very confident about fulfilling her dreams. He shared nuances from her life that most people are unaware of.