North Pole means an inaccessible area covered with ice. Getting there is definitely a rare experience. Kaushik Ahmed, a student of the Department of Electricity and Electronics of Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (RUET) got that incredible opportunity in the welfare of the World Youth Festival. Kaushik will mainly travel to the Ural Mountains and the Arctic region of the North Pole. He will embark on this expedition in an icebreaker (a special type of ship for navigating ice-covered waterways) of the Russian nuclear agency Rosatom. Very few people have had the opportunity to travel to the North Pole on a nuclear-powered icebreaker.
The main World Youth Festival took place March 1-7 in Sochi, Russia. Rosatom organized a competition in this festival. More than two thousand contestants from all over the world took part in it. After several stages of verification, 20 people made it to the main stage. 20 contestants had to present what they will do on the expedition, what they will learn, what they plan to do back home.
Kaushik’s main point was, ‘Bangladesh has just entered the nuclear age. I want to use the experience gained from this campaign in the work of the country. Bangladesh is a developing country. Investments in science, technology and energy-security sectors are needed to develop developing countries. I want to work towards that goal.” On that occasion, he got a ticket to go on an icebreaker expedition.
Kaushik is still in Moscow. Seeing something new, learning. If all goes well, he will be out for the campaign in August this year. A total of 15 representatives from eight countries will participate in this educational expedition of science. They will learn about the North Pole and nuclear power through the expedition. Kaushik is looking forward to seeing the North Pole with his own eyes. He told us on WhatsApp from Moscow, Russia, ‘Not everyone gets the opportunity to go to the North Pole. And even if it is financially very expensive. Various practical knowledge will be gained from this expedition such as; You can also see polar bears and polar lights. Again there is the matter of representing the country – it feels good to think about it. I am very excited.’
