05/11/2023
Assam's daughters are going places. Priyanka Rajkakati, an aerospace engineer, is leaving for the isolated glacial continent of Antarctica for a trip, which she hopes will be a life changing experience for her.
Priyanka, even though brought up in Delhi and currently living in Paris, is someone who has strong affiliations to her Assamese roots. And hence she wants to be the first Assamese woman who goes to Antarctica while carrying Assam's cultural pride- the gamosa.
The Assamese connection in Priyanka's trip to Antartica is also more than just her ethnicity. Her sponspors for this once-in-a-lifetime trip are Assam Tourism and the Government of Assam.
Priyanka wil be part of the Homeward Bound programme under which more than 80 women scientists with a STEMM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine) background, selected from 18 countries, will be spending 19 nights in Antarctica. The journey will involve crossing the trechearous Drake's Passage which harbours some of the highest waves that can reach upto 60 feet. Landings will be near the Southern Shetland Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula.
Currently, Priyanka is working as the Head of Special Projects at vorteX-io, a company aiming at creating flood warning systems.
Women like Priyanka are symbols for the young women of Assam and the Northeast in general. They are a reminder for us that our girls possess the talent and capability to scale great heights and reach places where few have treaded before.
