Dr.Aditi Pant........................डॉ अदिति पन्त.

Aditi Pant, oceanographer, the first Indian woman to have set foot on the Antarctic

डॉ अदिति पन्त.....पहली भारतीय महिला जिन्होंने... अंटार्कटिका पर कदम रखा .


An eminent oceanographer. She proved that Women have also accepted the challenges of the oceans and have participated in expeditions dealing with ocean research. Dr Aditi Pant is the first Indian woman to participate in the cruise to the icy continent, Antarctica. And has become the first Indian woman to have set foot on the Antarctic The expedition was for a period of 4 months and the participants had to explore this continent under rough weather conditions
Pant was honoured with the Antarctica Award along with Sudipta Sengupta, Jaya Naithani and Kanwal Vilku for their outstanding contribution to the Indian Antarctic programme.
A part of the third Indian expedition to Antarctica in 1983-84, Pant was a member of the scientific team in the summer period.
Born in Nagpur, she did her bachelor's degree in science from the University of Pune.
She did her MS in Marine Sciences from the University of Hawaii and obtained doctorate from the London University in the Physiology of Marine Algae
She worked in The National Institute of Oceanography (Goa) and the National Chemical Laboratory (Pune) .
Aditi, who, said: “The expedition was part of a programme to collect information on the Antarctic — not an adventure trip. It was tax payers’ money that sent us there.” It was the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s initiative, as she wanted India to set up a base camp in the Antarctic, since the likes of Russia, the U.S., the U.K., Australia and China had a presence there. “It was a move driven by political considerations, but had a scientific front,” she says. The Antarctic is a dream for scientists, says Aditi. A few of her team mates studied ice core samples and did weather surveys. “Just studying ice core samples three metres deep can take you back a million years,” she says. “The expedition took place in Antarctic summer — we left in November, and reached in December. It was nice and warm. The temperature was around -20 degrees C, and we left by the time it touched -30 degrees C. The ambience was unusual — huge space and no noise but for the wind. It was all very bleak."
Cold facts
The tents were insulated, but the cold outside was something to contend with. “It’s difficult to work in the cold. Your numb fingers don’t obey you, you have to warm them up every now and then. Everything takes longer than usual.” And, of course, water supply is easier in the summer than in the winter, as the lakes are frozen.
“In the winter, you have to melt the ice for water.” The base camp building, assembled by the army personnel, was designed in the shape of an E, and connected by a corridor. “If we had a fire we could disconnect the buildings, and survive till a rescue team arrived,” she explained. The team was well prepared — three doctors, helicopters, medicines and supplies such as rice, dhal and veggies. Even so, on the way back they ran out of chillies. “They had to be thrown away, as they could not withstand the -16 degrees. The onions rot, and the food was horribly bland.”
Interestingly, on one of the expeditions (Aditi went on two) the temperature in the Antarctic was 10 degrees as opposed to Canada’s -20 degrees! And she also remembers her encounters with the Emperor Penguin. “The Emperor Penguin is neither friendly nor unfriendly. It doesn’t care as long as it is not touched.”
About any gender discrimination she could have faced, she says, “In my profession, I have never faced it, and never allowed it to happen. There are lots of competent women doing excellent work. There are women scientists who have stayed in the Antarctic for sixteen months. We have reached a stage where we don’t need role models. We just go out and do our bit.”
डॉ अदिति पन्त.....पहली भारतीय महिला जिन्होंने... अंटार्कटिका पर कदम रखा .
सन १९८१ में जुलाई के महीने में दिल्ली में महासागर विकास विभाग बनाया गया ..इसका महत्त्व इसी बात से साफ़ हो जाता है कि यह सीधे प्रधानमंत्री की देख रेख में आता था ....उस समय की प्रधानमंत्री थी श्रीमती इंदिरा गांधी .... उन्होंने इस विभाग कीअंटार्कटिका में जाने और एक गुप्त योजना पर काम करने का आदेश दिया ...इस आपरेशन का नाम रखा गया आपरेशन गंगोत्री .....इसको गुप्त रखने का एक ही कारण था कि वहां के मौसम के बारे में सही जानकारी नहीं थी और पता नही नही था कि यहाँ के आनिश्चित वातवरण में यह आपरेशन सफल होगा भी या नही .....लेकिन फिर दो बार वहा कैंप भी लगे......फिर सोचा गया कि वहा कि कठिन परिस्तिथ्यो में क्या महिलाए रह सकती हैं....और सहमति यह बनी कि..
चार महीने का तो प्रवास वहां महिलाये आसानी से कर सकती है .. पर उनको अपने घर बार से दूर रहना होगा...... वहा तूफानी हवा का सामना ....कडाके की सर्दी .....मौसम का सामना करना और स्टेशन की देखभाल आदि करने का काम है जिसको कोई भी महिला अपने संघर्ष से आसानी से कर सकती है ...लेकिन सबसे बड़ी समस्या होती है पुरूषों की मानसिकता से जो ख़ुद को महिलाओं से अधिक श्रेष्ट मानते हैं ...और यहाँ तो वैसे भी पुरुषों का दबदबा रहा है ....यह सिर्फ़ भारतीय पुरुषों के साथ नही है .अन्य केन्द्र भी यहाँ इसी दंभ से भरे हुए हैं ...इसका एक उदाहरण मिला यही की एक किताब में जब अमरीकी स्टेशन मैकमुर्डोपर दो अमरीकी महिला सदस्य पहुँची तो कोई पुरूष वहां स्टेशन पर रहने वाला उनके स्वागत को बाहर तक नही आया और यही अहंकार उनके पुरूष होने का उनकी वहां की हर बात चीत में झलकता है ..बस यही एक समस्या है कि जब अकेली महिला वहां हो तो उसको इस अतरिक्त मानसिक दबाब को सहना पड़ता है. ......लेकिन इसकी भी प्रवाह किये बिना तीसरे कैंप (१९८३-८४) के लिए डॉ अदिति पन्त का चुनाव हुआ....वो समुन्दर विज्ञान के अनुसंधान में निपुण थी........
नागपुर में जन्मी अदिति पन्त ने पुणे विश्वविद्यालय से विज्ञानं में सनातक कि डिग्री प्राप्त की थी उसके बाद उन्होंने Marine Sciences में University of Hawaii से MS किया फिर डाक्टरेट कि डिग्री उन्होंने London University से Physiology of Marine Algae में ली ..

उन्होंने The National Institute of Oceanography (Goa) और the National Chemical Laboratory (Pune) में काम किया था .
भारतीय महिलाओं में तीन वैज्ञानिक महिलाओं डॉ सुदीप्त सेनगुप्ता ,डॉ आदिती पन्त और डॉ जया नैथानी और एक मेडिकल आफिसर डॉ कंवल विल्कू को अंटार्कटिका अवार्ड से सम्मानित किया जा चुका है .