Bhubaneswar, Jun 4 (IANS): Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday flagged off the exposure visit for winners of the 12th edition of Tata Steel's Young Astronomer Talent Search (YATS) programme.

The winning group of 20 students will go on an exposure visit to one of the premier facilities of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Space Applications Centre in Ahmedabad to get a first-hand experience of space science in action.

The Chief Minister congratulated them for their immense talent and success and hoped that they would make India proud in space research and application.

Kulvin Suri, Tata Steel's Corporate Communications chief (India and South-East Asia) said, "YATS is a unique programme based on space science and constantly motivates young minds to think beyond just academics and push their imagination to the optimum. We are committed to enrich the programme for students and teachers alike."

Tata Steel is organizing this flagship event in collaboration with Pathani Samanta Planetarium since 2007 to acknowledge the exemplary contribution of Pathani Samanta, legendary astronomer of Odisha, and encourage youngsters to showcase innovative concepts on various themes of space science and astronomy.