Drone, a highly sophisticated self-propelled unmanned aeroplane, spells selective death to unsuspecting people -be they the feared Taliban or simple tribal people in Pakistan. The flying machine hovers at a great altitude beyond recognition of the advanced radar and suddenly swoops on its targets. Now credit goes to a student named Abdullah Al Mamun Khan Deep, a student of electrical and electronics engineering (EEE) at Khulna University of Science and Technology (KUET) for successfully devising a drone as technologically advanced as those used by the United States of America (USA) for its campaign against terrorist organisations or against its enemy countries. One such drone was shot down by Iran and it claims it has developed a machine of comparable capability.
Not many countries are known to have perfected the technology in order to compete with the USA. If the report carried in a Bangla daily is on target, the achievement made possible by the 8th batch student of the EEE of KUET is something the nation should celebrate. The reason for celebration is not because Deep's auto-plane, unlike its US counterpart, will shower death from above but because of its use for saving human lives and helping the needy. Deep flew his plane on July 10 last year with the help of a remote controller.
Now this has been turned into a fully autonomous machine -one that uses Google map for its journey to a destination and returning back. With 90 per cent success under his belt, Deep will be required to use image processing card for cent per cent success in his project. But what has been achieved so far is enough to put the machine to a number of uses. It can be used for precision surveillance so much so that the exact location of smugglers, pirates and other anti-social gangs can be located. If one is desirous to get video footages of undesirable incidents or brewing troubles, the drone will fly to that spot and come down to a precise altitude to take pictures and send those back. Clearly, its uses can be multifarious including for purposes of defence.
Amid all kinds of negative developments in the country, some exceptionally talented people are taking it to ever newer height. Abdullah Al Mamun Deep's is the latest such name to be added to the list of high achievers. Clearly, this country does not run short of geniuses. If only its politics had not been mired by mean and partisan considerations all around! Deep has been helped by two of his batch-mates and now in collaboration with a junior student of the KUET, he is developing the video transmission system. This shows that there are other brilliant minds who are ready to contribute to scientific and technological achievements. The country would have leaped forward at a phenomenal pace if only it could nurture its young talents. A Bangladeshi holds the credit for perfecting the best aerodynamics of helicopter at National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), USA. Maksudul Alam is a pioneer in genome sequencing. There are others.
Unfortunately, not all stayed home or did their research works here. They had to leave the country. But time has changed. If the government is serious about making the most of the home-grown talents, it must create an enabling environment for research and experiment by putting in enough funds for the purpose.
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