After a two-year Covid break, the Indian Science Congress would reconvene its annual session, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi would not be able to be present due to other engagements, which may include attending ceremonies to be performed in honour of his mother who passed away last week.
Prime Minister Modi will inaugurate the Indian Science Congress through video-conferencing.
The last edition of the Indian Science Congress was held at the University of Agriculture Sciences, Bengaluru, in January 2020. This time, the 108th session of the Congress will take place at Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University, which is celebrating its centenary year.
This will be one of the rare sessions of the Indian Science Congress that will be skipped by the Prime Minister. The last time such a thing happened was in 2004 when Prime Minister Atal Bihari could not make it to the inauguration of the Indian Science Congress held in Chandigarh due to bad weather and his plan to travel to Islamabad the next day to attend the SAARC Summit.
The focal theme of this year's Science Congress is "Science and Technology for Sustainable Development with Women Empowerment." The annual Congress will see discussions on issues of sustainable development, women empowerment, and the role of science and technology in achieving these objectives.
Secretaries of science departments are expected to present a 2030 roadmap in their respective fields on Tuesday. The event will also feature deliberations on a range of subjects, including the Covid pandemic, advances in computer sciences, cancer research, space sciences, and vaccines.
Following President Droupadi Murmu's elevation to the top post as the first tribal woman, a new section titled "Tribal Science Congress" has been added to the programme. "This will seek to showcase the empowerment of tribal women and also provide a platform for the display of indigenous accent knowledge system and practice," said Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh.
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari, Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari and Jitendra Singh, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy Devendra Fadnavis will attend the inaugural event.