102nd Indian Science Congress ends amidst claims of ancient achievements making headlines

The 102nd Indian Science Congress, which was inaugurated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 3, ended on Wednesday. The event attracted over 15,000 delegates from all over India, including scientists and research students. Railway minister Suresh Prabhu and UP governor Ram Naik attended the concluding function on Wednesday evening.

The Modi government's initiatives in last seven months, like Swachh Bharat, Make in India and Skill Development, were part of the deliberations at the five-day meet, hosted by Mumbai University at its suburban Kalina campus. The claims made by some speakers on ancient aviation and surgery at a symposium on 'Ancient Sciences through Sanskrit' created controversy.

There was also a discussion on 'Science and Technology in SAARC Countries' and on the much-debated issue of GM crops in India. 

Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan's claim at the inaugural event that algebra and the Pythagoras theorem both originated in India but the credit went to others also created a stir. Nobel Laureates and eminent scientists and technology experts from India and abroad were present at the meet, whose theme was 'Science and Technology for Human Development'.

Women's Science Congress, Children's Science Congress, Science Exhibition were also organised during the session. The Children's Science Congress was inaugurated by the former President APJ Abdul Kalam. Nobel laureate K Satyarthi also interacted with the participants.

Among other topics, biodiversity conservation, space application and clean energy systems for the future figured in the sessions.