Over 5000 students visit ROSATOM Festival of Science at B.M. Birla Planetarium, other locations in Chennai

More than 5000 students from over 50 schools of the city visited the three-day ROSATOM Festival of Science held from July 25 to 27 at B.M. Birla Planetarium.

Organised by the Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation, ROSATOM, in association with Tamil Nadu Science and Technology Centre, the programme was aimed at creating awareness among younger generation on the importance of nuclear power and its role in a developing economy.

Seminars and discussions on topics 'Public perceptions about atomic energy: myths vs reality', 'Discoveries of the Year', 'Nuclear energy and its benefits', 'Why do we need science?' were held alongside Painting Competition on 'Nuclear Power Plants for Green World' on the inaugural day.

The event also witnessed the release of Tamil book on ABC's of Nuclear energy and titled 'ANUKARU ARICHUVADI'. The book was given away to the students who visited the science festival. The content of the book talks in a methodical yet simple language on the fundamentals of nuclear power and aptly complemented with animated illustrations for the children to imbibe the concepts in an effortless way.

Mikhail Gorbatov, Director, Russian Centre of Science and Culture was the Chief Guest. Dr. S.K. Malhotra, Disctinguished Scientist, Department of Atomic Energy, Mumbai, was the Guest of Honor. Dr. P. Iyamperumal, Executive Director, Tamil Nadu Science and Technology Centre, Presided over the event.

Prior to the science festival, lectures of Mikhail Kornienko, Russian pilot-cosmonaut; Elia Kabanov, a science journalist and Andrey Akatov, senior lecturer in Saint-Petersburg State Institute of Technology, were delivered in the educational institutions of Chennai and the Tamil Nadu Science and Technology Center that set the mood of the science festival in the city.

"I hope that the festivals of science which we may likely organise on a regular basis will become a good tradition between Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation and South India. This time we had with us around group of children which had come from Kudankulam area. So, the next year we will do our best to bring this festival to Kudankulam nuclear power plant, which plays a unique role in the Indo-Russian relations in the field of science and technology," added Ale?ey Pimenov, Regional Vice-President of Rosatom South Asia.