President to inaugurate Commonwealth science meet

President Pranab Mukherjee will inaugurate the Commonwealth Science Conference, which is being held in India for the first time, here Tuesday evening.

Duke of York Prince Andrew will be the special guest at the inaugural session of the four-day conference at the country's premiere Indian Institute of Science (IISc).

Organised by the Royal Society and the union science and technology ministry, the summit will witness about 500 delegates, including 300 top scientists and 70 research scholars from 30 commonwealth nations, brainstorm on topics ranging from climate change, global health, mathematics and material and biological sciences to space.

"The event will celebrate excellence in science conducted in commonwealth countries and explore opportunities for collaborative research projects in diverse subjects," eminent scientist Bharat Ratna C.N.R. Rao told IANS here.

About 300 science graduates and faculty from across the country will get an opportunity to participate in the event and listen to renowned scientists and experts presenting their papers and research findings on diverse topics.

Nobel laureates Sir Paul Nurse and Sir Martin Rees from Britain's Astronomer Royal will deliver the keynote lectures. Nurse is president of the Royal Society in London.

Former Indian space agency (ISRO) chairman and Planning Commission member K. Kasturirangan, Infosys co-founder N.R. Narayana Murthy and Biocon chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw will share their vision on 'Entrepreneurship and Innovation in India' at a special session.

"The 53-member commonwealth countries account for 12 percent of the global scientific community and contribute about 10 percent of the global research and developmen budget," Rao said ahead of the conference.

Plenary sessions and workshops at the conference over the next three days will focus on building scientific capacity in developing nations and fostering a strong bond among scientists and researchers in the commonwealth fold.

Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, headed by Rao, is co-hosting the event along with the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust in London.

The Royal Society is the science academy of the Commonwealth to promote development of science and scientific temper among the stakeholders, including policy makers, governments, academia and industry.