Assam govt inks MoU with NCSM to set up Science City

The Assam government today said it has signed an agreement with National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) to develop a science city at an investment of Rs 110 crore on the outskirts of the state capital at Sonapur.
"A state-of-the-art Science City is coming up at Sonapur on the outskirts of Guwahati. An MoU was signed between Government of Assam and National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) in presence of Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi," an official release said.
The Science City would primarily focus on frontier areas of science and technology and would strive to be a financially self sustainable edutainment facility.

"The total project cost for the Science City will be Rs 110 crore," the statement said.
The recurring expenditure would be entirely borne by the state government and the estimated average annual expenditure would be around Rs 7 crore, it said.
"The Science City, spread over an area of 250 bighas, will be operated and maintained by a registered society formed by the Government of Assam for the purpose. A representative of the National Council of Science Museums will be an ex-officio member of the society," the release said.
Science Exhibition halls would have various themes of scientific importance such as astronomy and space, Indian science and technology heritage, disaster management, emerging technologies, earth sciences, climate change, bio-diversity, health and nutrition, energy, water and fundamental science.

The Science City would aim at inculcating scientific temper in Assam in particular and the North East in general, besides providing a unique edutainment facility and establishing a venue for edu-tourism for the region, the statement added.