Conclave in November to showcase ‘evolution’ of Indian science

The government’s first ever Emerging Science, Technology and Innovation Conclave (ESTIC), to be held in November this year, is meant to reflect the strides and “evolution” that India has made in science and technology over the years and was not a mere “upgrade” of the traditional Indian Science Congress, Science Minister Jitendra Singh said on Monday (October 6, 2025).

As The Hindu had reported in September, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) was set to organise the first-ever ESTIC in lieu of the Indian Science Congress — the oldest congregation of scientists in India with a rich history that predates Indian Independence — but over the years had been fading into oblivion. A spat between the DST and ISC organisers — the Kolkata-based Indian Science Congress Association that is now in the courts further — ended up being the tombstone to the ISC, that was last held in its traditional format — with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in attendance — in Ludhiana in 2020.

“It would not be very polite to call the ESTIC as an upgraded ISC. But just as changes in technology over the years have seen the presentation formats, scientific themes and the manner of organisation evolve, similarly the ESTIC too will reflect India’s growing stature in science and technology and showcase achievements in technology, growth of start-ups and ambitions for the future,” Mr. Jitendra Singh said at a press conference to officially announce ESTIC.

He said Mr. Modi would “likely” to inaugurate ESTIC and every year the conclave would be held in different places outside Delhi. “We intend to give it a greater international flavour every year but that would require planning over 12 months. This year we commenced preparations a little late, but you will see it evolve, with greater international participation of Nobel Laureates and leading figures, in the coming years,” the Minister added.

75 exhibition stalls

The inaugural ESTIC event will be held at the Bharat Mandapam here on November 3 and 4. All of the government scientific ministries, ranging from atomic energy, space and information technology will be involved in its organisation. According to the event website, it will have 11 thematic technical sessions, 75 exhibition stalls by ‘deep tech’ start-ups. Nobel Laureate Andre Geim (2010, Physics) is expected to make an appearance. Jean-Yves Le Gall, former president of the French Space Agency; Prof. Masaru Tomita, Keio University, Japan are among the foreign dignitaries expected.

Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology (DST) said that through 11 thematic sessions and high-level panels, ESTIC-2025 would chart a comprehensive road map for achieving Viksit Bharat 2047 by aligning innovation with national priorities. “What made ESTIC unique was the whole-of-government approach. With Ministries spanning Health, Education, Agriculture, Energy, Space, Electronics and IT, Environment and more, innovation is no longer confined to laboratories but embedded across every sector of national development,” he added.