National Science Day observed with theme Scientific Issues for Development of the Nation

28 February: National Science Day

National Science Day was observed across India on 28 February 2016. The theme for the National Science Day 2016 is Scientific Issues for Development of the Nation.

The day is observed annually to mark the discovery of the Raman Effect (phenomenon of scattering of photons) by Indian physicist Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman on 28 February 1928.

Raman was awarded with the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930 for his discovery and this was the first Nobel Prize for India in the field of Science.

The National Council for Science and Technology Communications (NCSTC) in 1986 asked the Union Government to designate 28 February as National Science Day. The proposal was accepted by the Government and it designated 28 February as National Science Day in 1986. The first National Science Day was celebrated on 28 February 1987.

What is Raman Effect?

Raman Effect or the Raman scattering is a phenomenon in which light changes its wavelength when a light beam is deflected by molecules. When a beam of light traverses a dust-free, transparent sample of a chemical compound, a small fraction of the light emerges in directions other than that of the incident (incoming) beam.

Most of this scattered light is of unchanged wavelength. A small part, however, has wavelengths different from that of the incident light and its presence is a result of the Raman Effect.

This was discovered by CV Raman while working in a laboratory of the Indian Association for the Cultivation of science, Kolkata.

World Science Day for Peace and Development is annually celebrated worldwide on 10 November. The day was established by UNESCO in 2001 to demonstrate to the wider public why science is relevant to their daily lives and to engage them in debate on related issues.

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