The IX Phase of the prestigious Science Express exhibition train which is on a Nationwide tour since 17 February 2017 reached Madgaon in Goa today i.e. 11 July 2017. This phase of train is being referred as ‘Science Express Climate Action Special (SECAS)’ highlighting the global challenge of climate change. Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu Inaugurated this Madgaon leg of Science Express today through Video Conferencing from Delhi. SECAS is focusing on Climate Change and Science & Technology. The exhibition conveys message about Climate Change and is also a good opportunity to generate dialogue and discussion. This exhibition train will be available for public viewing at Madgaon from 11 to 13 July 2017, then the train will move forward to next destinations as per its itinerary.
BACKGROUNDER-
Science Express is a flagship programme of the Dept. of Science & Technology (DST), Govt. of India. It is an innovative mobile science exhibition mounted on a 16 coach AC train, traveling across India since October 2007. Since then, it has made eight tours of the country, traveling about 1,53,000 km and exhibiting at 495 locations. Over its 1712 exhibition days, Science Express received an overwhelming response and 1.64 crore visitors. Science Express has become the largest, the longest running and the most visited mobile science exhibition and has twelve entries in the Limca Book of Records.Science Express Phase I to IV showcased cutting-edge research in Science and Technology being carried out worldwide. Phase V to VII was based on the theme of biodiversity and as ‘Science Express Biodiversity Special (SEBS)’, it showcased the rich biodiversity of India and its conservation measures. Phase VIII as ‘Science Express Climate Action Special (SECAS)’ highlighted the global challenge of climate change.
The current ninth phase of the Science Express as SECAS II was flagged off on 17 Feb 2017 from Delhi Safdarjung Railway Station by Shri Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Railways; Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Minister of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences; and Late Shri Anil Madhav Dave, Minister of State (I/C) for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Govt. of India. The current tour of SECAS is scheduled from 17 Feb to 8 Sept 2017, during which it will be exhibited at 68 stations across India, covering 19000 km. SECAS is focusing on Climate Change and Science & Technology. The exhibition conveys message about Climate Change and is also a good opportunity to generate dialogue and discussion.The SECAS II is a unique collaborative initiative of Dept. of Science & Technology (DST), Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEFCC), Dept. of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Railways, Govt of India; Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and Vikram A Sarabhai Community Science Centre (VASCSC).
Climate Change is an important environmental issue, with many short term and long term impacts. From shifting weather patterns that threaten food production, to rising sea levels that increase the risk of catastrophic flooding, the impacts of climate change are not just global in scope and unprecedented in scale but they also more severely affect the poor and marginalized people. However, there is very little understanding about climate change and its impacts. The state-of-the-art exhibition on board the SECAS aims to create awareness among various sections of society as to how climate change can be combated through mitigation and adaptation.The Paris Agreement entered into force on 4 Nov 2016. The Paris Agreement’s central aim is to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change and to strengthen the ability of countries to deal with the impacts of climate change. The first session of the
Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 1) took place in Marrakech in November 2016. The Conference successfully demonstrated to the world that the implementation of the Paris Agreement is underway and the constructive spirit of multilateral cooperation on climate change continues. Science Express, redesigned as SECAS, intends to contribute towards increasing understanding of the science of climate change, the observed and anticipated impacts, and different possible responses. The previous 3 phases of Science Express were rolled out as a joint initiative of DST and MoEFCC as Biodiversity Special and showcased the myriad biodiversity of India. Thus it was rational to shift the focus to the theme ‘Climate Change’ as it will affect the biodiversity of not just India but the entire globe as well.Of the 16 coaches of SECAS, exhibition in 8 coaches put up by MoEFCC, is exclusively devoted to information, case studies and material related to various aspect of Climate change, the underlying science, impacts, adaptation activities, mitigation solutions and policy approaches in a manner that is easy to understand and interesting for not just school students but also the masses. In rest of the rake, there are exhibits and activities put up by DBT and DST.