India International Science Festival

"The main purpose of IISF is the celebration of science Engagement of common people with science in a joyful and entertaining manner is essential for a healthy, prosperous and meaningful life. "

India International Science Festival (IISF) is an initiative of the Vijnana Bharati organised every year since 2015 in association with the Government of India. Till date, the Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Earth Science, MInistry of Health and Family Welfare, Department of Biotechnolgy, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, and others have been an integral part of IISF.

The main purpose of IISF is the celebration of science by all. Engagement of common people with science in a joyful and entertaining manner is essential for a healthy, prosperous and meaningful life. Through its creative programs and activities, IISF provides opportunities to people and scientific fraternity in the country and abroad to come together, work together and experience the joy of doing science for the well-being of India and humanity.

The India International Science Festival (IISF) is an integral part of India’s long term vision in developing and widening the spectrum of scientific temper in India and abroad.


IISF journey so far

The journey of IISF was started with its inaugural event at Delhi in 2015. Six editions of IISF have been organized since then in northern, southern and the eastern regions of the country.

The pandemic of 2020 due to Covid19 posed a serious challenge for the conduct of this annual event, but the challenge was overcome by conducting the event on a virtual platform to maintain the uninterrupted flow of the journey.

Responsibility of conducting this mega annual event is given either to one of the departments of the Ministry of Science and Technology, viz. DST, CSIR and DBT or to the Ministry of Earth Science in rotation. Several other ministries and departments related to S&T have always been involved in the organization of the event. Vijnana Bharati has been a consistent organizing partner in the forward march of IISF.

IISF has evolved progressively through its innovative design of programs and activities connecting various aspects of life to science. Representation of the diverse strata of society in the event has emerged as a remarkable feature of IISF. The number of participants from India and abroad has grown steadily with every edition and the journey is on involving more and more people to attain the desired outcome.

Edition Place / Location Year Theme
First New Delhi December 4-8, 2015
Second New Delhi December 7-11, 2016 Science for the Masses
Third Chennai October 13 - 16, 2017 Science for New India
Fourth Lucknow October 5-8, 2018 Science for Transformation
Fifth Kolkata November 5-8, 2019 RISEN India – Research, Innovation, and Science Empowering the Nation.
Sixth Virtual platform December 22 - 25, 2020 Science for self-reliant India and Global welfare to support the Government's initiative of making Atmanirbhar Bharat
Seventh Panjim, Goa December 10-13, 2021 Celebrating Creativity in Science, Technology and Innovation for Prosperous India
Eighth Bhopal, MP January 21-24, 2023 Marching towards Amrit Kaal with Science, Technology, and Innovation.
Ninth Faridabad, New Delhi January 17-20, 2024 Science and Technology Public Outreach in Amrit Kaal.