Science City Kolkata @25

In the decade of 2000-2010s very few science students of Kolkata missed the experience of watching the towering statue of a T-Rex greeting them enroute to India’s largest science museum, the Science City. As Science City touches 25 years of a fascinating journey which started way back in 1996-97, it is befitting to look back at the history of this iconic destination. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation had allotted 49.06 acres of land in 1994 for building this park. It was developed by M/S Consultants Pvt. Ltd in partnership with a Japanese firm M/S Goto Inc. It was conceptualized by Saroj Ghose, the first director general of National Council of Science Museums. The inauguration happened in two phases- the first phase was the Convention Centre Complex which was unveiled by Nobel laureate Paul Jozef Crutzen on 21st December 1996. The second phase of the project where the entire centre was opened for public was inaugurated by the then Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral on 1st July 1997 in presence of former Chief Minister of West Bengal, Jyoti Basu.

Science City has evolved over the years but even today the Dinosaur Park remains one of the greatest attractions. It showcases the evolution of dinosaurs and underlines the possible reasons for its extinction. It provides a lifetime experience of moving replicas of massive giants who walked this earth in the Jurassic World. Through motions and live visuals this ride explains the rise and fall of dinosaurs and the emergence of new species. The ropeway is also engaging as it provides a bird’s eye view of the entire park. The butterfly nursery is another example of scientific nurturing as it provides real-life specimens of biodiversity. The park is famous for providing a range of services from interactive and 3-D exhibitions on various contemporary research topics, the Earth Exploration Hall, the Space Centre, Panorama on Human Evolution and much more to offer. 

The most distinctive part of Science City is that it provides practical demonstrations of science-related subjects which makes it an attractive venue for science enthusiasts. In the recently concluded 25th anniversary celebrations of this heritage museum, many eminent personalities were invited as chief guests- Director of Bose Institute and Professor of Physics, Shivaji Raha; Director-General of National Council of Science Museums, L.K. Mukherjee; and former Director of NCSM and curator, A.D. Chowdhury to name a few. The Covid-19 Pandemic induced lockdown was a big challenge which Science City had to overcome in its spotless journey as it continues to be a crowd-puller even today with record footfall in the month of May 2022. It could be said that Science City will survive until the day science becomes irrelevant.