After laying the foundation stone in 1995, Sonia Gandhi was back in Mauritius last week, for the official opening of the Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre, named after her late husband. The aim of this centre is to make science more convivial through permanent exhibitions, which combine fun and pedagogy.

The centre's chairperson, Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, who is also the Dean of the Faculty of Sciences at the University of Mauritius, thinks the new centre should be used as a tool to make sciences more popular with young people. She has given herself the mission of showing that ?science is lively and fun!? Ameenah Gurib-Fakim strongly believes that India should be an example to Mauritius as the former already has several centres, similar to the Rajiv Gadhi Science Centre, which help to demystify the sciences.

The centre in Bell Village is open to people of all ages. They will certainly learn about scientific developments through play tools and activities. Traditional instruments as well as the most modern ones will show the evolution of science.

The origin of Mauritius is described on the walls of the centre through pictures and diagrams in the first gallery called ?Origin of Mauritius?. While going through it, you discover how Mauritius was formed.

New technologies

The geological and environmental aspects of the country are explained in simple terms, accessible to all in the second gallery ?Land and Environment of Mauritius?. Visitors are made aware of the importance of the environment.

The third gallery focuses on the ?Resources of Mauritius?; in other words, it introduces the main sectors of the economy and their evolution. The result is astonishing: a sugar factory in miniature made with much precision and daintiness and a figure of an Indian weaver. Tourism and fisheries are also part of the visit. The ?Frontier of modern technology? is a way of showing the progress in the fields of medicine, biotechnology or textile through new technologies.

But what students will probably enjoy the most are the Virtual Reality and Fun Science galleries. The first is a booth where they can play football and basketball virtually and the second will allow students to discover scientific principles through mechanics or optical illusion.

As the centre?s chairperson rightly points out, the Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre will play an important role at various levels: making people more aware of the scope and development of science.