India celebrates National Science Day on February 28

• National Science Day is celebrated annually on February 28 to commemorate Sir C.V. Raman’s discovery of the ‘Raman Effect’ (1928), which earned him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930.

• First observed in 1987, the day promotes scientific awareness, inquiry, and innovation across India.

• The theme for National Science Day 2026 is: ‘Women in Science: Catalyzing Viksit Bharat’.

Objectives of National Science Day:

• Promote scientific awareness in everyday life.

• Showcase India’s achievements in science and technology.

• Encourage innovation and technological development.

• Inspire youth to pursue careers in scientific research.

What is Raman Effect?

• The Raman Effect is a phenomenon in spectroscopy discovered by Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman while working in the laboratory of the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Kolkata.

• When light meets particles that are smaller than the light’s wavelength, the light spreads in different directions. 

• This occurs, for example, when light packets (photons) encounter molecules in a gas. 

• Raman discovered that a small portion of the scattered light acquires other wavelengths than that of the original light. 

• This is because some of the incoming photons’ energy can be transferred to a molecule, giving it a higher level of energy. 

• Among other things, the phenomenon is used to analyse different types of material.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)