The theme of the meeting was The abstracts of scientific sessions were available only as hard copies. Souvenirs were also distributed without any concern to trees or waste. Clearly, there are ample opportunities to use science and technology to improve the conferenceThe plenary sessions had a decent attendance. However, lawns outside the auditorium were the majority’s favouriteSchool children were taken on a hurried tour of the Pride of India exhibition and few got a chance to understand the exhibits. Participants of from public-funded institutes across India had display stalls in the eventVigyan Jyot or the flame of knowledge stood tall at the exhibit. The flame is a novel initiative to popularise science and encourage it as a career. It was conceptualised on the lines of Olympic Torch and inspired by the vision 2020 of former President A P J Abdul KalamThe scientific programmes were displayed prominently around the campus. However, these were put up only on the third day of the conference. Here, the showcase by Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO). Star attractions included Long Range Surface-to-Surface Ballistic Missile Agni-5, Akash Weapon System, Shaurya Missile, Brahmos missile model, among others