Guwahati, April 30, 2026 – Girijananda Chowdhury University (GCU) became the hub for academic discourse on sustainable development initiatives and the role of technical terminology in Assamese during a two-day national seminar organized by the Commission for Scientific and Technical Terminology (CSTT), Ministry of Education, GOI in collaboration with GCU’s Department of Chemistry. The national seminar, titled “Sustainable Development Initiatives in Chemical, Biological, and Pharmaceutical Sciences: The Role of Technical Terminology in Assamese,” brought together researchers and academicians across the North east during April 29–30, 2026.
The inaugural session on April 29 was marked by the ceremonial lighting of the lamp by the dignitaries including Shri Jasoda Ranjan Das, President of Srimanta Sankar Academy (SSA) Society and Prof. Jayanta Deka, Chancellor of GCU, alongside CSTT officials and Assistant Director Shri Shalandra Singh and Ms. Mercy Lalrohluo Hmar. The University anthem set the tone for the seminar’s commencement.
In his welcome address, President, SSA emphasized the importance of mother tongue in learning scientific concepts, while Chancellor, GCU highlighted the challenges faced by the Assamese-medium students due to complex English technical terms. He noted that the National Education Policy 2020 encourages education in native languages to improve comprehension and advocated for the development of scientific terminology in Assamese.
Dr. Nirmala Devi, seminar coordinator, spoke on the power of ‘Words’ in learning stating that learning begins at mother’s womb. She also highlighted CSTT’s ongoing efforts since 1961 to develop scientific and technical terminology in Indian languages. Shri Shalandra Singh and Ms. Mercy Lalrohluo Hmar detailed the CSTT’s role in promoting multilingual scientific communication and introduced the “Shabd Portal,” a digital platform offering access to multilingual glossaries.
The plenary sessions on the first day featured experts discussing sustainable development from multiple scientific perspectives. Dr. Kishor Kumar Baruah of Tezpur University emphasized the role of space science and technology in environmental protection. Dr. Mausumi Ganguly from Cotton University highlighted the importance of accurate regional technical terminology, stressing bilingual education and community participation. Dr. Ritusmita Goswami of Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Guwahati discussed on climate-smart agriculture, while Dr. Subham Banerjee from NIPER Guwahati presented innovations in pharmaceutical additive manufacturing, including 3D printing for personalized medicine. The sessions were chaired by Prof. sunayan Bordoloi and Prof. Damiki Laloo.
The second day, chaired by Prof. Vidhya Srinivasan focused on technology, sustainability and language in science. Dr. Harekrishna Deka elaborated on transforming plastic waste through circular economy strategies, highlighting recycling technologies, PET waste processing, and AI-powered sorting systems.
Dr. Surajit Konwer from Dibrugarh University explored the potential of nanotechnology to address energy, environmental, and climate challenges, discussing innovations such as conducting polymers and graphene. Dr. Prahash Chandra Sarma of Cotton University emphasized the importance of developing regional scientific terminology for effective knowledge dissemination, while Dr. Bipasha Patgiri from Tezpur University advocated simplifying technical terms in Assamese to make science more accessible.
The sessions were anchored by Dr. Priti Sarmah, Dr. Birina Bhuyan, Dr. Suranjana Patowary and Monirupa Mishra. Dr. Swarnali Pathak, HoD of Chemistry offered vote of thanks.
The seminar underscored the growing need for collaborative efforts between scientists, educators and linguists to develop regional language glossaries, integrate traditional knowledge, and promote inclusive and sustainable development.
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