MITHI: The two-day first ever ‘Thar Science Festival’ opened in Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Cultural Complex on Wednesday in which students of 73 schools displayed 120 models exhibiting their passion for science and technology.

The event was being held by the Thar Education Alli­ance (TEA) in collaboration with Alif Ailaan and other organisations working in Thar and other parts of the country with a view to enco­uraging talented Thari students to focus on science and mathematics.

Students from 73 government and private schools parti­cipated in the event in thousands.

The first day attracted the attendance of 6,000 students from more than 100 schools of Thar. Teachers, entrepreneurs, science specialists, gov­­ernment officials and local political leaders atten­ded the festival where students exhibited their scientific skills and introduced innovative concepts to the visitors.

Talking to reporters, the organisers maintained that the latest Standardised Achi­­e­ve­ment Test conducted in Sindh reflected a poor understanding of maths and science in Thar­parkar and it called for focused intervention by the government.

They claimed that the festival would help create curiosity among students and teachers for maths and science.

Published in Dawn, February 15th, 2018