Guest Lecture by Prof. H. C. Verma on Science for the Society 

Following the ethics in teaching is the need of the hour and it’s mandatory to follow the same in the education system of the country to save the young generation from the ‘rat race’ where they are under tremendous pressure to achieve their goals. Instead of mere teaching the focus should be on the learning so that we can develop the young minds who can excel in the area of their interest. These statements were given by renowned physicist Padma Shri Prof. H. C. Verma during a lecture on Science for Society organised at Central University of South Bihar (CUSB). Under the patronship of Vice-Chancellor Prof. Kameshwar Nath Singh, the lecture was organised by Indian National Young Academy of Sciences (INYAS) East zone in association with Institute Innovation Cell (IIC) of CUSB. During his lecture Prof. Verma disapprovingly criticized the cropping up of the coaching culture in the country which is a big threat for sustainability of classroom culture of school and colleges. Nowadays the cropping up of coaching culture in the quest for cracking the much-hyped tests like JEE, NEET (UG), etc. have literally put the youths into intense pressure that is affecting their mental health. In his detailed presentation Prof. Verma quoted the references from everyday life related to various areas of Science including Life Science, Environmental Science. Prof. Verma emphasized upon the need of experiment-based teaching along with theory for making the teaching-learning interesting and ensuring all round development of the students. Answering a query about the challenges posed by the Artificial Intelligence (AI) to classroom teaching, Prof. Verma said that there is no need to worry as technology is an added advantage. Instead of getting afraid of AI or other technical tools the teachers should try to find the best suitable materials from the online sources and suggest their students for a better understanding of the topic and subject. In the presidential address Vice-Chancellor Prof. K. N. Singh expressed gratitude towards Prof. H. C. Verma for visiting the University and delivering the impactful lecture. The VC referred Prof. H. C. Verma as the 'Pole Star' of Physics as a guide to see the right path to those looking for solutions related to Physics and Science. Specifically addressing the students Prof. Singh said that each and every student has some capabilities within them that needs to be discovered by the teachers to shape up their career.

Earlier the programme started with formal felicitation of guest speaker and other dignitaries followed by the introductory remarks of Dr. Rohit Ranjan Shahi, Convenor, Member INYAS and IIC CUSB. Prof. Venktesh Singh, Chairman, IIC, CUSB and Head, Dept. of Physics welcomed the chief guest Prof. H. C. Verma and shared his brief profile with the audience present inside the auditorium. On this occasion Prof. Amiya Priyam, Dean, School of Physical and Chemical Sciences also addressed the gathering and shared some facts related to Prof. Verma. The event concluded with the vote of thanks proposed by Dr. Rohit Ranjan Shahi followed by the singing of the national anthem.

Prof. Verma delivered two lectures in two different sessions, in the first session meant for UG, PG and Ph.D. students he spoke on the topic 'Teachers Endangered Species' and in the second session meant for school students he spoke on 'Learning vs Scoring'. In his first lecture, Prof. Verma said how quality of teaching at school level become poor day by day due too which we are not getting good students for higher education. He said to learn physics we should motivate students to learning by doing. The first session is attended by total 400 students of different branches students interacted well and asked several questions about the teaching and learning aspects. In the second session, Prof. Verma with around 350 students from different schools of Gaya region. Students are particularly from Delhi Public School Gaya, D.A.V Cantt Gaya, Gyan Bharti School Tekari and Sarsawati Shishu Mandir Gaya and Govt. U.H.M.S. Tepa Fatehpur. Prof. Verma told school students to focus on learning instead of scoring. He emphasizing scoring without learning is not beneficial for the student as well as for society. He students must be happy by studying then only they will able to contribute for the development of nation and this is the responsivity of the school to provide the learning ambience. Students will enjoy a lot during the lecture as well as interaction session with Prof. Verma. The session was chaired by Prof Venktesh Singh chairman and Head Department of Physics CUSB Gaya. Dr. Rohit Ranjan Shashi convener of the program and INYAS Member, speak about the INYAS and its vision and also proposed vote of thanks at the end of the program.  He expressed his gratitude to Prof. Verma for accepting the invitation delivered two lectures.  After the lecture Prof. Verma visited different laboratory of Physics department and appreciated the cutting-edge research of the department. During the visit Dr. Rohit, Dr. Lakhwinder, Dr. Nitin and Prof Bhudhendra and Prof Venktesh is available. Prof. Verma also interacted with student of Physics department and answered their curiosity about the taking physics as subject for higher studies.