Nanotechnology Now - Press Release: KaSAM-2016: International Conference on Material Sciences has successfully concluded in Pokhara of Western Nepal

Home > Press > KaSAM-2016: International Conference on Material Sciences has successfully concluded in Pokhara of Western Nepal

Abstract:
The ‘Kathmandu Symposia on Advanced Materials- 2016 (KaSAM-2016)’, organized by Nepal Polymer Institute (NPI) in association with the Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST), the Pokhara University and German-based Institute of Polymer Materials (IPW) has successfully concluded in Pokhara of western Nepal.

KaSAM-2016: International Conference on Material Sciences has successfully concluded in Pokhara of Western Nepal

Pokhara, Nepal | Posted on October 24th, 2016

Vice-Chancellor of Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) Prof. Dr. Jiba Raj Pokharel inaugurated the meeting by lighting ‘Panas-Batti’ in the evening of October 17 at Mount Kailash Resort (Lakeside, Pokhara) in front of more than 180 scientists from 16 countries across the globe. During his inauguration speech, Prof. Pokharel emphasized the importance of investment in scientific researches and activities in the country and praised the organizing committee for conducting such an international meeting outside of the capital city.

Another speaker Vice-Chancellor of Pokhara University Prof. Dr. Chiranjibi Sharma, patron of KaSAM-2016, expressed his happiness to be the co-organizer of this mega scientific event in Pokhara and highlighted the global platform provided by this program for the students and professors of the university. The inauguration ceremony was chaired by the President of Nepal Polymer Institute Prof. Dr. Rameshwar Adhikari (Central Department of Chemistry, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu) who is also the Convener of the event. During the ceremony, conducted by Ms. Jyoti Giri (treasurer of NPI), Dr. Rajesh Pandit (Vice-President of NPI) gave a vote of thanks to all the contributors on behalf of the organizing committee.

In the daytime of October 17, a special workshop for students and young scientists was also organized in Pokhara University. This short course named as ‘Kathmandu Autumn School on Chemistry and Chemical Technologies (KASChem)-2016’ was focused on nanomaterials where scientists from Czech Republic, France, Germany, Japan and Nepal gave tutorial lectures on various aspects of synthesis, characterization and application of nanomaterials. Interestingly, KASChem-2016 was organized under the banner of NEPAS (No-border Educational Program Applied to Science), a new initiative of Nepal Polymer Institute to promote educational outreach program throughout the country.
A special lecture was also held on Oct 17 on ‘Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM): Changing the World One Bit at a Time’ by Ms. Gwendolyn Bluemich from Global Foundries, USA.
According to Prof. Adhikari, the four-day long conference was focused on in-depth discussions about latest researches on material science and engineering. Among more than 140 papers, interesting researches about the use of nano/bio-materials to tackle some of the ongoing global problems such as human infection caused by antibiotic resistant superbugs were also discussed during the meeting, said Prof. Adhikari. Special sessions on ‘Science, Technology & Innovations’ and ‘Natural Products and Pharmaceuticals’ for Nepal were also part of the meeting. KaSAM2016 participants were from Bangladesh, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Nepal, Pakistan, Poland, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden and the United States of America.
In a closing ceremony, held in the afternoon of October 20, Ex-Vice Chancellor of the Pokhara University Prof. Dr. Bishnu Raj Tiwari gave his concluding remarks. During the ceremony, German scientist Prof. Dr. Michael Hess- former secretary of Polymer Division of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), French Scientist Prof. Dr. Jean Marc Saiter, Dr. Ralf Lach of Germany and Prof. Dr. Paras Nath Yadav of Tribbuvan University, Nepal also shared their valuable experiences and praised the efforts of the organizing committee for organizing a ‘highly successful’ KaSAM-2016. Many students and participants commented the program being a ‘historically successful event’.
Conference Convener Prof. Rameshwar Adhikari, who also conducted the closing ceremony, started his speech by appreciating the works of the organizing committee members and thanked to all the co-organizers (Pokhara University, NAST and IPW Germany), guests, advisors, speakers, presenters, participants, journalists, sponsors and those who directly or indirectly helped to make the event a successful one. Prof. Adhikari also emphasized the importance of organizing KaSAM-2016 in Pokhara not only to promote researches at the regional level amid very limited scientific activities outside of Kathmandu, but also to provide a global platform for direct interactions and networking of local scientists among the international experts. During his closing remarks, Prof. Adhikari further highlighted the responsibilities of younger generation for popularization of science and urgent necessity of investment and dedication in science and technology for the development of the country. He also presented an outline of the upcoming programs of NPI including Nepal Chemical Congress-2017, 2nd Young Scientist Summit-2017, and continuation of KASChem-2016 Outreach program, under the framework of NEPAS, in Chitwan (October 22) and Biratnagar (October 24) with active involvement of foreign scientists.
An evaluation committee of professors led by Dr. Netra Lal Bhandari (founding Secretary of the Nepal Polymer Institute) was also formed to monitor and evaluate the scientific quality and significance of the researches presented during the program. Prof. Dr. Motee Lal Sharma, organizing member, announced the name of the awardees while Convener of the event Prof. Adhikari and Ex-Vice Chancellor of Pokhara University Prof. Tiwari distributed certificates to the winners. The following three presenters received the KaSAM2016 Best Poster Awards’ for their works:
· Ms. Ferdousi Begum (Bangladesh): Sodium dodecyl sulfate/1-butanol/cyclohexane/water microemulsions: Percolation phenomena and microstructural phase transition
· Azad Kumar (India): Kinetics study of photocatalytic degradation of tartaric acid in UV-Visible light at various parameters by the Cobalt Nickel doped Titania (Co0.05:Ni0.10:TiO2)
· Dr. Rafal Poreba (Czech Republic): Hydrolytic stability of polyurethanes tested in physiologically simulated conditions

Three Nepalese students were also awarded for their works in different scientific disciplines: Prameela Khadka (Kathmandu), Arun Acharya (Kathmandu) and Ram Milan Rana (Pokhara). All three Nepalese student awardees will receive a complementary registration to the ‘2nd Young Scientists Summit-2017’ organized by NPI in Kathmandu during the upcoming winter.

The works of the KaSAM-2016 Secretariat led by women scientists of NPI Dr. Sharmila Pradhan, Shanta Bhattarai and Prasamsha Pant was praiseworthy. Local accommodations and travel were nicely arranged by members of the organizing committee including Kedar Nath Dhakal, Dhruba Babu Subedi, Anil Gautam, Komal Prasad Malla, Bishnu Neupane, Krishna Kumar Raut and Kamal Rai. The KaSAM-2016 was well coordinated to the Nepalese media by Prof. Dr. Motee Lal Sharma (Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu) and the international communities by Santosh Thapa (PhD Fellow at the University of North Texas Health Science Center in USA).

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