Context: Recently,the Department of Science of Technology operating under Ministry of Science and Technology organized an International Conference on Nano-Science and Nano Technology (ICONSAT) at Kolkata,under Nano Mission. The Conference is to be held between March 5, 2020 and March 7, 2020.
Current Scenario

• The conference intends to bring out cutting-edge developments in the domain of physical, chemical, materials as well as biological sciences with the help of nanotechnology.
• The event emphasised on 5Ms – Mechanical, Material, Machines, Manufacturing and Manpower, and integration of these 5 Ms with nano-science and technology.
• It also aimed to integrate nanotechnology with sustainable development and new technology (machine learning, artificial intelligence and so on).
• It emphasized the need to create a network of experts in nano-science and to collaborate the knowledge across sectors like energy, agriculture, transport, health and so on.
• It also aims to provide a potential platform for young researchers and students from within the country and abroad to keep pace with the latest development in the emerging areas of Nano Science and Technology.

Background
India started its journey of nanotechnology with the launch of “Nano Science and Technology Initiative” (NSTI) in 2001 for a span of 5 years. In 2007, it was renamed as “Nano Mission”. Nano Mission had wider objectives and larger funding of 250 million USD. This effort paid off well with Indian researchers publishing more than 23,000 papers in the field in next 5 years. In 2013, India ranked third in research paper publication in the field after China and USA. Also, the contribution of private firms on Nano Technology has also been minimal. India currently works towards producing 10,000 researchers in the field in the next 10 years as of 2017.