Patna: Recent govt initiatives and sustained efforts of voluntary organisations are helping to nurture scientific temper among Bihar's youth. In turn, the younger generation is striving to bring laurels to the state through their scientific and technological innovations. Bihar, once celebrated for its pioneering works in mathematics, astronomy and science during the Maurya and Gupta empires -- contributions that included insights into the Earth's rotation, the causes of eclipses, the calculation of pi and the discovery of zero -- is witnessing a revival as a hub of scientific learning. Institutions such as the State Council of Education, Research and Training (SCERT), the department of science, technology and technical Education, the Bihar Council on Science and Technology (BCST) and the National Council of Science Museums are rolling out programmes to inspire scientific curiosity among students. Among the most active is Science for Society (SFS), Bihar, a voluntary organisation of scientists, technologists and science communicators that has worked since 1980 to popularise science. As the nodal agency of the National Council for Science and Technology Communication, a wing of the Centre's department of science and technology, SFS successfully organised the Children's Science Congress from 1993 to 2023 in collaboration with SCERT and BCST. This congress gave children aged between 10 and 17 an opportunity to think scientifically and translate their ideas into working models. Explaining the process, SFS president Arun Kumar said, "Children work in teams under a guide on an identified theme. They select a problem from the neighbourhood, develop a hypothesis and conduct field research, see patterns in data and prepare a report and finally present their findings before a peer group in their own language. Meritorious and innovative projects are selected from the district level congress to the state level congress and finally to the national convention. More than 10,000 children of the state participate in this activity every year." Kumar added that since 2024, the state-level congress is being organised as the Bihar Children's Research Programme. BCST has also been providing funding for research, supporting institutions and promoting innovation with an emphasis on local solutions. Meanwhile, the Bihar Education Project Council (BEPC) has directed govt schools to form science and mathematics clubs to encourage student interest in scientific activities. Such clubs now exist in more than 75,000 schools. Other initiatives are reaching deeper into rural areas. Organisations such as Mantra4Change are working to bridge the gaps in STEM education while Atal Tinkering Laboratories (ATLs), established under the Atal Innovation Mission of NITI Aayog, are fostering creativity and experimentation. "Hundreds of schools in Bihar have operational ATLs," said a senior official of the education department. In Patna, Kilkari Bal Bhawan has been focusing on creativity and scientific temperament through children's science fairs, workshops and project-based learning. "We aim to make science interesting and accessible, especially for underprivileged children," said its director, Jyoti Parihar. Annual events too are reinforcing this spirit. Maker's Mela, held in districts including Bhagalpur and Bhojpur, has given children a platform to showcase projects and cultivate scientific thinking. Another effort, 'Anveshika', coordinated by IIT Kanpur under Padma Shri recipient H C Verma, is developing innovative and low-cost physics experiments to spread hands-on science learning. "Thousands of students of different colleges in the state have been trained in experimental physics over the years," said Rakesh Kumar Singh, head of Aryabhatta Knowledge University's nano science and nano technology department. The older generation of academics believes such efforts must go further. Former principal of Patna Science College, Atul Aditya Pandey, said, "For creating further interest in science, children should be encouraged to develop a habit of keen observation of various phenomena taking place in their immediate surroundings and think critically. The school labs should be modernised with necessary equipment so that children take interest in hands-on learning. Children should also be motivated to use scientific methods and rational inquiry to address pressing social problems like healthcare, water quality and natural resources' conservation."