Vigyan Bhawan ("science home") is a premier conference centre of the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

. Built in 1956, over the years it has been the venue of conferences of national and international stature, seminars and award ceremonies attended by distinguished world leaders and dignitaries, including

Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM; or) is a wiktionary:biennial, biennial summit meeting of the List of current heads of state and government, governmental leaders from all Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth nations. ...

( CHOGM) in 1983, 7th Summit of the

Non-Aligned Movement The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a forum of 121 countries that Non-belligerent, are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc. It was founded with the view to advancing interests of developing countries in the context of Cold W ...

( NAM), 7–12 March 1983, and SAARC Summit. It is managed by the Directorate of Estates, under the Ministry of Urban Development,

, and maintained by CPWD. It only holds National-level functions and conferences, and functions by the Government of India, State Governments, PSUs and Autonomous Bodies order by priority given. It is allotted to NGOs/Private Enterprises where either the President, Vice President or the

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen Union Council of Ministers, Council of Ministers, despite the president of ...

are present. It also holds various award ceremonies, including the annual

National Film Awards The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...

Architecture

The main building was designed in 1955 by R.P.Gehlote of Central Public Works Department ( CPWD) belonging to Jaipur, incorporating elements of

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

architecture, evident in the nearby buildings of the Secretariat Building and of

Lutyens' Delhi Lutyens' Delhi is an area in New Delhi, India, named after the British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens, Edwin Lutyens (1869–1944), who was entrusted with the vast majority of the architectural design and buildings of the city that subsequently e ...

along with

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

and

Mughal architecture Mughal architecture is the style of architecture developed in the Mughal Empire in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries throughout the ever-changing extent of their empire in the Indian subcontinent. It developed from the architectural styles of ea ...

, as well as ancient

Buddhist architecture Buddhist religious architecture developed in the Indian subcontinent. Three types of structures are associated with the sacred architecture, religious architecture of History of Buddhism, early Buddhism: monasteries (viharas), places to venerate ...

, especially the ''

chaitya A chaitya, chaitya hall, chaitya-griha, (Sanskrit:''Caitya''; Pāli: ''Cetiya'') refers to a shrine, sanctuary, temple or prayer hall in Indian religions. The term is most common in Buddhism, where it refers to a space with a stupa and a rounded ...

'' arches of

Ajanta Caves The Ajanta Caves are 30 rock-cut architecture, rock-cut Buddhist caves in India, Buddhist cave monuments dating from the second century Common Era, BCE to about 480 CE in Aurangabad district, Maharashtra, Aurangabad district of Maharashtra sta ...

. The overall style of the building remains modernistic with revivalist elements.

Overview

The main feature of the complex is the Plenary hall, with a seating capacity of over 1200(922+326+37) delegates, besides it has six smaller halls with capacities ranging from over 65 delegates to over 375 delegates. The building also has a VIP Lounge, the Office block for on-site offices, secretariat and a documentation centre, a Studio, a Business centre and an

Exhibition hall A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...

. The adjacent building is called the Vigyan Bhavan Annexe added later on with four Committee Rooms and a separate Media centre. The annexe also houses the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (MDoNER) of

and INVEST INDIA, the National Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency. The Vigyan Bhawan Annexe stands adjacent to the Vice President House. F&B services at 'The Atrium' at the centre are managed by the Ashok Group of the India Tourism Development Corporation ( ITDC).
ITDC website. As a part of Central Vista Redevelopment Project, Vigyan Bhavan will be demolished and a new Central Conference Center will be built besides

National Archives National archives are the archives of a country. The concept evolved in various nations at the dawn of modernity based on the impact of nationalism upon bureaucratic processes of paperwork retention. Conceptual development From the Middle Ages i ...

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links

Vigyan Bhavan
at ''Directorate of Estates''
Vigyan Bhawan
at '' wikimapia'' Infrastructure completed in 1956 Convention centres in India 1956 establishments in Delhi Government buildings in Delhi

Architecture

Overview

See also

References

External links