TAAS is an outcome of the 88th session of Indian Science Congress which was held on the campus of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi in January 2001 under the President ship of Dr. R.S. Paroda. The theme of the Congress was "Food, Nutrition and Environmental Security". During the Congress, Hon'ble Prime Minister of India Shri Atal Bihari Vajapaye released the following Vision Statement:
"Our goal to make India a leading nation in the world in the new century, hinges critically on how successfully we take science to the people and create a stronger scientific temper in our society."