Indian scientific policy

Abstract

The Educational Background There was a good deal of excellent science in ancient India . . . but this . . . was unfortunately not kept up and we got into slumber. There was an awakening in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and we produced some excellent scientists like Ramanujam, J. C. Bose, P. C. Ray, M. N. Saha, B. Sahni, K. S. Krishnan (among those who are living the name of C. V. Raman is pre-eminent) but for a large country with such a huge population, this is insignificant. Since no nation has a monopoly on intelligence and our genetic potential is in no way inferior to that of the wealthier and more advanced nations, this trouble naturally lies elsewhere. How to improve the situation so as to get the best out of our scholars and what should be done in order to increase the number of good scholars are questions that loom large before us. They are indeed the most important questions of the day, although they seldom appear in the newspapers. In order to increase the number of persons engaged in a scientific career we must naturally start at the school stage. With the increasingly important role that science is destined to play in our lives, it is imperative that no student should pass the Higher Secondary or High School examination without an integrated course in science. . . . To attract better students to a science career the government must emphasise by all possible means, such as popular articles and announcements in the press, that scientists can render a vital service to the country and that suitable positions with adequate salaries would be available to all young men who have undergone a training in science. We must also increase not only the number but also the value of the scholarships in science. The present scheme for search of talent (launched by the National Council of Education Research and Training) is to be welcomed for here an attempt is being made to test the students for their aptitude in science and to finance their future studies in places which are most suited for this purpose. In addition, of course, the facilities for the study of science in schools and colleges have to be vastly improved. The nation's scientists may be