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Position Paper on ISRO and Private Sector in Space in India

Click here to read the AIPSN Position paper on ISRO and Private Sector in Space in India

 

Click here to read the AIPSN solidarity with ISRO employees Save ISRO 

Click here to read the AIPSN Statement on ISRO and Private Sector in Space in India

AIPSN Position Paper on ISRO and Private Sector in Space in India

29 Sept 2026

Part A: Policy direction and sectoral analysis

A1. Context

Recent pronouncements by the government and by the Chairman of IN-SPACe, the agency set up to oversee and promote commercialisation of the space sector, have added to the fears of scientists, engineers and concerned organisations about the direction in which ISRO is being steered.

Of particular concern is the growing role envisaged for the private sector in space-related activities in India and what appears to be shrinking responsibilities for ISRO, which is now mandated to transfer all technologies related to rocket launchers and satellites to private and other non-government entities (NGEs). Such apprehensions have also recently been expressed by serving ISRO personnel in a letter to the Chairman of ISRO, while nine employee associations have separately written to the Secretary of the Department of Space, seeking clarifications on statements made on behalf of IN-SPACe vis-à-vis the future role of ISRO.

These are not knee-jerk reactions against privatisation or the involvement of private players in space or other strategic sectors. Rather, these concerns relate to India’s place in the global space ecosystem and to the self-reliant advancement of India’s interests within it in an increasingly knowledge- or tech-based future. They also do not arise from misconstrued “narratives”, as the IN-SPACe Chairman believes, but from the very framework of the Indian Space Policy of 2023 and its roll-out as per official sources.

A2. Technology transfer: public-sector and private routes

Transfer of rocket manufacturing technologies from ISRO has already begun with the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV), in the first instance to the defence PSU Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). Under AIPSN’s core position, such transfer to a public-sector entity under public control is distinct from private takeover of launch infrastructure.

Transfer of mature technologies for the larger PSLV, ISRO’s workhorse, or for the even larger GSLV or LVM-3 to any private entity would entail a long learning curve and higher risks, except possibly for a few companies. PSUs like Bharat Dynamics, which already produces the Agni missile, may be a safer bet. AIPSN does not oppose the transfer of mature space technology under licence and on agreed terms to a PSU or highly capable and established ISRO private sector partner, with the technology remaining under ISRO ownership and with ISRO technical oversight and national-security safeguards. However, AIPSN opposes handover of launch infrastructure or outright transfer of technology and manufacturing rights to private monopolies at undervalued prices.

The growing demand for launch vehicles, which ISRO cannot meet with its current facilities, makes the idea of shifting the manufacture of rocket boosters with proven repeatability out of ISRO for commercial purposes understandable—particularly if the logic is to free up ISRO for more challenging and strategic core tasks such as expeditions to the Moon or Mars, setting up and operating an Indian space station, crewed missions, scientific collaborations with other countries, and development of related technologies. To scale up launch-vehicle production, ISRO had mooted a consortium route, and in 2022 NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) awarded a contract (initially reported around Rs 824–860 crore) to a consortium led by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Larsen & Toubro (L&T) to manufacture five PSLV-XL vehicles end-to-end, with the consortium expected to deliver most of the vehicle systems while ISRO retained some strategic elements (separation systems, certain avionics, mission design, launch operations, etc.). However, senior ISRO officials and employees have said these crucial functions must remain with ISRO, and any such transfer is acceptable only with retention by ISRO of rights over technology and future upgradations, along with appropriate terms and conditions, oversight and pre-flight approval, transparent valuation, and national-security safeguards—not as a route to private monopoly and surrender of technology rights by ISRO. It’s unclear why this realistic, reliable model for scaling up launch-vehicle production is being brushed aside.

ISRO was never intended or structured to be a factory and has never been one. Even presently, over 80% of rocket booster components are made outside ISRO by PSU and private sector industry partners. PSUs and the private sector, where appropriate and under public safeguards, would probably play important roles in all the above core tasks too. Hopefully, technology transfer by ISRO would follow usual commercial practice, including fees for tech transfer, training, hand-holding and back-up, while ISRO retains rights for technology upgradation and improved versions.

A few private-sector entities with several decades of experience and capacity-building have indeed established themselves in advanced manufacturing and engineering and could well assist in broadening the base of the space industry. ISRO has historically worked with many such entities and SMEs. Some space-sector start-ups may also independently develop innovative and viable technologies and manufacturing capabilities. But all that is a far cry from the current haste to shift manufacturing and some launch functions and related infrastructure to the private sector.

However, the argument that ISRO must focus on expeditions to the Moon or Mars, setting up and operating an Indian space station, crewed missions, scientific collaborations with other countries, and development of related technologies and that commercial entities will meet the launch vehicles and satellites is not realistic nor desirable. It is not realistic because, out of the 130-odd launch manifests, nearly half are strategic, much of the remainder is civil, and only 15+ are commercial. Thus, most of the expenditure will come from public funds, and mobilising private capital is not feasible. But, it is feasible with a PSU or other public entity under public control, with transparent valuation, national-security safeguards, and ISRO retaining upgrade rights—not as a route to private monopoly. Thus, if the alleged bottleneck is the current cadence limitation, then ISRO’s idea of a consortium is the best bet.

The current rationale for promoting the private sector does not take a fresh look at relations between the public and private sector but seems based on the tired ideological belief that the private sector does everything better than the public sector—an idea disproved in numerous cases in strategic sectors, especially as regards technology development.

A3. Launch economics and the fixed-cost problem

Many issues need to be considered. ISRO launches an average of 5–7 missions per year. Current demand from the public, including security, is much higher, and the problem lies not with ISRO’s capability but with chronic understaffing and limited government funding. The realistic manifest lists nearly 130 satellites to be launched by 2030 to meet the projected demand. This includes 10+ launches for the Gaganyaan mission, about 6 deep-space missions (including Chandrayaan missions), 32 Earth observation satellites, 64 strategic satellites, and nearly 6 commercial/private satellites.

Nevertheless, claims suggest India will need to build and launch 200-300 satellites over the next six to seven years and ramp up launch frequency to around 50 a year to meet growing demand. These claims lack justification and context. The claims never explain what these 200-300 satellites will do, where the demand is, or who will fund these launches. When OneWeb used Indian launch vehicles to launch its 72 satellites, it did not use 72 separate launch vehicles and 72 launches; it accomplished this with just two launches. The wide projected gap between ISRO’s capacity and launch requirement appears magnified to create optics and a ruse for privatisation, rather than reflecting any insurmountable bottleneck.

The China Satellite Network Group Co., Ltd. (China SatNet), a state-owned enterprise established in 2021 under SASAC (State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission), plans to launch 12,000–13,000 satellites for national broadband as dual-use connectivity. Hundreds of satellites are already in orbit. Shanghai SpaceSail proposes launching 15,000 satellites for commercial broadband and connectivity services. Naturally, China is augmenting its launch fleet to meet these burgeoning launch projections. China does not permit either Starlink or OneWeb.

A consortium called SpaceRISE (led by major European operators SES, Eutelsat, and Hispasat), supported by industrial partners including Airbus Defence and Space, Thales Alenia Space, OHB, and others, is leading the European Union’s IRIS² (Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite) project for a constellation of nearly 350 satellites. The EU is building this infrastructure to avoid critical dependence on a US private company (Starlink) or even a partially European commercial network (OneWeb) during crises or geopolitical tensions. As the launch requirement is comparatively small, the EU is not developing additional launch capacity or commercial launch vehicles.

The Indian telecom industry has no such plans; instead, it is tying up with OneWeb or Starlink as local partners. Neither OneWeb nor Starlink, which are expected to commence operations in India, will depend on Indian launch vehicles. Thus, there is no demonstrated commercial demand established for a large-scale launch requirement. Even assuming the rather ambitious 50 launches a year by 2030, that does not make for a booming commercial business for private rocket manufacturers spread over several different booster types.

The same issue arises in respect of launches. A recently published international study has shown that launch costs in India are several times those of the US or other countries. Exact numbers may be debated, but the main factor correctly identified is that, while recurring operational costs for each launch may be low in India, as often cited, the low annual number of launches results in a high per-launch cost when infrastructure, manpower and other fixed costs are taken into account. When the new SSLV spaceport in Kulasekarapattinam in Tamil Nadu is handed over to a private-sector player as decided, will the new player charge globally competitive rates for launches but still bear all fixed costs and run an overall loss? Or will ISRO continue to bear fixed costs while the private player skims the cream off the top of operational costs alone?

 A4. The missing demand side

In the global space market today, about 78% of the value lies in commercial user services such as broadcast, telephony, internet data and so-called “reach applications” such as aggregators, delivery services, logistics, etc., while only a much smaller share is realised through infrastructure, launch and payload hardware. India’s Space Policy calls for shifting from supply to demand, but this is still missing.

Most of the vaunted start-ups are in supply-side innovations. So are the technology and infrastructure transfers from ISRO to the private sector. The big missing link in India is in market demand. Where are the commercial applications, the business ventures which will use all the space-based data? So far, ISRO has done yeoman service for the nation by generating data for resource exploration and mapping, weather (including cyclone observation and forecasting), and Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) services, broadcasting, and telephony. Except for the last-mentioned, the government has been the main user.

This is not to say there is no commercial space market in India. As of the beginning of 2026, India has 53 operational civilian satellites: 21 communication, 21 Earth observation, 8 navigation, and 3 science/experimental. Of the 21 communication satellites, NSIL has taken ownership of nearly 10 in-orbit GSAT/CMS communication satellites that were previously under government/ISRO control. It also commissions new “demand-driven” satellites (for example, GSAT-24) that NSIL fully funds and owns from the start. The remaining communication satellites are used for civil and ISR; so are the EOS (they are largely dual-use). Thus, they cannot be/should not be handed over to non-government entities.

Commercial operations are supposed to be the private sector’s domain, and this is the main role they should be playing in the space sector, which would drive up launch frequency and hence rocket as well as payload manufacture. Will the forthcoming Space Activities Bill address this problem, with adequate protection from intrusion of inimical foreign interests’ venture capital for start-ups and through FDI?

A5. ISRO’s core tasks and funding

ISRO has a lot on its plate which the nation badly needs for development: a new heavy rocket for crewed and interplanetary missions, reusable rocket boosters, defence satellites found badly wanting during recent conflicts, a full navigation system including India’s own GPS-equivalent, advanced technologies for the space station and crewed programmes, lunar exploration, and so on.

India’s space policies should strongly support these and provide adequate funding and support to ISRO, which has been seriously lacking over the years. Technology transfer for manufacturing to PSUs or capable and trusted private-sector partners, with appropriate terms and conditions, will then make sense. Hopefully, the private sector generates the necessary commercial applications and businesses—their supposed core competences—without waiting for government funds for that too.

Part B: AIPSN stands in defence of ISRO

B1. Why ISRO must be defended

For several days, a flood of reports and interpretations about the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)—one of the country’s most strategically important central government institutions—has circulated in newspapers and other media. Not only the employees’ associations but also former heads of ISRO have come out in the open to prevent further damage to ISRO. Especially in view of the statements emanating from IN-SPACe and its move to open up the rocket-launching segment to private-sector participation when the Space Policy has not been discussed in Parliament, nine employee associations of ISRO have addressed a letter to the Secretary, Department of Space, seeking clarifications on the statement made on behalf of IN-SPACe vis-à-vis the future role of ISRO.

AIPSN recognises that ISRO has changed everyday life. Today’s ISRO was not built in a day. Activities that began in 1962 at Thumba, Thiruvananthapuram, under the Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR), then under the Department of Atomic Energy, formed the foundation of India’s space programme. Satellite technology has reached communications, television, telephony, the internet, weather observation, remote sensing, natural resource monitoring, disaster management, navigation, agriculture, fisheries, and the monitoring of railways and other transport systems—directly shaping the economy and people’s lives.

Designing and building the launch vehicles that place satellites needed for national security and public service into their intended orbits, without complete dependence on foreign technology, is itself a major strategic achievement and proof of scientific self-reliance. ISRO cannot therefore be treated as just another government office. ISRO is one of the main pillars of the country’s scientific capability, technological sovereignty, national security and public interest. Its capabilities were built in an era of limited facilities and resources. Indian scientists, engineers, technical staff and workers advanced the field of space technologies through extraordinary labour and dedication. This is not the achievement of any single scientist or political leader. ISRO is the collective labour of thousands across scientific, engineering, technical, worker and administrative cadres. Generations who worked as one for mission success, without measuring their contribution by pay scale or rank, are ISRO’s real capital.

B2. Importance of who decides

IN-SPACe was set up to promote the private sector in the space economy and, among others, to act as an interface between ISRO and emerging startups for sharing of space infrastructure and premises under the control of ISRO, with due consideration to ongoing activities, establishment of temporary facilities within premises under ISRO control based on safety norms and feasibility assessment and usage of spacecraft data and rolling out of space-based services and all the associated infrastructure for the same. However, surprisingly, In-SPACe has invited expressions of interest (EOI) from private industries or consortia to handle end-to-end realisation, manufacturing, operation, and commercialisation of India’s heaviest rocket, the Launch Vehicle Mark-III (LVM3), as well as Operations and Management of SLC at Kulasekarapattinam. Curiously, the EOI bars PSU and state enterprises from participation. Why so is inexplicable. IN-SPACe is not envisaged to call for an EOI; it must have been either ISRO or NSIL. Why these organisations were sidelined is also not clear.

ISRO has always engaged the private sector in the manufacturing of launch vehicles. However, IN-SPACe routes to privatisation appear to involve (1) selling cheap knowledge and technology developed and (2) hollowing out manufacturing, which means a lack of quality discipline and weakening of the knowledge required for the development of critical technologies.

This criticism is aimed at ensuring technology transfer and ensuring retention of technology and IP with ISRO. Moreover, ISRO’s traditional contracting with PSUs continues to provide public ownership and control. While the contribution of the private sector to ISRO’s requirements has not been opposed in principle by either the former heads or by the associations of employees, the demand is for a wider discussion of the Space Policy, which assigned roles to Inland IN-SPACe. The Space Policy must ensure that what shall be manufactured in-house is done after sufficient discussion internally.

B3. Stagnation in ISRO funding: NavIC and spectrum

The government is starving ISRO of funds and support. Budget allocations have consistently been less than what ISRO sought, and actuals have been less than the budget announcements. It is not unreasonable to suggest that ISRO is being deliberately starved of resources so that its functions can be transferred to private players under the guise of ‘efficiency’ and/or ‘non-performance’.

The case of NavIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation) illustrates this neglect very well. NavIC has considerable strategic importance. NavIC is meant to replace the US-based GPS, whose services the country cannot take for granted, as the Kargil crisis amply evidenced. The NavIC system’s efficacy is critically dependent on the functioning of the atomic clocks that the NavIC satellites carry. Over the last 13 years, almost all NavIC satellites have progressively become dysfunctional, largely because of faulty atomic clocks supplied by an international vendor. ISRO is now developing an indigenous clock, which has been flown on the last few NavIC satellites. The government made no effort to help ISRO replace the non-operational NavIC satellites. Investments in NavIC would have enabled ISRO to strengthen national security.

B4. IN-SPACe misjudging ISRO and the launch-infrastructure question

After IN-SPACe was formed, steps to open ISRO infrastructure to private use have come to be intensified: facilities offered at low cost, use of launch systems, and private access to new launch sites. The subsequent opening of SSLV manufacture and launch facilities to private firms—beyond the earlier transfer to HAL as a PSU—and related measures around launch infrastructure in the Thoothukudi region of Tamil Nadu illustrate the scale of the shift.

In this context, the growth of the private space start-up Skyroot is notable. It was founded in Hyderabad by Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka, both former ISRO engineers. The publicity around the successful Vikram-1 launch signalled the new importance given to the private space sector. The launch used ISRO facilities at Sriharikota. Senior ISRO officials and former chairmen attended; the Prime Minister congratulated the venture.

AIPSN is opposed to technologies, human resources and infrastructure developed over decades with public money being used cheaply to grow private companies. This opposition does not extend to transfer to public-sector entities under public ownership and ISRO oversight; such transfer may be acceptable if properly valued, audited and kept under public control. We are concerned about who in the private sector is being allowed to capture the economic benefit of knowledge created in the public sector. Foreign venture capital is driving IN-SPACe’s new routes to privatisation. We wish to ensure that public interest and national security are protected when facilities are given to private firms.

B5. Contract staff or full-time researchers

A major issue in the debate on ISRO’s future is the condition of its workforce. It is often argued that talented scientists leave ISRO for better-paid private jobs because pay and benefits are inadequate. Few attribute this attrition to better pay in the private sector. In fact, when compared with many other central government organisations, regular appointments in ISRO demand high educational qualifications and merit. Even some clerical posts require a first-class degree. Thus, the criticism that pay and promotion opportunities are not commensurate with qualifications and work across all cadres cannot be ignored. Nevertheless, the exodus of expertise appears to be driven by uncertainty about ISRO’s future direction, underfunding, and bodyshopping by the private space industry.

The resignations leave ISRO in a tight spot; meanwhile, fresh recruitment has been minimal. Together, these have created an unprecedented gap between sanctioned strength and employees on the rolls. The number of sanctioned posts across the Department of Space has stayed around 20,000 since 2019-20. Employees, however, have fallen from 17,222 in 2019-20 to 14,637 in 2025-26. Consequently, staffing has dropped from 85.9% to 72.2%, while vacancies have more than doubled from 2,817 to 5,632.

For several years, regular recruitment to many posts, including technicians, has been restricted, and contract and subcontract arrangements have been relied upon more heavily. The labour of tens of thousands of contract workers at ISRO centres has been critical to meeting rising launch demand. Many do not receive the service benefits or job security of regular employees. Many work on fixed daily wages with little social security. This human-resource problem affects the quality and continuity of the country’s space missions. When more than 10,000 technical workers on contract across centres are also counted, the scale of the invisible labour behind ISRO’s successes becomes clear. This is not only a labour issue.

B6. ISRO’s public wealth is not for sale.

When rocket technology, launch systems, research facilities and human capability developed for more than sixty years with public wealth are then opened for private profit, questions of ownership and benefit become unavoidable. Private firms may use ISRO infrastructure. But the return on public money spent to build that infrastructure is not an irrelevant question. To present privatisation as mere “development” without clear answers to these questions is dangerous.

Space technology is unlike ordinary industry. Satellites, launch vehicles, communications, navigation and disaster-management systems are directly linked to defence and security. Transfer of advanced knowledge, including rocket technology, must therefore be handled with the highest caution from a national-security standpoint. A model in which public-sector technology moves to private monopolies and infrastructure created with public money is made available to private companies at low cost must be examined for what it will give the country in the long run and how it will ensure public interest and social control.

B7. Protecting ISRO is protecting science.

When ISRO’s problems are discussed, one fact must not be forgotten: ISRO’s strength does not lie only in its buildings, rockets or machines. It lies in the people who create and operate them. To strengthen ISRO, scientists, engineers, technical staff and workers must have decent working conditions, reasonable pay, and job security and promotion prospects. The practice of using contract workers for years as substitutes for regular employment must end, and regular recruitment to required posts must take place. A work environment must be created in which a new generation of scientific talent wants to stay in ISRO. What is not needed is a policy that weakens public-sector scientific capability and channels human resources and technology into the private sector. AIPSN asks the current management not to target the voices of opposition.

Concerns about the transfer of space technology to the private sector can no longer be dismissed as merely the political argument of critics. The 410th Report of the Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment, Forests and Climate Change, presented in Parliament on 25 March 2026, itself recorded a serious concern on this subject. The Committee expressed concern that space technologies are being transferred to private entities at prices disproportionately low relative to their commercial potential. The Committee recommended that licensing fees for technology transfer should reflect real commercial value, distinctiveness and social importance. It also said clear valuation norms are needed and that all technology-transfer agreements should be subjected to periodic third-party audit.

Cooperation with the private sector is possible. New enterprises can be encouraged for technological progress. Organisations and employees in the field do not oppose this. From the beginning, ISRO has worked with both the public and private sectors. But that must not mean loss of public ownership of wealth, national scientific capability, or public control over strategically important technologies. The issue is therefore not the simple question “private sector—yes or no?”

B8. AIPSN demands

The main questions that need to be answered are:

  1. Who protects the real value of technology developed with the people’s tax money?
  2. How much of the economic gain from knowledge created with public wealth will return to the public?
  3. Who sets the price of technology transferred to private firms, and by what criteria?

The Department of Space should be transparent and publish the results of the investigation into the failure of two successive PSLV missions and take corrective measures. Privatisation of manufacturing will only add to the challenge of tackling such failures in the future. Failures occur in science; the nature of science is to learn from them and return stronger.

AIPSN is opposed to:

– transferring public wealth to private monopolies;

– shrinking regular employment while expanding contract labour;

– Moving towards a form of privatisation that gradually renders ISRO, built with the tax money of crores of people, the hard labour of generations and the life-dedication of scientists, less relevant is unacceptable because, in the long run, it will be a serious loss to the country’s scientific capability and public interest.

ISRO’s failures must be corrected scientifically; its successes must not be privatised. ISRO’s technology is the wealth of the nation. Its infrastructure is the creation of the people’s tax money. Its real strength is the collective labour of scientists, employees and workers.

 

 

 

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SOLIDARITY STATEMENT on STUDENT-YOUTH PROTESTS   

Click here for pdf of statement in English

Click here for pdf of statement in letter head 

27 July 2026

SOLIDARITY STATEMENT on STUDENT-YOUTH PROTESTS   

 

   The All-India People’s Science Network (AIPSN) of 40 organisations/movements across 25 states, stands shoulder‑to‑shoulder with the students’ and youth protests for justice and accountability in higher education, especially regarding centralised examinations NEET, NET and the NTA. We congratulate all the protesters for securing the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who presided over the testing fiasco. We welcome the demands raised for examination reforms.

   We salute the courage of all the protesters at Jantar Mantar and the ‘Sansad March’ despite brutal police repression by lathi charges, tear gas, unprecedented use of pellet guns and stun batons, internet shutdowns, and arrests.

  We fully support the demands for withdrawal of all cases filed during the protests and compensation to families who lost children to suicides driven by the examination scam. We also demand a judicial inquiry into police excesses.

  AIPSN notes with concern that the High-Powered Task Force on Examination Reform announced today includes no educationist. This seems to reduce the critical demand for reforming the content, format and accessibility of entrance and eligibility examinations, to a narrow window of technical issues related to security, surveillance and cyber-intelligence.  AIPSN calls upon the students’, youth, teachers’ and other organisations it has participated with in the struggle, to ensure that these are brought on board for deliberations on this vital agenda. 

 Ever since NEP was announced, AIPSN has fought against centralisation and commercialisation of education, by opposing the NEP, NTA, and now the VBSA Bill replacing the UGC. The NEET/NTA fiasco is no accident. Centralised, single‑stage examinations based on multiple-choice-questions (MCQ) feed a coaching mafia, push students into high‑fee private colleges, and put students from under-privileged backgrounds at a severe disadvantage. The NTA is a private society answerable only to the minister not the Parliament, and we have seen its utter incompetence and lack of academic autonomy and professional probity. The conduct of examinations is outsourced to profit‑driven agencies often complicit in organised corruption and the leakage of papers. AIPSN demands that NTA be scrapped outright.

  AIPSN has long called for states to reclaim their constitutional role in education through developing State‑centred curricula and admission procedures. We urge that states collaborate with academic institutions and design admissions based on regional contexts and needs, school board marks, social justice and inter‑regional equity. We express our empathy and deep solidarity with the students and families that have suffered the consequences of this distorted examination system as we stand by them in the continuing struggle for a fair and equitable system.

 

Asha Mishra.            Dr. Satyajit Rath  Prof. P. Rajamanickam 

General Secretary    President.           Convener, Hr Edn Desk

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National Scientific Temper Day 2024: Advocating Scientific Integrity and Unhindered Rational Inquiry

Click here for the press release of this statement 

Click here for the statement 

 

19  Aug 2024

National Scientific Temper Day 2024

Advocating Scientific Integrity and Unhindered Rational Inquiry

 

The 7th National Scientific Temper Day (NSTD 24) will be observed across the nation on August 20, 2024, to honour Dr. Narendra Dabholkar, a notable proponent of science and rational thought, who was tragically killed on this day in 2013 by anti-science extremists. His assassination was followed by the murders of others equally vocal and of similar thinking – Govind Pansare, M.M. Kalburgi, and Gauri Lankesh – who were also murdered. In 2018, the All India People’s Science Network (AIPSN), in collaboration with the Maharashtra Andhshraddha Nirmulan Samiti (MANS), established National Scientific Temper Day (NSTD) as an annual event to commemorate these individuals and to promote a scientific mindset.

Upholding Constitutional Values:

Since its establishment, NSTD has received considerable support from a variety of groups and individuals throughout India, with events occurring in numerous regions. This year’s emphasis is on the Kolkata 2024 Declaration on Scientific Temper, which underscores the urgent need for a renewed commitment to evidence-based reasoning and critical analysis in India. This is especially crucial in light of emerging socio-political movements that challenge scientific inquiry and the generation of universal knowledge. The Kolkata Declaration highlights three primary areas for focus: the role of government, the responsibilities of scientific and educational institutions, and the necessity to combat the erosion of academic freedom and the proliferation of pseudo-science. It calls upon scientists, intellectuals, and advocates promoting evidence-based thinking and upholding constitutional values, thereby fostering a scientific perspective.

NSTD also includes the “Ask Why?” campaign, which aims to advance scientific temper and promote Article 51A (h) of the Indian Constitution. This initiative seeks to reinforce the constitutional right to scientific inquiry and to enhance investment in employment; people centred development, education for all, science, technology, humanities, and the arts.

Interplay of Politics and Education:

Concerns are mounting regarding the influence of Hindutva-related initiatives within research institutions and universities, reflecting a significant political agenda that deserves condemnation. A contentious aspect of the New Education Policy (NEP) 2021 was the introduction of Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) into educational curricula at all levels. The policy proposed integrating IKS content into existing subjects and introducing specialized IKS courses at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

It is essential to recognize that the foundations of modern knowledge are rooted in various ancient and modern cultures, including India, which also encompass oral traditions from marginalized groups such as tribal communities and unwritten knowledge related to agriculture, livestock, and local practices.

The implementation of IKS into educational curricula has been fraught with contention at the school and UG/PG levels. The NCERT’s recent introduction of new textbooks for Class VI, particularly in social science, gives an inaccurate and biased sanskritised representation of Indian knowledge traditions. Scholars and Ayurveda experts have noted that the NCERT Class XI textbook’s portrayal of Ayurveda includes exaggerations and inflated claims of Ayurveda as being codified 4000 years ago. In reality evidence points to around 6th century BCE.

At the higher education level, guidelines issued by UGC for incorporating IKS are unrealistic. Moreover, due to lack of faculty who understand that IKS even in earlier times has been evidence based, many HEIs are implementing courses that misrepresent, simplify and distort its rich history. Thus, the introduction of IKS has opened the door for individuals with naive or pseudoscientific views on Indian science and mathematics to gain influence. For instance, the director of IIT Mandi has faced widespread criticism for making outrageous claims that have circulated on social media, yet he represents only a small part of a much larger issue.

Haunting the System:

This year, IIT Mandi has introduced controversial topics such as “reincarnation” and “out-of-body experiences” into its IKS curriculum for B.Tech students, eliciting mixed reactions. Similarly, Banaras Hindu University (BHU) has established an entire unit within the faculty of Ayurveda dedicated to Bhoot Vidya. This six-month certificate course aims to educate doctors holding BAMS and MBBS degrees in psychotherapy, treatment of psychosomatic conditions, and paranormal activities as part of their Ayurvedic practice.

It is essential not to entirely dismiss Ayurveda and other ancient or folk medicines as irrational, as they were based on empirical practices of their times. India has a long legacy of Ayurvedic medicine grounded in experience and trial and error formulations. However, these need to undergo rigorous randomised clinical trials, which are considered the gold standard in contemporary evidence-based medicine. It has been shown that it is possible to evaluate ancient practices using modern scientific methods while maintaining their cultural significance. There is a need for rigorous research and evidence-based approaches to ensure their credibility and relevance in contemporary health practices. Consequently, AIPSN continues to emphasize the necessity of adhering to evidence-based medicine, where healing and wellness are founded on published and verified evidence.

These regressive IKS-related incursions into research institutions and universities have become commonplace, creating a persistent challenge for rational thinkers to issue statements in response. Nevertheless, in this ongoing struggle, AIPSN cannot remain silent simply because the government is a repeat offender.

Academic Freedom:  

In a separate development, South Asian University recently raised concerns regarding a PhD student’s research proposal on Kashmir, which was labelled as ‘anti-national’ by university authorities. The university’s actions led to the resignation of the student’s supervisor, Professor Sasanka Perera, raising alarms about the diminishing space for unbiased research in society.

The situation at South Asian University pertains to academic freedom and the international character of the institution, rather than being an Indian institution where the directives of the government, however misguided, may be viewed as “legitimate.” If this is how South Asian University is to be operated, it may be more prudent to relocate it outside of India, shut it down, or place it under the oversight of a completely independent body comprising South Asian representatives.

Importance of NSTD 2024:

The issues related to IKS outlined here exemplify a broader agenda that necessitates critique. Similarly, the coercive influence exerted at institutions like South Asian University poses a significant threat to academic freedom and demands vigilant oversight.

These developments highlight the critical importance of NSTD 2024, which is anchored in the Kolkata Declaration on Scientific Temper, serving as a vital advocate for scientific integrity and unhindered rational inquiry in India.

 

Contact:

General Secretary AIPSN – Asha Mishra 9425302012  gsaipsn@gmail.com @gsaipsn

Arunabha Misra, Convenor, Scientific Temper Desk,  AIPSN 9831105979

 

 

AIPSN brief to the political parties for consideration in their election manifesto
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AIPSN brief to the political parties for consideration in their election manifesto

Read the manifesto from JVV Andhra Pradesh in Telugu

 

 

Click here to read the pdf of the AIPSN brief for Political Parties 

28 Mar 2024

AIPSN brief to the political parties for consideration in their election manifesto

The All India People’s Science Network (AIPSN) – a platform of people’s science movements across the country has the following positions on various critical issues e.g., propagation of scientific temper, S&T policy and process, Environment and Water resources, Health and Agriculture. As the country gears up for the 18th General Election, we would like to present these positions to be considered for inclusion in the electoral manifesto of the secular, democratic political parties of the country.

  1. On Scientific Temper

Article 51A (h) of the Constitution of India speaks of the duty of citizens to promote scientific temper. Recently, new challenges have emerged in the country in the form of strong socio-political narratives, backed by the State power, that seek to oppose any scientific approach, evidence-based reasoning or, indeed, any perspective that acknowledges universal scientific knowledge. We demand:

  • Promote the separation of State apparatus from religion.
  • Promotion and support of campaigns for popularization of science and its methods, and for promotion of scientific temper, evidence-based reasoning and critical thinking.
  • Reversal of the present government’s various methods and measures to undermine scientific temper, critical thinking and evidence-based reasoning in governance, education and among the wider public
  • Reconstitution of text-book committees to reverse the present. government’s anti-science revision of NCERT textbooks so as to promote critical thinking among students; re-write these textbooks to address deletion of Darwin’s theory of evolution and various chapters/ sections on India’s natural resources, forests, environment, mineral resources etc, and rectify the distorted picture of ancient Indian civilization projected in these texts.
  • A thorough revision of the now compulsory UG/PG Courses and reading material on so-called “traditional Indian knowledge systems;” revise teaching material for new optional Courses on Science, Technology and other Knowledge Systems in Ancient and Medieval India based on the vast body of historical evidence-based material already available on the subject.
  • Correction of the unscientific view being projected in educational institutions and among the wider public of imaginary achievements in S&T in ancient India, and the primacy and superiority of only one stream of cultural-religious-linguistic knowledge, as against the diverse sources and streams of knowledge in the Indian civilization including bi-directional exchanges with other civilizations for a true picture of the growth of science.
  • Restoration of autonomy of academic and research Institutions in both natural and social sciences; pay due regard to research/survey-based data as basis for evidence-based policy-making; correct retrospective manipulation of data to suit ideological narratives; defend and restore academic freedom and pluralism of opinion in universities and research institutes; restore the confidence of the people in scientific institutions
  • Strict monitoring and regulation of the dissemination of “magical remedies,” pseudo-science and superstitious beliefs through commercial activities and in the media, including through Anti-Superstition legislation in the Centre and States.
  • Resumption of population census driven public policy framing.
  1. On Science and Technology (S&T)
  • Enhancement of public funding of indigenous research in S&T to at least 2 per cent of GDP, with due importance to basic research.
  • Strengthening of the university system in research and development (R&D).
  • Decentralization of systems and processes for research funding; scrap the highly centralized National Research Foundation (NRF) set up under the NEP, which also burdens State governments without according to them equitable participation in decision-making; enhance research in state-level universities and collaborations with Central universities and national S&T institutions.
  • Allocation of funds for state-level initiatives for S&T interventions to tackle people’s problems e.g. drought, water resource management, rural livelihoods, issues faced by marginalized communities.
  • Provision of requisite mission-mode R&D funding for identified sectors of the “4th Industrial Revolution” such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), bio- and nano-technology etc towards self-reliance in advanced technologies expected to dominate the “knowledge era,” but in which India is in danger of being left behind in pursuit of externally-dependent and false “atma-nirbharta”; also focus on agricultural research to break monopolies of MNCs and enable climate-resilient agriculture/horticulture.
  • Increase in number of research fellowships especially for first generation students; increase number of faculty research positions in institutes; increase quality and quantity of PhDs in which India lags behind.
  • Systematic measures to increase participation of women in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) research and jobs
  • Initiation of measures to reduce bureaucratism in S&T Institutions, and encourage academic freedom and culture of research towards reversing brain drain; reverse current trend of sycophancy, fear and discouragement of pluralism in universities and research institutes.
  • Regulation of AI, genetic engineering, data-mining and IT-based surveillance so as to ensure the public good.
  • Review of decision to close down many government-funded S&T Institutions; resuming government support for a restructured Indian Science Congress.
  • Promote free and open source software (FOSS) and other new technologies, free from monopoly ownership through copyrights or patents; “knowledge commons” to be promoted across disciplines e.g. like biotechnology, AI and drug discovery.
  • Recognition of digital infrastructure as public infrastructure to be used for public good.
  • Investment in public communication networks and free knowledge access to scientific and other academic publications without copyright barriers.
  • Ensuring all public funded research is made accessible to all.
  • Rigorous double-blind clinical trials with publication of data for open review for approval of new medicines, vaccines etc.

 

  1. Environment

Various dilutions of regulatory provisions for environmental protection have taken place in the recent past that would have serious impact on our natural resources and climate and will affect people’s livelihoods and wellbeing. There will have to be reversals of these changes. The specific demands are the following:

 

  • The system and processes of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Environmental Clearances at State and Central level be made effective, time-bound, transparent, accountable, and free of conflict of interests. EIA is to be conducted preferably through an independent Environmental Protection Agency; repeal EIA Notification 2020 and issue revised guidelines.
  • Economy-wide measures be planned and initiated to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under the UNFCCC framework as applicable to developing countries, through effective policies, regulation, de-carbonization, energy efficiency in all sectors of production and consumption, while providing for a just transition from fossil fuels; promotion of renewable energy such as solar and wind; reducing energy inequality and promoting energy access for economically weaker sections such as in public transport; India’s updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) required to be submitted to UNFCCC in 2025 to be re-cast through a participatory process involving all stakeholders.
  • A National Adaptation Plan (NAP) should be evolved through a participatory process involving all stakeholders especially States to tackle climate impacts such as on agriculture, extreme rainfall and related landslides and urban flooding, heat waves and urban heat islands, coastal erosion and sea-level rise; streamline systems to tackle natural and climate-related disasters; evolve and implement climate resilient development strategies especially addressing the needs of vulnerable populations; provide adequate funds from the Centre and build capabilities of States and local governance structures for the above.
  • Sustainable and environment/climate-friendly development strategies should be evolved for the fragile Himalayan region and eco-sensitive regions of Western Ghats and the North-East; undertake comprehensive review of infrastructure development and urbanization in hill areas, especially in the Western Himalayan region.
  • Thoroughly revise National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) towards rapid and goal-oriented reduction of air pollution in urban areas especially through promotion of public mass transportation in preference to personal vehicle use, and effective regulation of polluting industries and construction activities; strengthen Central and State regulatory authorities.
  • Urgently initiate measures to prevent degradation and destructive development of riverbeds and flood plains, including in urban areas.
  • Undo different provisions of the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Act, apart from the modified definition of Forests struck down by the SC, especially 100 km from international boarder and LAC/LOC being exempt from any regulatory measure; ensure protection of rights of tribals and other forest dwellers under Forest Rights Act, 2006.
  • Repeal provisions of biodiversity Amendment Act 2023 which permits transfer of knowledge regarding bio-diversity resources to corporate without permission of National biodiversity Authority, and also denies local communities of due compensation or share of these benefits.
  • Scrap the environmentally disastrous and pro-corporate islands Development Plan for Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep Island chains, without due consultation with local population in Lakshadweep, and endangering the tiny remaining populations of mostly isolated tribes in the Andamans; re-examine feasibility and location of proposed naval base in A&N.
  • Scrap environmentally dangerous National Oil Palm Mission with highly inflated claims of yields and focusing on eco-sensitive North-East and Andaman Islands.
  1. Water Resources
  • Re-formulate National Water Policy treating water as a scarce public good; tackle the growing water crisis; enhance equitable water availability for optimized domestic use, irrigation and industry through effective protection of rivers, expansion of water bodies and increased groundwater recharge; appropriate legislation, effective regulation and demand management of water; water audits and measures to conserve, treat and recycle water especially in urban areas.
  • Ensure equitable provision of WHO-standard piped potable drinking water to all households
  • Halt privatization of water resources and water distribution utilities in urban areas and recognise the right to water as part of the right to life.
  • Check pollution of rivers and other water bodies through effective legislation, regulation and enforcement of sewage and other waste-water treatment and recycling policies; withdraw provisions of Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Amendment, 2024 allowing Centre to override State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs).
  • Undertake comprehensive review of the programme and projects for inter-linking of rivers.
  • Plan and urgently implement measures to protect and improve catchment areas of major rivers especially in the Himalayan region; also take all steps possible to check glacier melting rates such as through regulation of fossil-fuel powered vehicular movement and air pollution in mountain regions.
  1. Health
  • Make right to free health care justiciable through enactment of appropriate legislations at both Central and State levels.
  • Retain health services as a state subject with strong emphasis on federalism.
  • Public expenditure on health to be raised to at least 3.5 per cent in the short term and 5 per cent of the GDP in the long term, with at least 1% and 2% respectively coming from the Centre.
  • Out-of-pocket expenditure on health to be brought to below 25% of health spending expand and strengthen the public healthcare system to ensure free availability of quality health care at all levels, including entire range of medicines, diagnostics and vaccines, and accountability to local communities.
  • Scrap the government-funded PMJAY/Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme and replace it with a Public-centred Universal Health Care system.
  • Reverse the privatisation of health care services and outsourcing of services through PPPs.
  • Reverse the re-branding of Health and Wellness Centres as ‘Arogya mandirs’.
  • Extend and reform the ESI scheme to effectively protect workers’ health in both organized and unorganized sector, and also covering occupational health.
  • Effectively regulate the private health care sector, especially corporate hospitals which should be brought under the Clinical Establishment Act. Modify the National Clinical Establishment Act, 2010 ensuring implementation of the Patients’ Rights Charter and standardization of reasonable rates and quality of various services.
  • Ensure right-based access to comprehensive treatment and care of persons with mental illness through integration of the revised District Mental Health Programme with the National Health Mission.
  • Adopt a people-centred, rational pharmaceutical policy with effective cost-based price controls, elimination of irrational and hazardous formulations, and a comprehensive generic medicines policy covering labelling, prescription and availability at all retail outlets; ensure availability of essential drugs free of cost at all public health care facilities.
  • Initiate programs to break monopolies of pharmaceutical multinational companies in critical areas.
  • Revive public sector pharmaceutical units to harness them for production of essential drugs and vaccines, and reverse privatization trends; reinstate Open-Source Drug Discovery (OSDD) programmes and collaborative R&D for affordable medicines; remove GST for life-saving and crucial medicines.
  • Strictly control and regulate clinical trials and prohibit unethical clinical trials; develop a justiciable charter of rights for clinical trial participants
  • Remove US government’s drug law enforcing agency USFDA’s offices and officials from India.
  • Resist dilution of India’s Patent of Laws and reject provisions in Free Trade Agreements that obstruct domestic production low-cost generic drugs.
  • Ensure effective, appropriate regulatory oversight of AYUSH system of medicine, while supporting evidence-based use of such systems.
  • Give priority to the setting up of new public colleges to train doctors and nurses, especially in underserved areas such as in the North East and in poorer States. Training institutes to be set up for health workers.
  1. Agriculture

            Right to land, water and commons for all

  • Provide equitable access to land and water: legislate for homesteads for the rural poor; grant land rights to landless for cultivation; promote kitchen gardens, backyard poultry, cattle sheds and group farming.
  • Place all above-ceiling land presently held by public or private entities under control of the state and union government for the redistribution to the landless.
  • Create a register of tenants and provide smallholders with secure tenancy. Give tenant farmers statutory support, recognise tenants as beneficiaries of schemes announced for individual benefits, and access to benefits from sector wide schemes financed through public investment.
  • Recognize women as farmers and grant them land rights, secure their tenancy rights over leased lands.
  • Recognize land rights of Adivasi farmers, implement Forest Rights Act (FRA), review all rejections under FRA, and roll back pro-corporate amendments to Indian Forest Act, 1927.

            Right to Food, Employment, Education, Health and Social Protection

  • Ensure job security and minimum wage by extending the number of workdays from 100 to 200 workdays in rural areas @ Rs. 800 wages per day, implement existing provision of 100 days of MGNREGA without creating digital hurdles.
  • Introduce a provision of 100 days of labour support for the SC, ST, and other small and marginal farmers for land development and for the adoption of integrated farming systems (IFS) including natural farming, thus 200 days of rural employment @ Rs. 800 wages per day.
  • Enact old age pensions.
  • Provide childcare and crèche facilities in agricultural workspaces.
  • Provide for separate courts for protection against caste, ethnic, religious, gender-based oppression.
  • Introduce Urban Employment Guarantee Act, guarantee employment for graduates from rural households in nearby towns.

            Right to public and bank finance, production inputs, knowledge and market

  • Guarantee extra budgetary resources to states from the 15th finance commission for raising the level of gross capital formation in agriculture as a percentage ford from the current level of 15.7% to 30%.
  • Guarantee primary producers’ freedom from debt by implementing complete(formal and informal) loan waiver, restore the right of primary producers to priority lending, stop co-lending to delink farmers from the high-cost economy in agriculture; reduce the risks faced from climate change in respect of pursuing agriculture & allied sector occupations.
  • Create a single-window loan facility for small holders to promote integrated farming, strengthen SHGs and Kudambashree-type of institutions to enable women farmers to access agriculture credit from public banking.
  • Guarantee remunerative prices for agricultural commodities establish an effective system of public procurement of all farm produce declared as essential produce/value added products by rural households through cooperatives for the promotion of sustainable rural livelihoods and for the creation of a universal public distribution system.
  • Guarantee access to publicly regulated markets purchasing the primary produce at the minimum support price (MSP) not lower than C2 costs plus 50 % for the products declared as essential commodities for production by state legislatures.
  • Take agriculture out of WTO, no more free trade agreements (FTAs), and no more patent like intellectual property rights (IPRs) on seeds.
  • Withdraw from the agreements signed by ICAR with Bayer, Amazon and otherness, guarantee research, advice, testing and extension through public sector undertakings, and pave the way for national ownership and control of infrastructure required for agri-digitalization and agri-tech delivery.
  • Reintroduce sectoral reservation through legislation for the products attracting AGMARK label to encourage value addition through cooperatives, micro and small businesses & PSUs in order to keep big business out of local markets.
  • Ensure agro-ecologically coupled integration of primary, secondary and tertiary industries, and restore state/district level planning by establishing statutory boards for scientific and equitable land use, area planning, market development, and promotion of value addition to co-products and by-products through group enterprises.
  • Separate Fisheries Ministry in Central and State Governments with the mandate to protect and promote sustainable fisheries and the livelihood of small-scale fish workers including fishers, fish farmers, fish vendors and other ancillary fish workers.
  • Establish a National Commission for Fisheries to look after policy implementation, inter-state disputes, protection and promotion of the rights and entitlements of small-scale fishing communities.
  • Create in every state “State Commissions for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare”.
  • Stop entry of private Dairy Corporate Companies and import of foreign dairy products that threaten existence of India’s Dairy Cooperatives.
  • Abandon plan to open the Indian market by permitting Free Trade on milk and milk-based products.
  • Ensure remunerative prices for milk and milk products.

 

For clarifications contact:

Asha Mishra, General Secretary, AIPSN  gsaipsn@gmail.com, 9425302012, Twitter: @gsaipsn

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Declaration and Resolution on Scientific Temper

Click here for English pdf  of the Declaration of Statement on Scientific Temper with signatories 

 

Other languages: Tamil Bengali Telugu

 

 

Click here for English pdf of the Resolution adopted along with the Declaration on Scientific Temper 

 

Other languages: Tamil    Bengali  

 

Leaflet/Powerpoint distributed about the Declaration/Resolution in  Tamil  Bengali 

 

 

 

Adopted at “Campaign for scientific temper culmination program and National convention for declaration on scientific temper”

held on 28th Feb 2024 at Kolkata

 

Statement on Scientific Temper in the Current Context

Executive Summary There is an urgent need for a renewed commitment to evidence-based reasoning, critical thinking and a scientific approach in India, especially amidst growing socio-political movements that challenge a scientific temper and universal knowledge production based on commonly agreed methods and understanding. Given the changes in society and technology since the earlier declarations on scientific temper in 1981 and 2011, we emphasise the importance of embracing natural and social sciences, humanities, and the rational experiences of ordinary people in the common endeavour to combat the post-truth culture, the intentional promotion of ignorance, and diminishing trust in science exacerbated by misuse of technology. We call for action across three fronts: the State’s role, the involvement of scientific and academic institutions, and combating the undermining of science by the State, the erosion of academic freedom, and the spread of pseudo-science and unscientific beliefs. We urge scientists, intellectuals, and other like-minded individuals to support evidence-based thinking and policy-making and to uphold constitutional values to foster a scientific temper.

Introduction Since the Coonoor Statement on Scientific Temper in 1981 and the Palampur Declaration in 2011, there have been significant socio-political changes in India and around the world. Briefly, these earlier statements had emphasised the importance of fostering a scientific attitude among the people for development and social advancement. Over time, movements promoting scientific temper in India have also evolved in accordance with changing public perceptions of science and technology (S&T).

Recently, new challenges have emerged in India and elsewhere in the world in the form of strong socio-political movements, backed by the State power, that seek to oppose any scientific approach, evidence-based reasoning or, indeed, any perspective that acknowledges universal scientific knowledge. Globally, a post-truth culture is spreading, marked by a deliberate spreading of ignorance and an anti-intellectual atmosphere, along with a diminishing trust in science. It is ironic that technology, part of the broad umbrella of science, is being harnessed to support these trends through social media, such that manufactured sentiment, prejudice, false narratives, baseless opinions and conspiracy theories gain acceptance as valid ways of thinking.

Against this background, the current situation requires a renewed commitment to robust evidence-based reasoning, drawing from accumulated knowledge in the natural and social sciences, and humanities, as well as from the know-how and rational experiences of working people. Such reasoning aligns with well-recognized methodologies of different disciplines, including emerging interdisciplinary research, applicable not only in academic environments, but also in public discourse and understanding. Both scientists and lay practitioners need to actively embrace and popularise these methods considering the new socio-political realities in India.

This contemporary statement on Scientific Temper has become essential, to address present challenges. This statement shall not undertake a critical review of the previous statements / declarations or debate their points. Instead, it acknowledges past debates and critiques, incorporating their essence into the current statement, recognizing the commonality of scientific disciplines and their methodologies. Rather than revisiting old debates, the focus here is on delineating the significant challenges faced in contemporary India for the constitutionally mandated task of promoting scientific temper, the spirit of inquiry, and humanism. Knowledge production and advancement through purposeful discovery and evidence-based reasoning, including thorough consideration of diverse opinions, is currently under severe threat both in academia and in society at large.

Dangerous new theatre As noted earlier, the arena for fostering scientific temper has evolved significantly in recent decades, becoming increasingly contested, including aggressive socio-cultural forces as well as governmental policies and administrative measures antagonistic to scientific temper. The current situation in India demands critical understanding and action on three interrelated fronts: the role of the State and polity, the character and function of scientific research and academic institutions, and malign influences in society and among the general public.

Article 51A(h) of the Constitution of India speaks of the duty of citizens to promote scientific temper. There is concern in some quarters that responsibilities of the State in this regard have not been adequately highlighted. While it might have been assumed that the State’s primary responsibility is implicit when citizens are called upon for certain duties, there is a need for a clearer delineation of the State’s role.

Note: In the declaration, the terms ‘scientists’ and ‘scientific institutions’ are used as terms denoting all natural sciences, social sciences and humanities disciplines, and those others following an evidence-based path of knowledge production and understanding.

Role of the State In the initial post-Independence decades, the Indian State placed significant trust in scientists1 and scientific institutions. Development policies were evidence-driven, with research institutions and centres of excellence enjoying high priority and prestige, and enjoying substantial autonomy. Documents like the Industrial Policy Resolution and a unique Scientific Policy Resolution were foundational to planned development, guided by a multidisciplinary group of experts in the Planning Commission. Independent scientists and social scientists, both from India and abroad, were involved in policy-making, underlining the importance given to science and evidence-based policy-making. Notably, religion played a minimal role in state affairs, and secularism, defined as non-discrimination and equal respect for all religions, was practised. However, the evils of casteism and communalism have never been properly eliminated.

However, in subsequent years, bureaucratism, elitism, and a techno-fix mentality crept into the system, creating something of a divide between scientists and the general public. Trust in scientific institutions also eroded as a perception grew that “establishment science” primarily served officialdom and corporate interests, rather than the public good as supported by verifiable data. During this period, academic, professional, and informed activist voices in civil society critiqued official narratives, influencing public opinion and contributing to critical thinking and evidence-based policymaking. While the State may not have proactively cultivated scientific temper, it engaged with and supported activities to popularise science among the wider public and children. The State also provided considerable space in governance and public discourse for non-official scientific, expert, and informed lay opinion.

Undermining science and a scientific approach   Presently, the State displays a stark departure from this earlier stance. Government and its various organs now actively oppose a scientific approach, independent or critical thinking, and evidence-based thinking and policy-making. This antagonistic stance is widely and persistently communicated to the public through various means, perpetuating such attitudes. State support for research and development (R&D), already below comparable countries as a percentage of GDP, has hit historic lows, raising serious concerns about India’s future in the knowledge era. Domestic assembly by cheap labour is misrepresented as self-reliance, thus also underplaying the need for research and knowledge production.

Funding, fellowships, and independent research face severe cuts in academic and research institutions, burdened by overpowering bureaucratic structures. Career advancement now favours adherence to dominant ideologies, sycophancy, and obedience to government directives over adherence to imperatives arising from domain expertise and research-based insights. Development data and India’s position in reputed international rankings are contested on spurious grounds. Similar data generated in India, even by government institutions, are rejected or manipulated to fit political narratives. On numerous issues, the government claims to lack data, but still proceeds with policy decisions. Open discussions in higher learning institutions are discouraged, hindering critical thinking, pluralism, and academic freedom.

Beyond image management, these tendencies undermine a scientific approach and evidence-based policymaking, demoralising the knowledge production community and fostering anti-intellectual attitudes.

The State and allied social forces directly undermine science and its methods among the public. Unscientific claims by prominent figures in political circles, boasting of imaginary technological achievements and exaggerated ideas about ancient Indian knowledge, are used to build and support a hyper-nationalist narrative. These assertions lack evidence, relying on ambiguous mythological references and dubious interpretations of ancient texts, often draped in quasi-religious cover so as to suppress dissenting voices. Such fanciful and boastful claims undermine many actual substantial contributions of ancient India emanating from various cultural streams and covering intellectual as well as artisanal and technical accomplishments. Critics of such claims are readily branded as anti-national or westernised, questioning both history and science, and undermining the scientific method. Dissent and plurality of opinion, known to be enabling conditions for intellectual progress, are presently under threat.

Assault on the education sector It is disheartening to witness these trends now being introduced into the formal education system, potentially influencing an entire generation unless effectively countered. School textbooks and readings in higher education are undergoing revisions that promote the idea of the unquestioned superiority of knowledge in ancient India, while downplaying the role of other civilizations and their groundbreaking contributions. Whereas addressing Euro-centrism and acknowledging the contributions from ancient India, China, and other “eastern” civilizations is essential, denying the emergence of modern science and technology and the industrial revolution, and the factors leading to it, is not only untruthful but also misleading. The giant strides of modern science and technology cannot be undermined or replaced by fictional narratives, as seen in revised school textbooks of agencies at the Centre and in various states.

These revised textbooks also omit chapters on crucial historical, societal, economic, and ecological issues in India. In an examination-oriented system not fostering critical thinking, this leaves students ill-prepared for higher studies or research and for their roles as informed citizens contributing to national development.

In higher education, mandatory courses on “traditional knowledge systems” are being introduced, presenting a-historical and distorted accounts of knowledge in ancient India. These courses exclusively glorify the Vedic-Sanskritic tradition, neglecting other cultural streams in ancient India and completely disregarding the significant generation of new knowledge in mediaeval India, out of prejudice against particular religious and cultural

streams. This deliberate slant aims to erase or rewrite historical evidence and obstruct critical thinking, leaving students and citizens vulnerable to bias and instilling a distorted view of syncretic Indian traditions and multicultural reality. In the long run, this will result in incalculable damage to the progress of Indian science and to social harmony.

Societal attack In recent decades, India has witnessed the growth of socio-religious orthodoxy, traditionalism, and revivalism, fueled by majoritarian socio-political forces. Traditional religious practices, festivals, and communal forms of organisation have proliferated. Numerous “Godmen” have emerged with substantial resources, sizable followings, and at times, significant political backing. These cults, despite projecting high-thinking spiritualism, have propagated superstitions, pseudo-scientific beliefs, and socio-religious orthodoxy.

Today, social forces aligned with the ruling establishment and supported by the State, disseminate pseudo-science and a belief in mythology as history. False narratives are being used to construct a unitary majoritarian religion and culture, contrary to the diverse religious beliefs even among the majority community. False and unscientific narratives, such as vegetarianism as a dominant “traditional” practice, are being promoted, contradicting scientific surveys conducted by official agencies.

During the COVID pandemic, superstitions and pseudo-scientific notions related to health were actively promoted under the guise of endorsing “traditional” or ancient Indian health systems while implicitly or explicitly criticising modern medicine. Highly placed authorities encouraged practices like lighting lamps and clanging utensils to ward off the virus, with social media amplifying purported “proof” of efficacy, such as recordings of “cosmic vibrations” by NASA. Other pseudo-scientific claims are similarly backed by false evidence supposedly coming from reputed scientific agencies. Artificial creation of long-lost legendary ancient rivers is being undertaken to perpetuate mythology. All these exploit the enduring respect common people hold for science and its truth value. The forces of unreason seek to sow confusion regarding evidence and scientific methods.

Social media and digital technologies play a pivotal role in the State-backed dissemination of unscientific and anti-scientific views, pseudo-science, false narratives, and conspiracy theories aimed at undermining a scientific approach.

In closing, it is important to address the idea that “other worldly” religious beliefs pose the only or major obstacle to fostering a scientific temper in India. Faith poses many challenges which science or rationalism may not always be able to tackle, insofar as faith itself may be defined or perceived as belonging to a non-physical domain. Freedom of religion or Individual faith may indeed be accorded due recognition. At the same time, discriminatory practices or those that impinge on others’ rights or affect public order, must be opposed, and their irrational basis explained. Obscurantism persists due to ongoing weaknesses in society itself, highlighting larger battles that need to be fought, of which the present one may be just a part. Given the organised challenges to a scientific approach discussed earlier, a more focused and targeted strategy is required for the campaign to promote or strengthen a scientific temper.

Declaration We scientists and intellectuals across disciplines, activists and all individuals passionate about spreading a scientific temper, acknowledge that the struggle to promote a scientific temper is wide-ranging and embraces many dimensions. Yet we also understand that, given the grave threats posed in the current context, the major challenge in this period is to combat and roll back these threats. We realise the imminent danger posed by organised multi-pronged attacks to undermine a scientific attitude among the populace. Such attacks not only disseminate pseudo-science, blind faith, and unreason but also promote obscurantism, communitarian prejudices, and discrimination, striking at the core of a humanist approach. False narratives, unfounded opinions, and a cloak of religiosity are wielded to instil adherence to a manufactured, homogenised, majoritarian idea of India.

We, the signatories of this declaration, re-attest the importance of working towards promotion of scientific temper in society. We recognise the grassroots work put in by people’s science movements, other like-minded organisations and dedicated individuals, and commit to support these and other similar efforts. We appeal to like-minded individuals in academia and research institutions, the bureaucracy, and the political class to take a stand upholding constitutional values.

 

List of Signatories given below 

 

 

 

 

 

For further information contact

Satyajit Rath  9868877399

Asha Mishra   9425302012

Arunabh Mishra  9831105979

Krishnaswamy 8012558638

Aniket Sule  9820273239

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Resolution adopted by the AIPSN along with the  “Statement on Scientific Temper Declaration”

in the  “Campaign for scientific temper culmination program and National convention for declaration on scientific temper”

held on 28th Feb 2024 at Kolkata

 

 

Convinced that India that is Bharat grew for several centuries as Hindostan, and where the people of various religions chose to live together after becoming politically independent from the British Empire and experiencing the partition, is not  a society of comparative and competitive religious fanaticism;

Certain that Hindostan is not the land of make-believe demands on Astha (the tradition of belief systems) alone, but that Hindostan is also the land of modern interpretations of religion;

Confident that Hindostan is the land of the rich tradition of syncretism (combining different traditions) and of seekers of the Universal Truths in religions, and that the people cherish civilizational heritage and celebrate the unity in diversity in food, dress and language on everyday basis;

Clear that Hindostan is the land where Nastiks and Astiks coexisted, materialistic philosophical traditions, for example, lokayata flourished, and the revolution of equality through Buddhism appealing to large sections of society took root, and where the traditions of rebellion and resistance grew through the teachings of Basava, Kabir, Nanak, Narayana Guru, Periyar and many more, promoted inclusiveness and syncretism of sufi and bhakti spiritual preachers;

Accepting that the people care for the legacy of the freedom movement, constitutional vision, national unity and integrity, and do not doubt that the majority is concerned about economic, ecological and social justice, and they continue to think about fundamental rights and directive principles of state policy enshrined in the Indian Constitution;

Recognizing that the people as bearers of historical knowledge, skills and culture, and as social carriers of agro-food diversity, culinary heritage, dietary selections, continue to enjoy variegated range of food, health and fitness practices, and they would be willing to stand up once again against the bearers of sectarian politics trying to take away their economic, social and political freedoms;

Recalling that the contributions to modern science & technology made by J C Bose,  M Visvesvaraya, P C Ray, C V Raman, M N Saha, P C Mahalanobis, S N Bose, S.S. Sokhey, SS Bhatnagar, Homi Bhabha,  Vikram Sarabhai, Satish Dhawan and by many others who challenged the colonial order in S&T, and the perspective and strategy of Scientific Policy Resolution (SPR, 1958) which cherished self-reliance and, embraced scientific approach to policymaking, the scientific and technological communities would not let the people suffer unreason and eliminate the space for pluralism and diversity from the world of higher education, science, technology and humanities;

Persuaded that as the post-independent India’s transformative impulses of self-reliance that accommodated the Gandhians, Nehruvians and Leftists to practice their own S&T heuristics for development in the parallel, gave a place to the ethos of scientific temper and humanism in the Indian Constitution, and in the National Curriculum Framework (2005) and in the Right to Education legislation (2008), the Indian S&T community and the people can be mobilized to defend these gains;

Knowing that the ecumenical (promoting unity among religions), cosmopolitan and modern traditions of scientific and technical practice have deep roots in India, the S&T community can be made to appreciate that the sources of ancient and medieval contributions to science involved multi-cultural interactions, and that the attempts to present mythology as history and fiction as science do not resonate well with the people, the vast majority of Indian people can be made to understand how the latest modern construction of the past traditions is to present an ideology that glosses over and hides the inequalities and exploitation based on caste, class, gender and community;

Recognising that as the people resisted Brahmanism and caste oppression in the ancient and medieval times, the latest attempts to cultivate and impose the irrational and unreasonable ideas on the Indian Women, Youth, Adivasis and Dalits can also be defeated among the people across North, South, East and West of India by mobilizing the people against the assault on scientific temper in the relevant spheres of school and higher education, scientific research and science popularisation;

Feeling alarmed at the Union Government’s blatant unconstitutional attempts to impose on the states the National Education Policy (NEP, 2020), that has the potential to damage irreparably the national character and destroy the secular and democratic contributions of Indian education, the Peoples’ Science Movements (PSMs) call upon the state governments to resist the efforts that sow the seeds of hatred and conformism deep into the mind of the young under the influence of the idea of Hindutava – a destructor of social progress and universal brotherhood/sisterhood, and rededicate themselves to developing quality education with public purposes of national importance

As PSMs,

We solemnly affirm our constitutional right to defend the integrity of Article 51 A(h), and to ensure that the investments in education, science, technology, humanities and arts are considerably enhanced and directed to work for the realization of the scientific temper/outlook[1], for the cultivation of linguistic and socio-cultural diversity, for the universally cherished message of love (‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ – the world is one family’ ) and for the secular and socialist idea of India and for the reduction of inequalities;

We will contribute to the movements seeking economic, social and ecological justice, and work for the dignified livelihood for the Indian people as a whole through education and research, commit to redouble our own efforts for the promotion of progressive anti-imperialist nationalism, and to strengthen the role and contribution of Indian S&T institutions in the processes of decision making and evaluation of the socio-economic policies under implementation;

We continue with the work started by Dara Shikoh, Savitribai and Jyotriba Phule, Ramabai, Rabindranath Tagore, Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi, Periyar, Bhim Rao Ambedkar, EMS Namboodripad, Ashfaqullah, Bhagat Singh, Subhas Bose, Meghnath Saha, S.S Bhatnagar, Homi Bhabha, S.S. Sokhey, Vikram Sarabhai Husain Zaheer and many others who stood their ground and established the edifice of post-independence period modern S&T institutions, and helped the people to realize the idea of India and the legacy of progressive traditions of the freedom movement;

Mobilize the scientific community to stand up for academic freedom, and actively collaborate with the democratic movement and civil society to defend civil liberties and democratic rights, freedom of expression, organization, representation and struggle through constitutional means, and expose and isolate the forces supporting the babas spreading fatalism and unreason,

Collaborate and work with the rationalists, scholars, academics, scientists, technologists, social scientists, teachers of humanities and sciences,  and professionals about the way forward for the realization of the above stated goals of social progress, propose policies, build institutions and establish a standing mechanism to pursue the challenge of cultivation of scientific temper,  humanism and world peace.

[1] The term scientific temper is broadly defined as “a modest open-minded temper—a temper ever ready to welcome new light, new knowledge, new experiments, even when their results are unfavourable to preconceived opinions and long-cherished theories.

For further information contact

Satyajit Rath  9868877399

Asha Mishra   9425302012

Arunabh Mishra  9831105979

Krishnaswamy 8012558638

 

 

 

 

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AIPSN Foundation Day Celebrations

Click here to see a brief profile on AIPSN and the 1st AIPSC held on 11 Feb 1988 in YouTube 

2024 AIPSN Foundation Day Webinar Series

 

 

Click here to see the link to Prabir’s talk from which two 5 minute excerpts were played in the Inaugural Webinar on AIPSN Foundation Day

 

11febPrabir

Earlier events

click here to download the poster for the Feb 11 storynar in English and in Hindi 

click here to download the book “Science for Social Revolution”

AIPSN Calendar 2024
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AIPSN Calendar 2024

To view the AIPSN Calendar click here

 

 

Click to see writeup of calendar in Tamil

 

 

Dear Friends
AIPSN is happy to put in your hands the “Chronicles of the Centuries”, a wall calendar for 2024 which traces the history of the development of science and technology in our subcontinent.

Based on the award winning serial ” Bharat ki Chhaap” it covers the period of each episode in one month of the calendar. Beautifully designed by “Design Orb”, with unique features like a direct QR code link to the relevant serial episode, the calendar will become a doorway for an exciting multimedia tour of our science history. It is especially relevant for schools, colleges, and educational institutions.

 

The message of the calendar is the message of “Sabka desh, Hamara Desh” and “Scientific Temper for All” as the Idea of India for meeting contemporary challenges facing the country and humankind.

 

We have prepared this as  part of our Campaign for Scientific Temper. Thanks to the committee of 4 members Vivek Monterio, Arunabh Mishra, Sabyasachi Chatterjee and T V Venkateswaran for their efforts in developing this Calender. Thanks to Navnirmiti for their contribution in making the same..

 

The Cost of the hard copy of the calendar is Rs 175 for copies less than 50. Please send the amount to the account number given below. Send an email with the transfer details and address to post the calendar  to aipsnbooks@gmail.com

The account no is given below .

All India People’s Science Network
A/c No-35570899619
Bank Name- SBI
IFSC- SBIN0004415
Branch- Gulmohar Colony, Bhopal

Institutional or bulk orders for more than 50 copies please send  enquiries to aipsnbooks@gmail.com

Regards
Asha Mishra

General Secretary AIPSN

Cover of calendar 2024

Cover of Calendar 2024

First page of Calendar 2024

First page of Calendar 2024

Jan 2024 of calendar

Jan 2024 of calendar

End page of Calendar 2024

End page of Calendar 2024

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AIPSN Demands recall of NCERT special modules on Chandrayaan 3: Modules filled with Errors and Pseudoscientific Claims

Click here to see press coverage in Science

Click here for the PRESS RELEASE in English  

 

To see the pdf of the Statement click here English 

 

All India Peoples Science Network (AIPSN) Statement

30 Oct 2023

 

AIPSN Demands recall of NCERT special modules on Chandrayaan 3:

Modules filled with errors and pseudoscientific claims

 

ON 17 October 2023, NCERT released a number of special modules in English and Hindi on Chandrayaan 3, for circulating to millions of school students as supplementary reading material. However due to severe criticism as seen in  press and media coverage the NCERT initially took down the webpage on the modules but after the Government defended the modules in a PIB release on 25 October saying “Mythology and philosophy put forward ideas and ideas lead to innovation and research” the website came back online!  These modules were targeted towards different learning stages as described in NEP 2020 (Foundational, Primary, Middle School, Secondary and Higher Secondary). Shockingly, many scientific and technical errors occur in the content of these modules, some of which are pointed out below. In addition, there are pseudo-scientific claims and misleading scientific content, and even a reference to a Nazi scientist, quite out of sync with the usual standards of material from NCERT, apart from numerous grammatical errors in the English versions.

There is a clear danger that this wrong information will be transmitted to students as-is and cause real harm. Or worse: the content is so badly written that students will be put off this exciting field.

Members of the scientific community and all rationally minded citizens should summarily reject this shoddily prepared material. The way NCERT reacted after the criticism to withdraw them and then put them back on after the government defended the mythology must not happen again. The demand is that NCERT recalls all these modules at once permanently.

 

 

List of Scientific Errors, Pseudoscientific claims and Falsehoods in the NCERT modules on Chandrayaan

 Foundational Stage (code 1.1F, kindergarten and grades 1-2):

    1. Text: (for Chandrayaan 2) … this time due to a malfunction in the parts of the rocket, it lost contact with the Earth …

Reality: The launcher rocket worked perfectly, and although the lander failed, the orbiter module of Chandrayaan kept working and ISRO kept receiving data.

  1. Primary Stage (code 1.2P, grades 3-5):
    1. Text: this rocket has two major parts—one is Rover and the other is Lander which send us information about the Moon.

Reality: The rocket (LVM3) carried the Chandrayaan 3 spacecraft. The spacecraft  itself had an orbiter and a lander. The rover was kept inside the lander to get released after landing on the Moon.

  1. Middle School Stage (code: 1.3M, grades 6-8):
    1. Text: Literature tells us that it can be traced back through Vymaanika Shastra: ‘Science of Aeronautics’, which reveals that our country had the knowledge of flying vehicles in those days (This book has mind boggling details of construction, working of engines and the gyroscopic systems).

Reality: It has been conclusively shown through research that the origin of the much touted Vymaanika Shastra text can only be traced to the early 20th century and the designs, engines and instruments described in it are completely imaginary, unscientific and useless.

  1. Text: The Vedas, … makes a mention of … these chariots could also fly. The Rig Veda (verses 1.16.47-48) specifically mentions “mechanical birds.” There are various mentions of flying chariots (Rath) and flying vehicles (Vimaan) which were used in battles and wars. All gods … travel from one place to another. These places included earth, heaven, planets and cosmic destinations called ‘Loks’. Such vehicles were said to travel effortlessly in space and without any noise. One such Vimaan is the legendary Pushpak Vimaan (literally the floral chariot) mentioned in Ramayana.

Reality: All these mentions of flying vehicles in various vedic texts and epics are understood to be products of the poets’ imagination. Almost all ancient cultures around the world have literary references about their gods flying in the sky. However, they are not taken as proof of the existence of flying vehicles in ancient times. There is no proof of any human leaving the Earth to travel to space before Uri Gagarin did it in 1961. And the Rgvedic reference given in the text is simply wrong as the 16th sukta of the 1st mandala of Rgveda does not even have 48 verses.

  1. Text: Literary inputs of nature stated above always gave Bharat, as a Nation, an advantage in understanding the significance of space science

Reality: As mentioned above such literary references could be found in multiple ancient cultures and Sarabhai and other scientists’ vision for the Indian space programme was not a product of these poetic inputs. Claiming so would be an insult to the legacy of Sarabhai and pioneering works of many contemporary scientists

  1. Text: It also has peaks that are in constant or near constant sunlight, which creates excellent opportunities for generating power to support lunar activities.

Reality: Although the lunar axis of rotation is almost perpendicular to the ecliptic plane, any mountain peak can be in ‘near constant sunlight’ only if it is almost at the south pole. The landing site of Chandrayaan 3 is more than 500 km away from the lunar south pole. Thus, finding such mountain peaks near the landing site is not possible.

  1. Text: (under activity 1) List out the indigenous materials used in making Chandrayaan-3 a budget-friendly mission.

Reality: ISRO has not publicly released any educational materials regarding this and hence this activity is just a game of guesswork and reproducing jargon from ISRO pages without any understanding.

  1. Text: The ancient Bharatiya texts and discourses contain treasures of scientific knowledge on various disciplines including aeronautics

Reality: As discussed above, these texts are either just poetic imaginations or not ancient at all.

  1. Secondary Stage (codes 1.4S-1.7S, grades 9-10):
    1. Text (code 1.4S): “Where is the Lunar South Pole?” The lunar south pole is the southernmost point on the moon, at 90 degrees south.

Comment: This is tautology, undesirable in any educational text.

  1. Text (code 1.4S): Based on the earlier mission, i.e., ‘orbital mission’ and ‘flyby mission’ it was found that certain dark craters in the south pole …

Comment: If a spacecraft passes close to a celestial body without entering in an orbit around that body, then it is classified as a ‘flyby mission’. Given this classification, no flyby lunar missions have explored the south pole of the moon.

  1. Text (code 1.4S): NASA has described the dark craters as, ‘full of mystery, science and intrigue’.

Comment: This and other similar instances of invoking NASA are name dropping exercises. Using the name to NASA does not add credibility to such nonsense.

  1. Text (code 1.4S): The lunar south pole has many mountains that are not facing earth and are the ideal place to receive such astronomical radio signals from a ground radio observatory.

Comment: This is not related to the Chandrayaan missions. Further, “receive signal from ground observatory” does not make any sense.

  1. Text (code 1.5S): Chaitra month is named after Chitrā nakshatra transiting the

Moon during the period.

Comment: The Nakshatras is the background and it is the moon that transits in the foreground.

  1. Text (code 1.5S): Folklore narrates that on this night, the Moon’s rays possess healing properties, bestowing health and vitality upon those who bask in its luminance.

Comment: Although authors attribute this belief to folklore, it should be  avoided here as it is irrelevant. If it must be mentioned there should be a clear assertion that this claim of the moon’s rays possessing healing properties is not supported scientifically.

  1. Text (code 1.6S): (Activity 1) Prepare a simulation model to make the solar system, planets and satellite. Specially placed the moon with their planets Earth.

Make a Solar System → Locate the sun at the centre of Solar System → Make the elliptical path that orbit the Sun → Locate the planets on each elliptical path → Locate the satellite on each planet that orbit the planet again → Show the Moon of our planet

Comment: Here the level of English is so poor that the meaning is completely lost. How “paths orbit the sun”, how “satellites are located on each planet”, everything is a mystery.  Sentences such as  “locate the satellite on each planet” are meaningless. This is a rehashed version of the activity which was already present in class 8 NCERT book and just retaining the same text as in that book would have been better than this text.

  1. Text (code 1.6S): There are many hypotheses and theories that explain the origin of the moon. The most expected theory suggested that …

Comment: What is meant by “the most expected theory suggested” makes no sense.

  1. Text (code 1.6S): The moon is the brightest and largest heavenly body in our night sky. There are many benefits Earth gets from the moon, the moon moderates Earth’s wobble in its axis, leading to a relatively stable climate. It also creates tides and protects Earth from solar winds, ideal for studying the universe.

Comment: This is a poorly written paragraph which creates a lot of misconceptions. The moon appears to be the largest body, but that is due to its proximity. Moon protecting the earth from the solar wind is also scientifically inaccurate and the second part of that sentence “ideal for studying the universe” does not have any connection to the first, and is meaningless here

  1. Text (code 1.6S): The mission (Chandrayaan 2) discovered an ice sheet in the lunar crater.

Comment: This is total mischaracterisation of the scientific results. The mission confirmed the presence of water molecules. Moreover, “Ice Sheet” refers to a thick layer of only ice, whereas the amount of water in lunar craters is too small to form ice sheets.

  1. Text (code 1.6S): The slogan Chanda mama door ke will be replaced by Chanda mama tour ke near in the near future

Comment: Completely misleading portrayal of how space research will develop in near future. Commercial space tourism is not a priority of ISRO and space tourism (even in near earth orbits) will remain prohibitively expensive for most of the human population at least for another generation or two.

  1. Text (code 1.7S): A rocket’s engine produces a thrust of 20,000 Newtons to lift a payload weighing 2,000 kg. If the gravitational force on Earth is approximately 9.81/29.81m/s2, will the rocket overcome Earth’s gravity to Ascend?
  2. Comment: Look at the second line of the question. It gives two numbers. Out of that 9.81 corresponds to gravitational acceleration at the earth’s surface and 29.81 is the earth’s orbital speed; they are followed by a unit of acceleration. But the question says this is the gravitational force. Does it make any sense?
  3. Text (code 1.7S): On Earth, it takes about 24 hours for the planet to make one rotation on its own axis. … This completes a full-day cycle on Earth. Similarly, one face of the moon remains exposed to sunlight for one lunar day which equals approximately 14 days on Earth.
  4. Comment: One lunar day is 27.3 Earth days. The 14 day period is approximately half a lunar day. Calling it one lunar day is inconsistent with the definition of earth day (24 hours) in the same text.
  5. Text (code 1.7S): 240.25 hours or 10 days and 0.25 hours (i.e., 10 days and 6 hours)
  6. Comment: The number in the bracket is 246 hours, not 240.25 hours.

 

  1. Higher Secondary stage (1.8HS-1.10HS, grades 11-12):
    1. Text (code 1.8HS): Once a rocket reaches the right altitude from the Earth, it injects the satellite or the spacecraft.

Comment: If one says the satellite is injected without mentioning that it is injected into orbit, the meaning of the sentence changes completely.
The correct wording should be: “Once a rocket reaches the right altitude from the Earth, it injects the satellite or the spacecraft into desired orbit.

  1. Text (code 1.8HS): Write a story about what you think who would be found on the moon.

Comment:“Who would be found on the moon”? Did we leave anyone there by mistake? Certainly wrong and a mystery. Perhaps the authors imply ‘what’.

  1. Text (code 1.9HS): These communication satellites are equipped with transponders spanning various frequency bands, including C-band, extended C-band, Ku-band, Ka/Ku band, and S-band.

Comment: Do students know what these bands are? Introducing terms without explanation is not educational.

  1. Text (code 1.9HS): AstroSat––India’s first astronomical space observatory, …

Comment: Funnily, this appears under the section “planetary research”.

  1. Text (code 1.9HS): On Earth, we have a day of 24 hours. It is because the Earth completes one rotation in 24 hours. However, the situation is not the same. It takes nearly 14 Earth days to complete one rotation. The date, August 23, 2023,

marked the commencement of the lunar day.

Comment: The lines should read as “However, the situation is not the same on the Moon. It takes nearly 27.3 Earth days to complete one rotation, so each location on the moon receives sunlight for about 14 earth days continuously. That date marked the commencement of the daylight period for the landing location.”

  1. Text (code 1.10HS): As we delve deeper into this cosmic odyssey, we cannot help but be inspired by the indomitable spirit of Wernher von Braun (father of rocket science), the visionary engineer who transformed dreams of reaching the stars into tangible rockets that breached Earth’s atmosphere. His towering achievements turned the boundless expanse of space into an attainable frontier, where humanity’s yearning for exploration could take flight

Comment: And with that we conveniently join USA to whitewash the fact that von Braun was a nazi scientist who built missiles V2 for Hitler.

  1. Text (code 1.10HS): The shape of the velodrome is like a frustum which a sliced cone is leaving its vertex like a bucket.

Comment: Will students be able to make sense of this grammatically incorrect senseless description?

  1. Text (code 1.10HS): … achieve a desirable speed so that it can reach up to the gravitational field of the moon.

Comment: It should have said “… so that it can reach the gravitational sphere of influence of the moon”, not gravitational field, as the gravitational field extends till infinity.

  1. Text (code 1.10HS): If satellite orbiting around a planet is comparable to the planet, then the binary system (say Earth and Moon) revolves around their common barycenter.

Comment: The bodies will ALWAYS revolve around their common barycenter. If one of the bodies is much more massive than the other body, then the barycenter of the system will be closer to the centre of the large body and hence its motion is not perceptible. That’s all.

  1. Text (code 1.10HS): Let’s assume bigger body (say Earth) is nailed at the origin.

Comment: How do you “nail” Earth at the origin?!

 

For clarifications contact:

Asha Mishra, General Secretary, AIPSN

gsaipsn@gmail.com, 9425302012, Twitter: @gsaipsn

by

NCERT special modules on Chandrayaan 3 which are full of errors and pseudoscientific claims

ON 17 October 2023, NCERT released ten  special modules in English and Hindi on Chandrayaan 3, for circulating to millions of school students as supplementary reading material. However due to severe criticism as seen in  press and media coverage the NCERT initially took down the webpage on the modules but after the Government defended the modules in a PIB release on 25 October saying “Mythology and philosophy put forward ideas and ideas lead to innovation and research” the website came back online!

The pdf link of the modules (English) are given in this page.

Our Chandrayaan-Foundational stage_1_1F

Mera pyara Chaanda – 1_2P

Bharat’s Expedition to Moon 1_3M

Chandrayaan- JTM 1_4S

Exploring the Moon Mission of Bharat-1_5S

Towards moon and beyond 1_6S

Exploring Chandrayaan -BLM 1_7HS

Bharat on the Moon 1_8HS

Bharat’s Space Mission-TCM 1_9HS

Physics of Chandrayaan 1_10HS