International Day of Scientific Culture (IDSC) - India’s Scientific Culture: From Harappa to Chandrayaan

 

International Day of Scientific Culture (IDSC) - India’s Scientific Culture: From Harappa to Chandrayaan

Today, September 28, the world observes the International Day of Scientific Culture (IDSC). It is an occasion not only to celebrate the scientific research inventions, and discoveries that is conducted in research laboratories, but also to reflect on the mindset that fuels progress—rationality, observation, critical inquiry, and openness to evidence. For India, this day has a special resonance. I had the honour to be a part of this commemoration this year as one of the speakers at the Gurunanak College of Arts and Sciences, Mumbai, which commemorated this event yesterday. Before I delve on what I spoke yesterday - “India’s Scientific Legacy Rooted in Antiquity” - let me begin with the genesis for commemorating this day-IDSC and how important it is to mark this day, more so in the current context of geopolitical conflict which we are witnessing in the world today.

On 28 September 1980, an American television aired the first episode of Carl Sagan’s “Cosmos: A Personal Voyage”, on the Public Broadcasting Services(PBS). It was a new public conversation aired on TV about who we are and how we know. Cosmos became an instant hit, appealing to its audience and over the years’ millions of people around the world enjoyed this serial, and for many that serial was the first time science was spoken to them in a language which they could connect with. It was a human story — grand, poetic, moral. Cosmos was a classic example of how science can be communicated to the people in a language which could connect with them and for science communicators, yours truly included, Cosmos remains an inspiration.

Sagan taught us that science is a way of seeing. He wrote and spoke as if to remind humanity that “we are a way for the cosmos to know itself.” That phrase, simple and humble, captures why the anniversary of Cosmos matters beyond nostalgia: it marks the moment when scientific knowledge was framed as part of culture, not apart from it.

One enduring image associated with Sagan carries that message more sharply than the Pale Blue Dot. When Voyager 1, far beyond the outer planets, turned its camera back toward Earth, the planet shrank to a speck in a sunbeam — a “pale blue dot.” For Sagan, that image was humbling showing our insignificant yet profoundly singular position in the vast cosmos. It showed us that no other cradle of human life exists in the cosmos. The sight of Earth as a solitary, fragile point revealed our relative smallness in the vast universe, and an overwhelming uniqueness of the world that sustains us.

The core message of Carl Sagan's "Pale Blue Dot" is a profound and direct response to the kind of land conflicts and geopolitical divisions we see today. In his famous passage from the book Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space, he writes: "Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every 'superstar,' every 'supreme leader,' every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there—on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam."  

Sagan's objective was to challenge our sense of self-importance and the "delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe." He explicitly connects this cosmic insignificance to human conflicts, saying:  "Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds."  

Therefore, the concept of the "Pale Blue Dot" is not just about our insignificance; it is a direct and powerful appeal for peace, unity, and a focus on our shared home. By presenting a grand, humbling perspective, Sagan's message advocates that the petty conflicts that consume us are rendered absurd when viewed against the backdrop of an endless cosmos. It calls for a shift from fighting over "a fraction of a dot" to preserving the one and only place we have to make a living in this vast cosmos. This message is more relevant than ever today in encouraging a global focus on sustainability and shared humanity. 

The International Day of Science Culture (IDSC), observed since 2020, helps us remind ourselves of this singularity of our position, even as it exemplifies our uniqueness and encourages us to reach out to schools, colleges, museums, media and civic institutions to treat science as a cultural resource: one that sharpens citizenship, inspires creativity, and equips societies to make better choices. In an age of rapid technological change and contested truths, celebrating science as culture is not an optional nicety — it is a civic necessity.

India’s Scientific Legacy Rooted in Antiquity

Scientific culture is not new to India. The Sindhu Sarasvati (Harappan) Civilisation, which flourished nearly 4500 years ago, displayed remarkable scientific achievements: urban planning with underground drainage, standardised baked bricks, advanced water management, and—most impressively—precision in weights and measures across a vast geography. This standardisation reflects not just craft, but a rational, systematised approach to daily life.

Mathematics and astronomy flourished in the following centuries. The Baudhyayana Sulba Sutras demonstrated geometrical reasoning, including principles akin to the Pythagorean theorem. Aryabhata in the 5th century CE described the Earth’s rotation and offered models of planetary motion. The modern day decimal place value system including the profoundly significant number Zero originated from India and travelled to the world through the Arabs. The Kerala School of Astronomy pioneered infinite series expansions, antedating aspects of calculus long before Newton.

In medicine, the Charaka Samhita and Sushruta Samhita laid the foundations of Ayurveda. Sushruta, often hailed as the father of surgery, detailed surgical instruments and techniques still admired today. Metallurgy was equally advanced—the Delhi Iron Pillar stands rust-free for 1,600 years, and large-scale zinc smelting at Zawar, Rajasthan, points to industrial-level chemical engineering. These achievements were not isolated. They were evidence of a culture where rational thinking, systematic documentation, and practical application of knowledge were respected and transmitted.

This trajectory of growth, however, faced severe interruptions. Centuries of invasions, colonial exploitation, and the dismantling of indigenous institutions weakened India’s scientific pursuits. By the time of Independence, India was portrayed as a land of superstition and poverty, rather than knowledge and innovation.

Yet, India’s scientific culture never fully disappeared. It resurfaced in modern times, when our founding leaders recognised science as central to nation-building. Jawaharlal Nehru famously called industries and academic institutions the “temples of modern India.” The creation of TIFR, IITs, CSIR labs, ISRO, and agricultural research institutes built the foundations for a modern scientific nation. Importantly, our Constitution enshrined the development of a “scientific temper” as a Fundamental Duty—a powerful acknowledgement that rationality is not alien to India but intrinsic to its identity.

In 2017, the London Science Museum showcased this story in its landmark exhibition “Illuminating India: 5000 Years of Science and Innovation.” I had the privilege of contributing to this exhibition as the Nodal Officer. This exhibition offered the world a panoramic view of India’s scientific legacy. It was a reminder that India has always been a source of scientific ideas that shaped human progress—whether the concept of zero, metallurgy, or medical traditions or more recently its success at frugal costs in its successful space endeavours – Chandrayan and Mangalyaan.

Seventy-five years after Independence, India’s scientific culture has once again placed it at the forefront of global science and technology. Our space programme has captured global imagination: the Mars Orbiter Mission succeeded on its maiden attempt at a fraction of the cost of comparable missions; Chandrayaan-3’s soft landing on the Moon’s south pole made history. In digital innovation, India leads the world in developing scalable platforms like Aadhaar and UPI.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the scientific temper of the nation was put to the test. Despite early challenges, India not only developed indigenous vaccines at record speed but also rolled out the world’s largest vaccination drive. Importantly, the acceptance of vaccines by the Indian public—at a time when hesitancy plagued many Western countries—reflected trust in scientific solutions deeply rooted in cultural attitudes toward health and community.

Yet, the picture is not without concern. Pseudoscience, misinformation, and superstition continue to challenge rational discourse. Social media amplifies unverified claims, eroding trust in evidence-based thinking. To truly honour our civilisational heritage, we must defend scientific culture from these threats.

As we celebrate the International Day of Scientific Culture, let us remember: science in India is not an imported value. It is our inheritance. The world recognised this in London in 2017. Our Constitution enshrines it. Our achievements in space and medicine prove it.

The challenge before us is to ensure that this culture of rationality, inquiry, and innovation is not undermined by misinformation or complacency. If we succeed, India will not only rise as an economic power but also as a beacon of scientific culture for the 21st century.

That would be the true fulfilment of our heritage—and our responsibility to the future.