Nehruvian Science and Postcolonial India

This essay uses the seminal figure of Jawaharlal Nehru to interrogate the nature and representation of science in modern India. The problem posed by Nehruvian science-the conflict between (yet simultaneity of) science as both universal phenomenon and local effect-lies at the heart of current debates about what science means for the non-West. The problematic of Nehruvian science can be accessed through Nehru's own speeches and writings, but also through the wider project of science with which he identified-critiquing colonialism, forging India's place in the modern world, marrying intellectual endeavor with practical nation building. The essay makes a case for looking at Nehruvian science as a way of structuring the problem of postcolonial science, particularly in relation to understanding the authority of science and its evaluation in terms of its capacity to deliver socioeconomic change.