In an unprecedented letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, his chief scientific advisor Prof C N R Rao has said that science in India is gripped by a “crisis” like never before and that its future is tied up in “unbearable” bureaucracy. India will face a “no-win situation,” Rao says, unless there is a “radical structural transformation of the system.’

“I am writing this as a warning,” said Rao, “to highlight the threat faced by the fragile structure of science in the country. The suggestions made here are to be taken seriously if India has to be a leader in science. They may be ignored only at the cost of becoming a mediocre or a marginal performer.”

This comes at a time when the Moily panel is looking at a roadmap to upgrade campuses nationwide to accommodate increased quotas.

In his letter, Rao, chairman of the 30-member Scientific Advisory Council to the PM, makes his anguish clear: “I am really concerned. I am really worried...economic liberalisation has had no impact on the way we have administered the best of our institutions and people. The rules and procedures for scientific organizations have remained the same as for district offices...private sector salaries in India are so superior that there is no need to complain about brain drain.”

Talking of the pitiable state of Indian universities, Rao says: ‘They are unable to perform and compete [with their] research contribution coming down to an all time low.”

Rao highlights the glaring gap between India and China when it comes to contributions to world science.

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