DailyPost 2524
India on the Moon
WILL IT HELP RESURRECT SCIENTIFIC ENQUIRY?
While the country remains euphoric to India’s landing on moon, Vikram was a mammoth step for the nation. For science atnd should be made a transformative one. It took decades to reach this point, the spirit of scientific enquiry brought us here, the will to explore even against all odds, and taking scientific research and practice several notches ahead of what could be have been a at best a wild imagination. But why this spirit of scientific enquiry is difficult to discern, if we see all around the place. India is country of celebrations to the extent nobody wants to miss out on it.
This has been a well deserving for all Indians by way of extension of the jubilation of scientists of ISRO, after having toiled for decades to reach this milestone. But will it end here and life would go on as usual. We will get something else to celebrate and ISRO scientists would get into another path breaking project, and in its achievement, they would provide us another chance to celebrate. It is being talked about the young generation would get inspired of this achievement and would remember of it, all their lives. Had the scientists of the current project also thought so, we wouldn’t have reached anywhere.
The spirit of scientific enquiry is very difficult to incubate in an educational system; where rote, exams and marks are the be all and end all of everything. If you go slightly ahead clearing a competitive exam and getting a seat is a reputed institution or getting a coveted jobs seals your fate and life too. How many of the IITians would aspire to join ISRO next year, even with this accomplished and slog it out for two / three decades for the nation. The quality of research in these reputed academic institutions are more by way of exception and not the norm. How many products have come out of them? Are they devoid of the spirit of scientific enquiry.
Without this spirit no scientific research can happen and more so it can never become a practice? How many of us would follow the research being conducted during the current Chadrayan-3 project and gain from it. We would just share some pics on WhatsApp University. The heroes have to brought to the fore, each one of them will have a story to tell. The students need to know and learn what entails ahead for a scientist, it would rekindle the spirit of scientific enquiry. The role models are right there, who can transform the scientific research and development, they should be given that opportunity to lead. The scientists who took us to the moon, would certainly love to revive the spirit of scientific enquiry, this country desperately needs. It can make the nation a scientific and technological powerhouse.
ONLY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CAN MAKE US A DEVELOPED NATION.
Sanjay Sahay
Have a nice evening.