# How colonial Indians built a self-reliant science culture

2026-08-23T07:23:13+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 1 independent outlet

Dr Mahendralal Sircar founded the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS) in Calcutta on July 29, 1876, with the goal of enabling Indians to conduct scientific research free from colonial control. The institution became the laboratory where C V Raman, then an accountant in the Indian Finance Service, conducted experiments on light that led to the discovery of the Raman Effect in 1930. Raman became the first Asian to win a Nobel Prize in science. Sircar, a medical doctor, held Sunday science demonstrations at his home and campaigned for an indigenous institution where ordinary Indians could experiment. His vision was supported by earlier advocates like Raja Rammohun Roy, who in 1823 urged the governor general to employ European teachers for science education. Akshay Kumar Dutt, editor of Tattwabodhini Patrika from 1843, popularised scientific ideas in Bengali and developed a modern scientific vocabulary for the language. The IACS story highlights how 19th-century Indians nurtured a scientific culture despite scarce opportunities under British rule. Banwarilal Chaudhury in 1904 called Sircar the father of the scientific spirit in New India. The institution remains a landmark of Indian self-reliance in science.

## Indian Opinion Analysis

Sircar's IACS was a deliberate response to the exclusion of Indians from colonial scientific institutions like the Asiatic Society. The emphasis on vernacular science communication by Dutt and others created a foundation for later mass movements. The question now is whether modern India's research ecosystem, dominated by English and foreign funding, still fulfills Sircar's dream of indigenous control. Watch for upcoming budget allocations to the IACS and similar institutions as a signal of commitment to self-reliant science.

## Coverage

- scroll.in <https://scroll.in/article/1095126/the-19th-century-indians-who-nurtured-a-self-reliant-scientific-culture-in-colonial-india>
  Frames the historical effort as a success story of Indian agency, without taking a partisan stance on current policy.

This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.

Tags: Akshay Kumar Dutt, C.V. Raman, Mahendralal Sircar, Raman effect
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