Diversity, social impact open gates for non-scientists in venerable science academy

INSA announces diverse list of Fellows, including non-scientists, to recognize contributions beyond traditional academic scientists in India.

The annual list of Fellows announced by the 90-year-old Indian National Science Academy, among the country’s most prestigious assembly of scientists, sticks out this year for its deviation from the academy’s traditional practice. The list features a phalanx of famous Indians who aren’t professional scientists.

These include Sudha Murthy, Rajya Sabha MP, author and a former Chair of the Infosys Foundation; her spouse N.R. Narayanamurthy; two of his Infosys co-founders, Nandan Nilekani and Krish Gopalakrishnan; and Rajendra Singh, water conservationist and founder of the Tarun Bharat Sangh.

“While the majority of our fellows are those associated with the creation of science, we must have at least 20% of them associated with the consumption and the use of science to create opportunities,” Ashutosh Sharma, President, INSA, told The Hindu. The move to introduce new categories of Fellows was part of a larger thrust to address a “lack of diversity.” This included not only improving representation of women and youth but also the various stakeholders who contributed to science in India, beyond traditional academic scientists, he added.

The presence of Ms. Murthy, Mr. Sharma explained, was in her capacity as a former chairperson of the Infosys Foundation, which funded scientific research. He also cited the inclusion of Mr. Gopalakrishnan, who has invested in multiple streams of basic research. “The people who show commitment towards funding basic science research must be recognised. If we want more private funding for R&D, we must bring these people in the fold as they are stakeholders of science,” said Mr. Sharma.

While several notable industrialists were now included, this would set the template of recognising future contributors in the areas of deep-tech and space entrepreneurs, Mr. Sharma added.

India’s science academies, which are steeped in tradition, normally have a process where scientist Fellows nominate their peers – usually from the universities or research institutions – following an evaluation of their publications and contribution to their respective fields of science.

In fact, the demarcation between “scientist” and “non-scientist” in the past was so strict that Satish Dhawan, Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) from 1972 and 1984, was only elected as a ‘Honorary Fellow’ in a special category along with Indira Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and J.R.D. Tata.