Science policy

India has made rapid strides in adopting technology, but when was the last time it came out with a truly disruptive innovation, something that shaped the world or made the scientific community sit up and take notice?

Invention of the zero? That was some time ago. Mission to Mars? Yes, India is doing pretty well in space technology, doing for a lot less what others do or have done for a lot more. That's innovation for sure.

But there are challenges on the ground: Indian scientists aren't often highly cited, funding in science and innovation is limited, its top educational institutions rarely rank among the world's best, and science education doesn't always encourage disruptive thinking.

So, does a career in the sciences hold promise? How can the tide be turned?

In this edition of WorklifeIndia, we speak to a young innovator, a pioneering scientist and an investor in innovative companies, and ask them where Indian science is headed.

Presenter: Rahul Tandon

Contributors: Dr Manan Suri, Assistant Professor, IIT Delhi; Gauhar Raza, Scientist; Smita Rakesh, Portfolio Manager, Social Alpha

American atomic scientists created the Doomsday Clock in 1947 at the time of the Cold War, as a metaphor for global apocalypse. The hands of the clock are moved once a year, depending on how scientists view the threat to humanity's existence from technology and ourselves. The closer to midnight, the closer we are to self-destruction. 
      Last year the clock was moved to two minutes to midnight. This year, the hands are in the same place. So we're no closer to blowing ourselves up. Sharon Squassoni is from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, which sets the hands.

Rachel Bronson, president and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, says a "new abnormal" means the world remains as close to catastrophe as it has ever been.