SCIENTISTS IN INDIA SIR,—Your Bombay correspondent is misinformed about Indian
scientists. For the past five years this Institute has found it difficult to fill appointments in the field of physics, chemistry and engineering in spite of the large number of 'technical personnel who are rotting in low-paid jobs which deprive them of responsibility and of the opportunity to do their scientific best for the country.' We scan long lists of 'brilliant men who reluctantly but ineluctably, not for the lure of money, have been forced to leave India,' and find too often that their qualifications are unsuitable or their 'minimum salaries' too high for us. My brother directors. far from being 'intent on taking no risks and letting the sleeping dogs lie' and determined to keep down young scientists, seem inordinately proud of any good work done in their laboratories, and I long to be able to counter their success stories with achievements from my own. They have adequate powers to delegate responsibility and certainly do not spend the first hour of the day on administration, and in spite of the intricacies of foreign exchange, find it easier to purchase equipment than their opposite numbers in other countries.
Indian laboratories are often housed in handsome buildings, for building is still comparatively cheap and the tradition of fine buildings dies hard in India. Moreover, there has been considerable expan- sion and in most laboratories Indian scientists are already asking for more room.
Your correspondent quotes Professor Haldane with approval, but his views or the scientific atmosphere of Britain are jaundiced; so are his ideas about Indian conditions. No one contends that everything is right in scientific India. Science and technology have only recently received the attention they deserve and traditional attitudes are not easily altered. India has her disgruntled scientists, and unfortunately a democratic government will not always let directors bid them goodbye. They evaluate their rights and performances higher than those whose duty it is to judge. But India has also many young men who set themselves the highest standards of scientific inquiry,. who write scientifically on scientific topics and who can be safely relied on to ensure this country's scientific advancement.—Yours faithfully, H. WILLIAMS Director
Central Building Research instituter
Roorkee (UP), India
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