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By:

Suhas B Naik-Satam

25 November 2025 at 2:24:38 pm

The Institution That Shaped Modern Indian Science

A journey from Mahendra Lal Sircar's vision to global scientific excellence. The year 2026 marks the sesquicentennial of the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Kolkata, the oldest institution in India devoted exclusively to fundamental scientific research. Founded on 29 July 1876 by the visionary physician and educationist Dr Mahendra Lal Sircar, IACS emerged when India lacked institutions dedicated to experimental science. Convinced that scientific inquiry was...

The Institution That Shaped Modern Indian Science

A journey from Mahendra Lal Sircar's vision to global scientific excellence. The year 2026 marks the sesquicentennial of the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Kolkata, the oldest institution in India devoted exclusively to fundamental scientific research. Founded on 29 July 1876 by the visionary physician and educationist Dr Mahendra Lal Sircar, IACS emerged when India lacked institutions dedicated to experimental science. Convinced that scientific inquiry was indispensable for national progress, Sircar established an institution to nurture original research by Indians while promoting scientific knowledge among the public. One hundred and fifty years later, IACS remains one of India's foremost research institutions, its history closely intertwined with the evolution of modern science in the country. The genesis of IACS reflected the intellectual ferment of the Bengal Renaissance. Trained in Western medicine yet deeply committed to India's intellectual emancipation, Sircar argued that science should be cultivated through experimentation and discovery rather than merely imported through textbooks. Inspired by institutions such as the Royal Institution of Great Britain, he envisioned a publicly supported national laboratory where Indians could pursue independent scientific research. At a time when such opportunities were scarce under colonial rule, IACS became the country's first permanent home for fundamental scientific investigation. During its early decades, the Association combined public lectures and scientific demonstrations with laboratory research, fostering an interdisciplinary culture spanning physics, chemistry and the natural sciences. Though modest in resources, it established an enduring tradition of curiosity-driven research. The defining chapter in IACS history began with the arrival of Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman in 1907. While serving in the Indian Finance Department, Raman spent his evenings and holidays conducting experiments at IACS on acoustics, optics and the scattering of light. On 28 February 1928, he and his collaborators announced the discovery of the inelastic scattering of light by molecules—the Raman Effect—creating a powerful spectroscopic technique that transformed the study of molecular structure. Today, Raman spectroscopy is indispensable across chemistry, materials science, biology, medicine, pharmaceuticals, environmental monitoring and planetary exploration. For this achievement, Raman received the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics, becoming the first Asian to win a Nobel Prize in the sciences for work conducted entirely in India. His success demonstrated that world-class scientific research could emerge from Indian laboratories. Yet IACS's scientific legacy extends far beyond Raman. Kedareswar Banerjee advanced crystallographic research through pioneering X-ray crystallography, while Satyendra Nath Bose's association with IACS enriched the intellectual environment that fostered advances in quantum physics. Meghnad Saha's theory of thermal ionisation transformed astrophysics, and together Raman, Bose and Saha established Kolkata as one of Asia's leading scientific centres. The institution also made major contributions to chemistry through Jnan Chandra Ghosh, whose work in physical chemistry laid foundations for modern chemical research in India. Following Independence, IACS expanded into chemical sciences, materials science, biological sciences and theoretical physics, reflecting the increasingly interdisciplinary nature of scientific inquiry. Among its distinguished scientists was Asima Chatterjee, whose pioneering research on natural products chemistry and medicinal plant alkaloids transformed phytochemistry and contributed significantly to pharmaceutical science. Ajoy Ghatak further strengthened IACS's reputation through his work in fibre optics, waveguides and laser physics, while his textbooks educated generations of physicists and engineers. More recently, IACS researchers have advanced ultrafast spectroscopy, nanomaterials, renewable energy, molecular electronics, quantum materials and computational biology. Today, IACS functions as a deemed-to-be university under the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. Its interdisciplinary research spans the chemical, physical and biological sciences, supported by advanced facilities in spectroscopy, microscopy, X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, computational modelling and materials characterisation. Its doctoral and postdoctoral programmes continue to produce scientists who contribute to universities, research laboratories and industry worldwide. The institution's enduring strength lies in its commitment to curiosity-driven research. Unlike organisations established primarily for technological development or industrial applications, IACS has consistently recognised that transformative innovation begins with fundamental scientific understanding. This philosophy, articulated by Mahendra Lal Sircar nearly 150 years ago, remains especially relevant in an era defined by quantum technologies, artificial intelligence, sustainable energy and molecular medicine. The sesquicentennial of IACS celebrates not only a remarkable institution but also the evolution of Indian science. From its modest beginnings in colonial Calcutta to its emergence as an internationally respected research institution, IACS has nurtured Nobel laureates, pioneering physicists, eminent chemists and generations of young researchers who continue to expand the frontiers of knowledge. As IACS enters its second century and a half, it carries forward Mahendra Lal Sircar's vision that science should be pursued with intellectual freedom, experimental rigour and an unwavering commitment to the advancement of humanity. Its 150-year legacy remains a powerful reminder that the greatest scientific discoveries begin with curiosity and flourish in institutions dedicated to excellence. (The writer is the Chief Executive for National Centre for Science Communicators, Mumbai. Views personal.)

Sacred Attire

Updated: Jan 30, 2025

The Siddhivinayak Temple Trust’s recent decision to implement a dress code prohibiting short skirts, torn jeans and other revealing attire is a necessary move to uphold the sanctity of religious spaces. Temples are spiritual spaces where devotees seek solace, offer prayers, and connect with the divine. Temples are not mere tourist attractions but sacred sanctuaries. The least that visitors can do is dress accordingly.


The Jagannath temple in Puri, Odisha, and the Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan have already implemented similar rules, reflecting a growing recognition that religious spaces require a modicum of decorum. In the case of Siddhivinayak, the temple attracts thousands of devotees daily, many of whom have expressed discomfort over attire that they feel clashes with the temple’s spiritual ambience.


Few would question the need for decorum in a courtroom, a government office, or even an upscale restaurant. Yet, when religious institutions enforce dress codes to preserve their sanctity, a chorus of indignation often rises in the name of personal freedom, with such ‘critics’ arguing that such rules reflect moral policing or an imposition of traditionalist values.

But this argument confuses religious sanctity with public space liberalism. No one is being compelled to enter the temple, and those who do should respect the customs that govern it. Even in non-Hindu religious spaces, dress codes are the norm. One does not enter a gurdwara without covering their head, nor a mosque or church dressed in attire deemed unsuitable for prayer. The sanctity of a religious institution should not be sacrificed at the altar of modern whims.


To dismiss this as an encroachment on personal liberties is to misunderstand the nature of such spaces. Religious sites operate under different expectations than public thoroughfares or commercial hubs. They are designed for reflection, devotion, and ritual. While Indian society has rightly evolved towards greater personal freedom in many spheres, faith-based institutions must be allowed to maintain traditions that are integral to their identity. The temple trust has made it clear that its goal is not to impose regressive restrictions but to ensure that all visitors feel comfortable and that the sanctity of the temple is upheld.


Moreover, the argument that religious sites must remain entirely open-ended in their dress codes simply does not hold water. Many of the people who object to these restrictions would scarcely question the need for appropriate attire at a formal event or while meeting a dignitary. The principle is the same -respect for the setting dictates the mode of dress. Those who seek to frame this as a battle between liberalism and conservatism fail to grasp that such measures are about propriety, not repression.


In an era where the lines between cultural expression and decorum are increasingly blurred, it is worth remembering that not every rule is an infringement on liberty. If people can abide by dress codes in secular spaces, they should extend the same courtesy to places of worship.

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