Science and the Raj, 1857-1905

by Deepak Kumar

This book explores the links between science, technology and the process of colonization in the context of Victorian India. It begins with a study of the concept of colonial science and then moves on to early exploratory activities in this area; problems in science administration; science education; scientific researches; and Indian responses to all these activities. Colonial scientists had a dual mandate - to serve the state and to serve science. But as the colonial arteries hardened, science became a form of official knowledge, with official hierarchies and rituals. The evolution and progress of colonial science in India reveal a pattern which can be discerned. Science had an ideology, a string of institutions, and a set of committed people to serve very specific colonial ends. The questions asked are: what were the colonial postures in science? To what extent were scientific knowledge and discourses used to achieve political and cultural goals? How did the recipient culture appropri