Archive · 8 Nov 2025
Expert Explains Why India Lacks Nobel Laureates in Science
Imagine a school that wants to win a big science prize, like the Nobel Prize.
India has many smart kids who love science, but the school's leaders sometimes focus more on following rules than letting the kids be super creative.
It's also hard for new teachers to get hired based on how good they are, and often connections matter more.
Once scientists are in, they spend too much time asking for things like equipment and dealing with office work instead of inventing new things.
The school often celebrates how many papers kids write, not how amazing their big ideas are.
The expert thinks it's time for younger teachers, who have fresh ideas and lots of energy, to help lead the school.
He also says the government should spend more money on science and make sure the best ideas get supported, so India can have its own big science discoveries.
India has not produced a Nobel laureate in science for nearly a century.
A primary reason cited is not just low R&D spending, but a crisis of leadership prioritizing control over creativity.
The hiring process for scientists and faculty is questioned for potentially lacking transparency, fairness, and merit-based evaluation.
The academic system rewards a high number of publications and awards over groundbreaking discoveries, forcing scientists into a 'race for citations'.
The proposed solution involves increasing R&D investment, reforming academia, and empowering younger scientists in leadership roles.
- Who
- Vivek Polshettiwar, a professor of chemistry, and Indian scientists and academics.
- What
- An analysis of why India has not produced a Nobel laureate in science in nearly a century, highlighting systemic issues in leadership, hiring, and research culture.
- When
- In recent years and ongoing.
- Where
- India.
- Why
- A crisis of leadership and vision within the scientific system, characterized by control over creativity, bureaucratic hurdles, flawed merit-based selection processes, and a focus on quantity of publications over quality of discovery.
- Author
- Vivek Polshettiwar
- Author's Affiliation
- Professor of Chemistry, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai
- Key Issue
- Lack of Nobel laureates in science
- Suggested Funding Level
- 3% of GDP for R&D
- Core Problems Identified
- Leadership focused on control over creativity, flawed hiring practices, bureaucracy, emphasis on publications over breakthroughs, resistance to change in academia.
- Proposed Solution
- Involve younger leaders ('Gen Z' of academia, aged 40-50) in leadership positions, reform hiring and funding, foster innovation.