History and Theory of Knowledge Production. An Introductory Outline

Books reviewed in Current Science are usually authored or edited by scientists. The book presently under review is written by Rajan Gurukkal, an eminent historian, thinker and educationist. The book is, however, rich in scientific content. Gurukkal is no stranger to the Indian scientific community. He has been involved with the Indian Journal of History of Science published by the Indian National Science Academy. Furthermore, he has been a Visiting Professor at the Centre for Contemporary Studies at the Indian Institute of Science, in between his assignments as Vice-Chancellor of Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam and the Chairman of the Kerala Higher Education Council. Much of the book was written when Gurukkal was working in the Indian Institute of Science. Central to the narrative in the book is the history of production of scientific knowledge. Of course, the book contains much else. The book has been written with intimidating thoroughness and contains material well beyond my immediate area of competence. Therefore, it was with some trepidation that I undertook the review of the book. However, I strongly felt that this splendid book should be brought to the attention of the Indian scientific community. That is the main motivation for the present attempt.