10 Chapter4

Chapter IV
Kerala Sastm Sahitya Parishad: Origins and Development

Attempts to reorganize human society have been going on for long, but a few chosen leaders decide the fate of the vast majority. There should be a situation in which all the members of the society take part creatively in the running of its affairs. This is a challenge. It is not a challenge before the political leaders alone nor can this challenge be met by scientists alone. Only a politically and
scientifically oriented and well-intbrmed society can face this'. As J.D. Bernal has rightly pointed out:
The job of using science for human betterment is also primarily political; that is,
one that in the last resort must be settled by the people as a whole. But they cannot do it withmt the ~nformationthat only the scientists possess. It is therefore the business of scientists, at least for part of time, to come out of his own speciality
and to work together with all other like - minded people in the different walks of
life, that is with the profess~onal, manual and domestic workers, to ensure that we g& a society where science can be properly used. But there is no reason why they should not do so, and it 1s here, where organisation links scientists and non sckntists in common effort, that can find their task2. Bemal continues:
.. .
It is through science. and only through science, that the transformation of
society to one free from explo~tationcan be brought about. Throughout the long reign of class - dominated soc~eties, available technique was never high enough to provide more than' a margin of production over subsistence, which w&
appropriated by the ruling class. Now thanks to science, we can make that margin
M.P. P-aran, To Bc or Not to Be. Challenge of Tomorrow and Today ", in Yash Pal et.al., (ed), Science in Socrely: Some / ' r r . ~ p c l ~ v e s (New Delhi,n.d), pp.244 - 51 2 J.D.Bemal,Science in H~srov. Vol.4 (New Delh, 1965), pp.1304 - 305.
"
Prepared by BeeHive Digital Concepts Cochin for Mahatma Gandhi University Kottayam
as big as we likc, but mlscr! and danger will rcmain the lot of man until science
can be freely used, and 1101 d~storted rncan and dcsrructive ends.' for
The people's science movement can play an important role in this. The experiments and experiences of the Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad (KSSP) are worth studying in this context The origins and development of science movements in India can be traced back to the pre-independence era. The scientists like Satyendra Nath Bose had initiated the formation of movements like Banjeeya Vigyan Parishad, Assam Science Society, Bigyan Prachar Samithy (Orissa) and so on. More recently, the 1950s and 1960s witnessed the emergence of numerous voluntary groups around various aspects of the application of science and technotogy in the development process, especially in the rural areas. Even though the professional scientific organizations have, by and large continued to confine themselves to the narrow concerns of their disciplines , a large nknber of individuals , scientists , dissatisfied with their scientif~ practice, have increasingly been drawn to science based social activist poups4 The above stinings have mostly been at the level of groups working at micro regions or around some specific issues. But there are a few instances where science based social activism has developed into mass movements or revealed such a potential. The Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad (KSSP) is one such novel example of People's Science Movement Launched as a forum of science writers, four
' Ibid., pp.1309 - 310.

4
T.M.ThomasIssac and B.Bkbal, ,Q~encr for Social H e ~ ~ o l u t ~:o.rhe Fxpnence ofKSSP (T~SSUT, n
1988), pp 1 - 2.
decades ago, the KSSP now has extended its jurisdiction to the questions of basic Issues related to health, literacy, formal and non-formal education, protection of environment, rural housing, pollution, social forestry, gender, equity etc. The Formative Years We can see three distinct streams of people, social reformers, science writers and Malayalee scientists in Bombay and Bangalore coming together in the formation of the Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad. The first was the social reformers and activists who saw in science a useful ally in their struggle against the outmoded past As a concept of organized science popularization programme, we can trace the history of the KSSP to Sastra Sahitya Samithi formed in 1957. It was a science literary forum, formed by a group of concerned activists and science writers who had gathered in connection with the traditional arts festival at Ottappalam High School, in the Palakkad District. The Executive Committee of the Sastra Sahitya Samithi was as follows: P.K. Korumaster (President), P.T. Bhaskara Panicker (Vice President) and O.P. Namboothiripad ( ~ e c r e t a r ~ ) ~ . Despite the best intentions, the pioneering attempt proved to be uneventful but for the publication of a book on Modern Science (Adhunika Smfram) in 1958, using the Penguin Science News Series as a model and an unsuccessful attempt to translate Darwin's Origin of Species into ~ a l a y a l a r nThe book Modem Science ~. contained seven articles in Malayalam on different branches of science by
P.K. Koru, Dr. S Parameswaran, P.T. Bhaskara Panicker, C.K. Moosath, and
P.T.Bhaskard Panicker. Adiyakoiam (Mal.), Unpublished Manuscript, 1982 "id.
M CNamboodiripad The main goal of the Sastra Sahitya Samithi to translate
science in
simple language and make the people endowed with a new world
outlook But very little could be done at that time. Founder members became otherwise busy and the Samithi ceased to function7
In 4pril 1962, a group of science writers, with the initiative of K.G. Adiyodi
convened a meeting in Kozhikode. This was the second stream. The present organisation of the KSSP was formed here. In the introductory statement, K.G.Ad;yodi, the chief organizer of the group said: "The problem of science writers are such that they can be solved through organized effortsm8 This reveals that, the KSSP at the time of its formation, was more in the nature of a professional organization of science writers. An executive committee was selected by the participants. D r K Bhaskaran Nair, Konniyoor R. Narendranath, K.G.Adiyodi and
N.V. Krishna Variyer were President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer

respgctively. K.P. Menon, Dr.S. Parameswaran and C.P.Menon were
member^.^
The formal inauguration of the KSSP took place on 10 September 1962 in Kozhikode, with a one day science seminar and a five day exhibition on science and science books at St. Joseph's College, Devagiri. The KSSP was formally inaugurated by the Principal of that college R e v F r Theodocious and the meeting were presided over by Prof C.K.D. Panickar. The membership of the KSSP at that
' Science ;LA
Social Activisnr:Keppnrts and Papers on (he People ',v kience ,I.lo~,enrenrs I n d ~ a , in
papers and proceedings o second All India Convention of People's Science Movements held in f
Thiruvananthapuram, F&uaq 9.108~1 1983 (Thiruvananthapuram, 1984). p.6. I, % ~ . ~ d i "Kemla.S a a Snhitya Parishatlunte lananam" in K.I.Vasuet.al..(eds. Sbslra ~ o ~ ). Sahiya Prustanum (Mal.) [ Thiruvananthapurq 1982). p.2 12. "~ostrn Sah~iva Prasranam - .l'azhikakal/uku/ KSSP undated, pp.2 - 3
time was around 30 all of whom were writers'' The main activities of KSSP for the first two years were organization of symposia and seminars, mostly organized in and around Kozhikode. They organized symposia on the topics 'science and war', 'water' and 'contributions of C V. Raman' respectively in April, September and November I963 The annual general body meeting of the KSSP, held on 24 November 1963 in Kozhikode elected a new executive committee. Dr. Bhaskaran Nair (President) , Dr.K.K Nair (Vice-president). Dr.K.G. Adiyodi (Secretary), N.V.Krishna Wariyer (Treasurer) and Dr.S Parameswaran , Dr.1 Santhakumar and DrK. George as members In December 1963, a three-night showing of science films was organised with the help of USIS. During 1964-65 the KSSP organized symposia on 'the contributions of I.C. Chacko', 'Grigor Mendal' and 'J.B.S. Haldane' at Calicut and on 'soil', 'Nature Protection' and 'food' at ~hiruvanantha~uram" As already noted, in the beginning the membership was restricted to science writers and intellectuals, and their main centre of activity was Kozhikode. In the first annual conference, this restriction was relaxed. People from all walks of life were allowed to take 'associate' membership in the organization. P.T. Bhaskara Panicker, the chief organizer of the 1957 Ottappalam group and an active participant of leftist movement in Malabar succeeded K.G.Adiyodi as the secretary of the KSSP and in 1966 the membership was opened to anyone interested in scien~e'~.
' o ~ . ~ . ~ m a s I s s a cB.Ekbal, n . 4 p.3. and

" Sostra Sohityo IJr0stanam
'' TMlhOmaS Issac and H.Ekbal. n.4.p 7.
Nazh~kakallukol, 9,pp.2 - 3 n
The third stream of people who contributed to the formation of the KSSP was the Malayalee Scientists working in various scientific institutions in India. In 1965, a group of Malayalee Scientists in Bornbay had begun to actively consider the possibilities of producing science literature in Malayalam. Catalysts for the move were a few scientists who had returned from Moscow after completing their studies They were participants in an immense debate among the Indian students in Moscow regarding the social commitment of scientists and contribution that they could make towards the spread of scientific awareness among the people They even drew up schemes for the development of science literature in various regional languages I 3 The formation of Sastra Sahitya Parishad
- Malayalam (SSP (M)) at
Bombay in January 1966 by a few scientists working at the BARC was a turning point for the KSSP. The main activists of SSP (M) were MPParameswaran, T.Sesha lyengar, APJayaraman, P.T.Gopalakrishnan and M.P.S.Remani. The
membership was about a hundred and all were Malayalee scientists. The contact between Bombay scientists and the organizers of the KSSP was the force which led to the formation of SSP (M). Similar organizations were formed for other regional languages and they were sought to be co-ordinated through a ' Federation of Indian Languages Science Association ' (FILSA). The SSP (M) Bombay was the most active among these groups, with regular monthly discussion meetings on various science subjects in Malayalam. The group also produced four,books in Malayalam through a publishing firm in ~ o r n b a ~ ' ~
----
13
14
MPPardmneswaran. k r r i Sf~/ziya ~ Panshad (Mal.) (Bombay, 1982). Unpublished Manuscripf Issac anti Ekbal, n.4, p.3
Some of the members of the SSP (M) Bombay were beginning to question the relevance of their scientific practice which they found to have very little relation to the genuine and pressing needs of the common man. Though, no one challenged the needs for research in frontier areas and building up of indigenous technological capability, the neglect of problems that weighed down in the present appalled them. Many of them worked in the Department of Atomic Energy which together with Departments of Space and Defence cornered most of the research funds. Some had even started to move towards critique of the directions in which their own advanced research was moving. M P Parameswaran the chief organizer of the Bombay group finally let? his research career to return to Kerala to participate more actively in the science movement" Another affiliated group was formed in Bangalore in February 1968 It consisted of Malayalee scientists who were working in various departments of the Indian Institute of Scietice, Bangalore. A few months later, a similar group was organized in Calcutta consisting mostly of scientists worlung in the Botanical Survey of lndia and Zoological Survey of 1ndia.l6 Among these three distinct streams of people, the first originated at Ottappalam in 1957, was the group which had more public contact. They had the social-consciousness about the relationship between science and people The second group originated at Kozhikode in 1962, had the capacity to produce science literature in Malayalam. They were the scholars who had very good knowledge in
~~~
--
IS
Ibid., pp.7 - X . 16 K.K.Rahulan. "Banglorile SasUa Sahitya Sammelanam" (Md.), Sasrragathi, No.25, 1972. p.8
science subjects and Malayalarn language. But, they had no special motives in their doings The Bombay scientists were conscious about the science subjects and the need for the production of science literature in regional languages. But they had no public contact' ' The 3rd .Annual Conference of the KSSP at Olavakkodu had decided to start a quarterly Sa.stragathi (The Trend of Science). The KSSP's attempt to persuade the leading publishing houses of Kerala to start a separate science journal in the state had failed it was !his circumstance which compelled the organization to launch a science journal of its own The first issue came out in October 1966 under the editorial board of N V.Krishna Wariyer, P.T.Bhaskara Panicker and M.C. Namboodiripad. The editorial note emphasized not the problems of science writers but of the urgent need to create a scientific outlook among the people: 'It is not enough that people study science, but they must live accordingly"~evelopment of broad scientific outlook in the society and belief in scientific methodolog$ were claimed to be the essenc.e of the scientific revolution. The journal was a small contribution towards the preparation of such a revolution.
Making o f a Movement
In 1967, along with the 4'h Annual Conference at Trissur, the KSSP was recognized on an entirely different footing. The conference, which included representatives from the Bombay Group, considered and adopted a constitution envisaging the KSSP a complete mass movement. Membership of the KSSP was
I7
KSSP, "Janakeeya Sastrom-Karchappadum Karma Paripadiyun" (Mal.) (Calicut. 1988). pp. 8-9. 18 "Pathradhipakuripu". S ~ n g u t / ~ i . 1. 1966, p.4. No.
open to any person who believed in the great role science has to play in the moulding of our lives
111
July 1968, the KSSP was registered under the Charitable
Societies Act XXI, 1860'"t
1 noted that the SSP(M) Bombay adopted a s
constitution of their own and was registered in 1966 itself From 1967, the KSSP was growing into a real mass movement. It attracted the intellectual and the laymen alike into its folds. Its message has reached the sophisticated city college and the rustic village library alike. The 4" Annual Conference also discussed the problem of technical terms in Malayalam. M.P.Parameswaran submitted a paper on this The conference took decisions to publish science books, give awards to good science literature, and organizes symposia and science exhibitions in every district -and taluk headquarters and to develop technical terms
in
Malayalam In 1967 the Sastragathi started publication
from Kozhikode The 5'" Annual Conference of the KSSP was held at Thimvananthapuram in 1968. In this annual conference two symposia were organized The first on 'Science Literature in Malayalam' and the second on 'Science Education'. The public meeting was presided over by Prof. Joseph Mundasseny and it was inaugurated by ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ a m b o o d i r i ~ a d . ~ ~ Production of science literature in their mother tongue was a common interest and concern of all the three groups formed at Ottappalam, Kozhikode and Bombay. It is noted that . ~ n beg~nningthe KSSP had only limited objectives the Even in this limited sphere there was an element of novelty as well as a challenge
--- -~ - ~~
19
"Sastra Sahitya Prasfanam - Irmhikakaliuk~~l. pp.3-6. n.9,
Issac and .Ekbal, n.4, p.9.
to tradition. In it one can notice the reverberations of a challenging society. In the predominantly feudal set up of our ancient society, the language of knowledge and of science was Sanskr~t. with the British conquest this was replaced by English and However. the multiplicity of language in the country led to the continuation of English as the medium of instruction and administration even after the British. The science writers, who initwally organized the KSSP, were raising, in a sense, the battle cry against this ,ittitude. They were demanding that science be handled through one's own mother.-tongue. This demand for importance of Indian languages is related to the national liberation movement and the struggle against 'feudalism. The leaders of the freedom movement were arguing for linguistic provinces even as early as the thirties. When the KSSP demanded that science should be handled through the medium of lndian langdages, it was only echoing this fit necessity of society2'
In 1971, the KSSP adopted an emblem designed by T.S.Balagopa1; a

lecturer at Regional Engineering College, ~ozhikode: depicts a human being, It whose feet are firmly placed on earth, gazing up at the unknown horizon. He or She has a book in hand. symbolizing the importance of learning, and a representation of the atom overhead, symbolizing the power of science and its potential to be used for either good or evilz2
" Science
" Mathew Zachnah and R.Scm~amoorthy,Science for Social revolution? Achrevements and
Dilemmas ?fa Developnrent hfo1~1.nren1The Kerala Sastro Sohilya Parishad (New Delhi. 1994). I p.62
ils
Social Activisni. n.7 pp.6-7~
To Childe, "The abstract knowledge, which its keepers possessed, gave them control over illiterate farmers, and was utilized to strengthen their privileges and made the basis of perpetuation of their control, through development of myths , performance of rituals and other such practices"23. There are two factors contributing to this change: one, knowledge about the social and natural laws, two, the participation in production activities and the consciousness attaining through this participation. The first will be given from the science teachings and the second through the experience tiom job Here, the trade unions can do a lot But they are not so active in this. And the KSSP is engaged in teaching the people science and social lawsz4.
It must be pointed out that saence literature in Malayalam was relatively

better developed than that in most of the other Indian regional languages The most important contributing factor in this was the higher level of literacy in Kerala and the wide-sprd network of schools More importantly, vernacular schools had continued to flourish and played a very important role in Kerala's educational system even during the British period A text book committee was instituted in
1867 in Travancore which signaled the beginning of a period of systematic efforts
for the production of standard text books and standardization of technical terms and The numerous journals and newspapers, some of them usages in ~ a l a ~ a l a m ~ ~ .
" 0.V.G.Childe.Society andKnowlerlge

24
(London. 1956), p.6.
Kerala Sastro Suhitya Parishad : Innale, innu. .Vale , KSSP 2 0 Annual Conference Souvenir ~ (Calicut, 1982), pp. 24-25. ' 5 P.K.MichaelTbamkq "Socio -- Econornrc Factors in Educational Development : Case of 19" Century Travanwre" , Working P u p r no L90, Centre for Development Studies (Trivandmm, 1984),
dealing extens~vely wlth non-fiction literature, also contributed in a s~gnificant way to the development of scientific literature Since independence, the movement for the creation of a United Kerala began to gain momentum Demands were made that Malayalam be made the medium of Instruction artd language of government. Discussions took place in the Samasta Kerala Sahitya Parishad regarding the steps to be taken for the development of technical and science literature in Malayalam. NVKrishna Warrier, one of the founding members of the KSSP and an office bearer in the initial years, argued for a programme of five year plans for the development of m~~. science literature in ~ a l a ~ a l a The idiom was evidently borrowed from the five year plan inaugurated in 1951. The emphasis of the 2" five year plan in the development of modem industry and application of science and technology as well as the declaration of the National Science Policy in 1958 also contributed to the urge to study and teach science. In 1962, the secretary of the KSSP wrote, we are living in an age of science .... The general laws of science and the discoveries of science, that exert such great influence on the development of mankind, should not remain as the family property of certain experts. Either, these experts themselves or some other people have to shoulder responsibility of explaining them to the common man in a language that he can understand. Because of the step motherly attitude towards the 'native languages' during the period of British mle, there was hardly any progress of science literature in various Indian languages. Speaking everything in English and that too, in the most obscure English, was the fashion then. The problem of technical words was often an insurmountable problem to those
N.V.Knslna Waniec. '. Malaysia Sahithyathinte Abhivrudhikkom kchavatsard Padhathi" in Pariprekshyont (Ual.)(Katavarn. 1980). pp.48-60.
' 6
few patriots, who dared to write in the regional languages. On the other hand, the conservative local 'sastries' insisted that we have a science created
by the great sages of the past that cannot contain any mistakes.
Consequently, the awareness of the people of our country lagged behind that of others. Only regional languages can enter into a dialogue with the heart of the common man. The task before the science writers in Malayalam as well as in other regional languages to convey the message of the new language to the hearts of the people in a style they can easily understand
''
There was yet another related and equally important tradition that the participants in the new science groups were carrying forward. Modem science had been used by the social reformers and activists in Kerala as a weapon in their struggle against superstitions and feudal culture. From later decades of the last century Kerala witnessed the emergence of numerous social reform movements.
All of them attempted to reform the outmoded social customs and rituals within
their respective castes and communities. There was also another dimension to these movements, especially to those movements among the lower castes, i.e., the struggle to change the social and polittcal determinants of their lower status in the traditional society These efforts inevitably conflicted with the key elements of caste domination in the traditional social structure, often leading to ideological positions that had high elements of bourgeois radicalism. This is especially true of the social reform movement initiated by Sree Narayana Guru, who preached the sutra 'one caste, one religion.,one God for man'. Some of his radical followers like K.Ayyappan and T.K. Madhavan transformed the sutra into an equally influential
~~~
2' K.G.Adiyodi, "Sam SahithyakamunarkuOIUSanghatana". Sasira Snhifya Parishad Ulghadana Smarakam (Mal.)(Ottap&m~, 1962). p.9
slogan 'No caste, No religion, Yo God for manqzx.Rationalist and atheist ideas began to spread. Modern science was an important element of these new movements
The verses of K Avyappan on science may be considered as one of the best

expressions of the fervuul- with which the social activists of his genre had embraced science. Science is hailed as the greatest liberator, driving out darkness and its high priests and religions. Science is exhalted as the only means of knowing truth and the secrets of natural phenomena. Science is the driving force behind agriculture, industry and trade of the natlon Rut, however much we may know, since we cannot exhaust the infinite, science urges man to seek constantly
Scienceal t)eepthunrrelokam Science-al abhivncthikal Science - ennye thamns.se1lam Science - lnnu thozhunnu Njan."
Science lights up the world Science is the progress of the world Everything else but science is darkness Oh1 Science I bow before you.
Jawaharlal N e w s strongest interest in science is well known Science is the splnt of the age and the dominating factor of the modem world. Even more than the present, the fimre belongs to science and to those who make fnends with science.. . It was science alone that would solve these problems of hunger and p e r t ) : ? of insanitation and illiteracy, of superstition and deadening custom and tradition, of vast resources running to waste of a rich country inhabited by s t m n g peaplc"'
*'
T.M.Thomas lssac and P.K.Miclme1nmakan" Sree Narayana Mwcments in Travancorc 18881939: A Study of Social &is and Ideological Reproduction", Working Paper no.214, C.D.S.. ( T h i r u v a n a n l h ~ 1985). p. 2 i . 29 K.Ayyappan, "Science Dasakam' in Sohodorante Padvakrithikal (Mal.) (Kottayam, 1981). 115-16 "kessage to S i e r Jubilee Scssion, Science Congress, Calcutta 1938 cited by Obaid Siddiqui, "Science, Society and Gwernrnent and Politlcs - Some Remarks on the Ideas of Jawaharlal Nehm" inYashPal et.al..(eds.).n.1, p I83
The Library Movement and Teacher's Movement in the 1940's reinforced and spread the importance of education in social reforms. These movements were further strengthened by the peasant struggles in Malabar and the growth of a strong radical political movement throughout Kerala. All these factors have made it conducive for the emergence and growth of a Science Movement in the state3' In the all India context, changes in the economy and society were taking place especially after 1947 Capitalism and industrialization were growing at a faster pace. The inauguration of planning with five year plans led to the establishment of scores of scientific and technical institutions throughout the country. The link between science and technology and economic development was being stressed, both by politicians and experts. Science was becoming important; more and more people were willing to listen to it. The formation of the KSSP coincides with this period'2. During 1967, another event. wliich was to become a turning point in the development of sciegtific literature not only in Malayalam, but also in all other languages, took place. Dr.Triguna Sen became the Education Minister at the centre, and for the first time it was recognized that the central government had responsibilities not only towards Hindi, but also towards other languages. Each state was given Rs.10 million for the development and production of text books for teaching at the University level3?. On the initiative of E.M.S.Namboodiripad, the then Chief Minister of Kerala, this amount was utilized to set up a State Institute of
,
I1
33
'' Ibid.
KSSP, n.7.p.7.
Ibid., p.8.
Languages in Thiruvananthapuram. The institute was set up with personnel recruited mainly from the KSSP This had two consequences: firstly, a concentration of the KSSP activists at Thiruvananthapuram in addition to Kozhikodu, and secondly, a period of collaborative activity of the KSSP and State Institute of Languages This helped on the one hand, to stabilize the language institute and put it far ahead of all other similar institutions in the country and enabled the KSSP on the other hand, to spread in different parts of the state. The
first publications of the Language Institute, Vijnana Sabdavali and Mamika

Sabdm,ali were largely the result of the work done by the KSSP during 1967-64.
Several dozens of Seminars, Symposia and Workshops were organized under the e . ~ joint auspices of the KSSP and the State Institute of ~ a n ~ u aA~ number ~of workshops were conducted to translate books from English to Malayalam. Thus, the KSSP Game into existence as a necessity of the times. In the initial phase of its existence, the KSSP was only a loosely knit grouping and by the end of the first decade, this group evolved into a well-defined organization. The KSSP began the publication of its second monthly, Sastrakralam, in 1969 for the age group 12- 16, followed by a third one called Eureka in 1970 for the age group 8-12. The publication of these two magazines and the joint activities with the State Institute of Language resulted in increased contact with the sphere of formal educution. 5htrgathc was converted into a biomonthly and finally in 1974, a. monthly journal. The readership of Sasfrugathi consisted of the KSSP members
~~
~~
bid., pp.8-9;M.P.Parameswar;ln.Kerolr? Sastra Sahilya Parishrzd - A Movemmrfor Mnss Education ~ a n a n t h a p m t m 1984) (m~meo), 16. . p.
34
and the general public above the school age. The KSSP journals developed a unique style of popular !;cience wr~tingi n Malayalam. They became the training alone could boast of having ground for a new group of young writers. Sa.:a.~lragathi introduced around 50 new writers in first five years of its existence"
.
More and
more school and college teachers began to join the activities of KSSP. The period between 1967 and 1977 witnessed the growth of the KSSP into a mass movement. All the basic contours of' the present day activities, organizational structure and style of functioning evolved during this period. Science in MdayaYam is an important slogan of the KSSP. The main theme of discussion of the 4' Annual Conference was the ' Problems of the Technical The discussions centred on the technical backwardness of Words i n ~ a l s ~ a l a m ' ~ ~ . Indian languages, the urgent need to overcome them and the broad guidelines for such a programme of action. The conference even set up a time bound programme for preparation of a technical glossary o f 50,000 words in Malayalam. An annotated bibliography of science articles and an introduction to science witers in Malayalam was prepared'7. The KSSP launched the first agitational campaign for making Malayalam
~ the medium of instruction in October 1 9 7 ~ 'The demonstration before the Senate
of Kerala University and the mass memorandum submitted to the government on
'' V.K.Damodanu&" ~ N o k k u m p o l "Sastragathi, No. 19 (1971), p.7. .

" Mani,
"Malayda Sasim Sahityathunte Purogathiyil ON Nazhhkallu", Sastragcathi. No.4 (1%8),
p.71-89.
" A n o ''Bharat. BhasbWu Venti Laksham Oppum Octobaril Oru Jathayum", Sastragathi, No.44 ~
(1973, pp.5+.; W
issac and Ekbd, n4,p. 10.
e w with Prof. M.G Gopalakrishnan, Changanacheny, 3 August 2001.
this was perhaps the first open attack of the KSSP regarding government policies This was at the time when the KSSP was collaborating with the State Institute of Languages of the government in many ways
' 9
'The KSSP entered into the field of book publication in 1968. A few books were published by the KSSP during this period Science IYliX, Scier~ce 1969,
I'ur~chaya Kosham (introducing
science writers
in Malayalam)
and
comprehensive bibliography on science books were published in Malayalam. In the year 1971, the KSSP workers formed a separate society
- Scientific, Technical
and Educational Publishing Cooperative Society (STEPS). As STEPS proved to be more conservative and cautious than the parent organization in taking financial risks the two had to get separated in the year 197740.In the same year, the KSSP on its own announced the pre-publication of a gift box of 10 children's books as its New Year presentation to school children By the early 1970s, the involvement of the KSSP in non-curricular activities in school became more widespread In 1972, 'Sastra Keralam Quiz' was started for high school students. Another major intervention was the campaign launched in 1973 to activise science clubs in schools Within two years, more than 1500 school science clubs were formed In the year 1974, the activists in Trissur took the initiative to organize a science talent test for primary school children and the
~~
.- --
Anon, '.Language Instituunteyum Parishathintqunl S;mmykthabhimukhyathilSymposiunl", Sasfrugafhi.No.?(1%9), pp.11'3-1 5 40 MPParameuarao, "Kodunganupole Munnottu". .Srr~aranikn I976 (1976), p. 12.
39
success of this prompted the KSSP to initiate the ' Eureka Science Talent Test' on a state wide scale4'
A conscious attempt was made in 1972, to initiate a mass education
programme around a specific theme The KSSP responded to the call of 'Bharatiya Vijnan Patrika Samithi' to observe the I" week of January as 'Science Week' .I000 lectures on "Evolution of the Universe" and "Man and Society" were planned from
I" to 71h January 1972. More than 1,200 classes were held".
The success
encouraged the KSSP to organize yet another mass lecture campaign on a similar theme, "Nature, Science and Society" in January 1976 In 1977, lectures were organized on two themes, "Public Health and "Agriculture in
eral la"^^.
The
lecture campaign bedame an important continuing education programme of the KSSP and it revealed the organizational maturity of the KSSP An Important innovation in the mass contact programme of the KSSP was the Sastra Jatha (Science Procession) In 1971-72, aRer the 8" Annual Conference at Ernakulam the delegates went in a procession shouting slogans on science, to a public ground where a senior professor gave a long speech on Chemistry. Perhaps this was the first science jatha in the state. Next year, one day car jathas were planned to converge at the venue of the annual conference at Thiruvalla. In the year 1977, the KSSP launched the experiment of Sastra Kala Jatha. The jatha consisted of a group of science activists who toured the length of Kerala for 37 days giving lectures at 900 places and contacted millions of people and sold thousands of
" Issac and Ekbal, n.4. p. 13. '' KSSP, n.7, p. LO.
"
Issac and Ekbal, n.4. p. 14.
pamphlets44 Street theame, folk dance and music were skillfully used for science communication. These performances became the hallmark of the later Sastra Kala Jatha The jatha became a regular annual programme between October 2"d, the Gandhi Jayanti day, and November 7~ the birth day of
aman^^. an^^.
The formation of rural science fora was another conscious effort to link the KSSP's activities to the village where the majority of the people live. The proposals for the formation of Rural Science Forum were concretized at a special cadre carnp at Peechi. Rural Science Fora were intended to provide an opportunity for villagers to take part in non-formal bodies for local planning. An activity spectrum that included various cultural activities, participatory research into village resources and problems, monitoring and evaluation of village level development activities etc. were suggested By 1978, around 600 rural Science fora had come into beinga. But the rural science forums did not develop as had been envisioned. Majority of the rural science forums formed at the first rush of enthusiasm generated by the public lecture campaigns and science jathas and the romantic fervours with which many KSSP activists had plunged into the rural reality, never developed into self-reliant local level people's planning development agencies. This was espec~ally case wherever the partic~pationof the KSSP activists in the fora the was low In a bid to activise the rural science fora, they were reorganized as affiliated bodies of the KSSP to work under the general guidelines and direction of the KSSP A number of state level coordinated programmes such as state level rural
44
4s
KSSP 1x25. pp.48-49. Issac and Ekbal, n.4, p. 15
" bid.. p. 16
science forum camps rural padayafras (1981), village surveys (1983) etc. were planned Hut
in
practice
it
was found that rural science fora were not capable of
tackling microlevel development problems. The School for Technicians and Artisans (START) was another activity initiated to help self-made technicians and artisans in the rural areas and in the urban informal sector. Short courses on various technical subjects like electrical wiring, automobile repairing, printing and such other trades were conducted in various centres under the auspices of the
START^^.
The expansion in the sphere of activity of the KSSP has transformed the
nature of the organisation. From an organisation of science writers primarily concerned with technical problems of scientific literary production, the KSSP had evolved into a mass conscientisation movement, taking up a wide range of issues of and reaching out to millior~s people spread all over Kerala, utilizing a variety of media-such as printed and spoken words and the visual arts. The new activities in turn brought in new activists. There was a remarkable increase in membership from 122 in 1967, 500 in 1969 and 2600 in 1976 to 45,051 by 2001. Along with the increase in membership a qualitative change also took place in its composition. The bulk of the new members are school teachers and educated youth. Similarly lecture campaigns and science jathas led to a rapid increase in membership and
. sympathizers. The transformation of the rural science forums into KSSP units made
the KSSP a genuinely all Kerala organization with units and members quite evenly spread in the mral and urban areas.
Membership a n d Organizatio~~al Setup

The KSSP has more than 15,000 members in 1477 units. all of them working on a voluntary basis The membership of women is 9024, constituting 20
% of the total. In the previous year it was 16 7%. The h~ghestnumber of women is
drawn from Thiruvananthapuram (9,024) and the lowesi from Kasaragode (138)~'. Every section of the society contributes to the work of the KSSP. It members come from all walks of life. e~igineers, doctors, lawyers, agricultural workers, administrators, technicians, nurses, teachers, peasants, students, scientists, political activists, social activists and so on The predominant group is that of unemployed educated youth, the next being teachers. Among the leadership, teachers out number any other &egoni4'.
By 1966, the membership of the KSSP wasopened to
anyone interested in science. There are two types of memberships. First is ordinary membership: anyone who is interested in the ideals of the KSSP ready to act liable
to the constitution of the KSSP, and completed the. age. of eighteen can join the
KSSP as an ordinary member. The second is life membership: anyone who has the qualifications of an ordinary member remitting the life membership fee can join the KSSP as a life member liable t o the recognition of the Central Executive ~ o m m i t t e e ' ~At present there are 104 life members. The organizations of similar . objectives can join the KSSP as 'member organizations' by remitting a fee, as directed by the central executive committee. Their applications should be addressed to the Treasurer, Central Executive Committee. Application for membership should
'' KSSP, Kerala L%.~rro Sohiryo f'nrishorl - .I
~ ~ S ~ , . i i Y " ~ fkporll(2002). p. 12. nma
'"KSSP. Hhuranaghudana (The Conslitntion of KSSP, ZOOl). pp.3-5.
f'eople k !ii.ienr;. 2 i l n ~ ~ r m e n r , pampiilet), p.8. (n.d
be in prescribed form which is available from all units and the General Secretary
Any
orlc who fulfills ihe eligibil~ty conditions can join the KSSP h y remitting the
membership fee and admission fee, along with the application, to the secretary of the regional committee through the unit5' I h e KSSP has a four tier structure Units hnctioning at the village level in area of 10-20 sq km; regional committees catering to about 10-30 units; 14 district committees and a state committee. The KSSP is a member of All India People's Science Network (AIPSN). President, Vice-Presidents, General Secretary, Treasurer- and Secretaries are the office bearers. Elections are held every year. No one holds office for more than two terms.
At the base are t h e u n i t s Ten or more members can organize a unit
tempora~ily. the district executive committee is satisfied with the working of this If unit, it will recognize the unit and inform the Central Executive Committee. Every member is included in any one of the unitss2 Above the unit level, there are the regional councils and regional committees The members to the regional council are elected by the members of the units on a proportional basis. The maximum membership is 100. Along with them, the unit secretaries and members of regional committees constitute the regional council". Members of the district council are elected by the regional councils and the number of them should not exceed 200. They are elected by the regional councils on a proportional basis as decided by the District Executive Committee
occasionally. The former and existing regional presidents, secretaries. District Executive Committee members, and the members of the Central Executive Committee, who are belonging to the same district are also included in the District councilS4 The whole powers and responsibilities of the KSSP are vested in the General Council The number members elected to the General Council should not be exceeded 300. These members are elected by the District councils on the proportional basis as decided by the Central Executive Committee occasionally. Along with them, the members of the Central Executive Committee, the existing presidents and secretaries, and central internal auditors form the General CouncilSS. Before the General Council meeting, the unit General body meeting should be conducted and the unit executive committee should be elected. It should be informed to the super stnictures. The unit executive committee includes President, Vice president, Secretary, Joint secretary and three members. If any member of the district! centraliExecutive committees, he should be unit is included in the reg~onal invited to the unit executive committee meetings. The Regional Executive Committee consists of the President, Secretary, Vice President, Joint Secretary, Treasurer and seven members elected by the regional council. There are two internal auditors, who are directly accountable the regional council. in the election PI-ocedure,the person, who presides the meeting should be one who is directed by the District Executive Committee.
The President, Secretary, Vice-president, Joint Secretary, Treasurer, members not exceeding tburteen in number, regional secretaries and central executive committee members who are belonging to the same district are included in the District Executive Committee. In the meeting for the election of the committee, the person who is nominated by the Central Executive Committee should preside. The District council should also elect two internal auditors, who are directly responsible to the district council. The tenure of the executive committee is one year. The Unit Executive Committee is responsible for the whole working of the unit.The regional Executive Committee should co-ordinate the work of the units and give directions to them. The Regional Committee should lead the works of the KSSP on their own region as directed by the District Executive Committee. The District Executive Committee is a link between regional unit executive committees and the Central Executive committee. They co-ordinate the work of the units and regional wnciYs and give leadership to the'works of the KSSP on revenue district basiss6. The members of the Central Executive Committee are: President, two VicePresidents, General Secretary, Treasurer, 3 Secretaries, District Secretaries, Editors of monthlies, Managing editors of monthlies and the immediate former President and General Secretary. The total number of members is fifty nine. They are elected by the General Council.
Central Executive Committee can formulate sub-committees to help them. The General council should elect two internal Auditors from among themselves, who are directly responsible to them. The tenure of the members of the Central Executive Committee is one year The Central Executive Committee is responsible to the activities of the KSSP, which are not dealt with the unit, regional and district basis. The Central Executive Committee deals with the publishing, correspondence with governments, co-operative programmes with governments, communication with the organizations of similar attitude in other languages etc. This committee decides over the policy matters and selling and buying of properties, and collection of fund. The President of the KSSP is responsible for all the actions of the KSSP related to the Central Executive Committee. He is elected by the General Council. He presides over the meetings of Central Executive Committee and General Council. The Vice-President has to help the President in his duties and take the chafge of President in his absence. The General Secretary leads the organizational actions, runs the day to day activities, looks over the activities of sub-committees and convenes the meetings Treasurer, who keeps the income-expenditure records, makes bank accounts and keeping the membership register. The Secretaries should help the Secretary in his duties and take charge of the programmes given by the General ~ e c r e t a r ~ ~.' .
Mobilization of Resource
For regular activ~ties, the KSSP depends upon personal contribution (contribution of money and time) of its members and upon book publication. To quote M P Parameswaran, 'nobody should feel that he is making a 'sacrifice' for the cause In reality there is nothing which can be called sacrifice It is only exchange, giving something in return for something. Only if members enjoy doing work they Funds are raised up as and when activities are to be taken can be good activ~sts"'~ place. T3 quote M P.Parameswaran again: the only rcgular source of fund is membership fee. R s l O per year divided among the levels of the organization. Major resource come from the publication and sale of books. about 2 million in all. The books are sold by the activists as a campaign. They movc from house to house, institution to institution, school to school. It's their labour expressed in terms of 'distribution cost'- about 40% of the face value that becomes airallable for various activities. Often local activities are organized making use of donation in kind and cash. Bulk of these will not get reflected in the state accounts. Sonic will get reflected in the District accounts. But the actuals will be several tlmes of thisi9.
For the Integrated Rural Technology Centre and for various projects, funds are received separately The main sources of such h n d s are: (i) Department of Science and Technology, Government of India (ii) Science, Technology and Environment Committee, Government of Kerala (iii) Rural Electronics Division, Electronic Bhavan, New Ilelhi (iv) Ministry of Human Resources Development,
M . P . P m a r a n . "People':r Science Movement". Paper presented at the 17&Inter Disciplinarz. Research blethodoli~,qvH.i>rk.~hop Science, Society ond techno log^ Transformation (Hyderabad, on
1987). p.7.
58
M.P.Pamneswaran.Profile the activltres of KSSP sent to MsKerstin Bennett, ildministrative Director, Right Livelrhood. I ,tvrrd Foundation, Stockholm. Sweden (Trissur. August 23* 1996), p.7.
59
o/
Government of India and (v) Department of Forest and Environment, Government of india6" The core support tiom DST, Govt of India has ceased by the year 2000-01 In the same year, the State Government reduced its grant-in-aid to Rs. 12lakh, and with a further cut, reduced the aid, in effect to Rs.8.251akh. Research projects hnded by Kerala Research Programme on Local Level Development of the Centre for Development Studies (KRPLLD, CDS) and consultancy payments by Local Self government institutions provide some relief to the m ~ v e m e n t . ~ ' The KSSP does not receive any regular grant from any one and no form of monetary help from any foreign hnding agency. As Mathew Zachariah and Sooryamoorthy have rightly pointed out, when a large number of organizations in India that works for the empowerment of people and the improvement of socioeconomic conditions for poor and powerless are dependent on grants and loans provided by agencies &om abroad, the KSSP opposes such loans and grants on two grounds. First, the objectives of the foreign funding agencies could undermine selfreliance within India. Second, there are sufficient financial resources within India to support development efforts; the real problems are those of forging a collective will to redirect those resources to new priorities that address urgent socio-economic needs.62
a bid.
62
'' IRTCAnn~oIReport2001-02 . p. 12.

Zachanah and Sooryamowthy. n.23, p.87
The Style of Work The KSSI' has developed a methodology of working with the disadvantaged sections The stvle of work has come to be known as Parishaftika It is dificult to define what exactly it means. In contrast to that of many other organizations, the KSSP style of work is characterized by informality, simplicity, frankness, friendship and collectivity. There is hardly an instance of manipulation or struggle for o f i c ~ a lposit~ons By tradition, no one continues in an official post for more than two years And it is normal for a leading activist not to be even in the executive committee
" Numerous informal meetings are organized in the name of
Annual Camp. A report of the Is' Annual camp at Peechi in 1975 says: It was a commune of the best Parishad activists rather than office bearers. It is still an experience that the activists recall with a lot of affection. Fnnk discussions took placc through out day and night. Really a Parishad family had been evolving and it was therc that the mutual friendship, faith and respect that were to be central for all the later Parishad actrv~ties were developed".M
Some of the most innovative programmes of the KSSP have evolved from informal gatherings. It is through them that a collective leadership has emerged. Its greatest asset is self-emerging volunteers The utmost importance is attached to personal relations between activrsts To quote the I'ravarthaka Pariseelana Rekha (guideline for activist train~ng) Those whb do not reply to Ictters, do not keep proper accounts, do nit fulfill the tasks volunteered, try to avoid taking up responsibility when requested, do not see the link between the work of theirs and others. instead of creative criticism confine
'' Issac and Ekbal. n 4, p 1 9

KSSP n.25, p
75
themselves to grumbling and gossiping and those who do not have faith in the
i.oodncss of the Ihi~man being, they can ncver become ~ o o d Parishad aeti~ists.~'
The KSSP uses several media to communicate, printed word, postures, spoken word, theatre and to a limited extent electronic media. It has organized massive leaflet campaigns on many subjects. The KSSP has developed a unique form of theatre, which is a combination of street, folk and proscenium theatre called 'Kalajadha' or Gal-avan of Art. The KSSP is India's largest science publisher, having published more than 1000 titles and producing 30 to 40 new titles per year. The KSSP is also publ~shing three Science Magazines separately for primary school ch~ldren, high school students and the general public The KSSP also organizes every now and then massive lecture campaigns on a variety of topics and each campaign will result in several thousand lectures, which reaches out to hundreds of thousands of people.66
Xdeology
The ideology of the KSSP is epitomized by its slogan "Science for Social Revolution". The KSSP was not built upon the foundations of a previously defined ideology. It started h c t i o n i n g in an attempt to popularize science among the masses The present ideology is the evolutionary product of its activities and experiences It evolved through science jathas, several thousand lectures delivered on 'Nature, Science and Society', study and discussion on the 'Wealth of Kerala', agitation for better health care system and against environmental degradation, fight
" KSSP, t'r~vorthakaPonseeluna KeWla 19RI (Tnvandnull. 198 1). p 99

66
KSSP, n 19. p 15
for- rational energy, universal education and research on contemporary problems of development
'"
The KSSP considers that science is not value free. It can and will have partisanship Thus viewed, the KSSP too is not impartial. T o quote lssac and Ekbal:
In the society we live, thcrc is a rninonty who has ownership and control of
rcsourccs and a majority without such advantages. The process of development has bcen a process of'imrniser~sat~on the ma~orityand enrichment of the minority. of The vast majority that are getting lmmiserised or are under the threat of ~mmiserisationconstitute the people. The reorganization of society in order to reverse thc process of immiscrisation and enable every citizen to lead a full and rlch life is social revolut~on. Such a society cannot be individualistic and
competitive but collective and cooperativc The KSSP is partisan to thc interest of
the people and thls partisanship constitutes its Science should become a powerful weapon in the hands o f the majority in their fight against impoverishment. An important characteristic of the KSSP is its partisanship with the cause of majority"
69
As J.D. Bemal comments:
Thc job of using science for human betterment is also primarily political; that is
one that in the last resort must be settled by the people as a whole. But they cannot do it without the information that only the scientists possess. It is therefore the business of the scientists, at least for the part of the time, to come out of his own
speciality and to work together with all other likeminded people in the different
walks of life, ..., to ensure that we get a society where science can be properly uscd"."
67
6x
KSSP. n.7. pp.4-5. Issac and Ekbal, n.4. p.24.
" Parameswaran,n. 1. p.248.
'" Bemal, n.2. pp. 1304 - 305.
The KSSP takes, on every issue, a stand partisan to the majority. It strives to a m r the majority with the weapon of science and technology in their tight against impoverishment, against the exploiters. For this the KSSP strives to popularize science and scientific outlook among the people, develop a sense of optimism in them, instill in them a sense of self-confidence that they can change the world and build a better tomorrow. Determined to expose and oppose the abuse of scientific knowledge detrimental to the interests of majority, expose and oppose of the abuse of environment, and propose and -help implement alternative models for development, with emphasis on equity and sustainability Finally it strives to carry out Research and Development work to transform lab technologies intomass technologies." The KSSP stands for a world order- based on informal cooperation of hundreds and thousands of national cultural groupings, for a world order resting on local self governments, based on creative and participatory democracy, a world which has said goodbye to all wars, a world where people have become wise enough to distinguish needs from greeds, a world which has become capable of satisfying the needs of all and a world which has learned to use its limited resources in a sustainable manner That such a world has to be built from bottom upwards, from the individual to the society, from nation states to global state~essness.'~ Over .the last four decades, the KSSP has developed into a movement capable of making concrete analysis of the society, of the role of Science and
71
'' Ibid., pp.18-19.
KSSP, 11.49. p.5
Technology in it, of the problems of development, of the changing world situation and of the concrete manner in which the have nut.^ can use scientific and technical knowledge as a weapon in their fight against immiserisation. in 1974 the KSSP adopted the slogan 'Science for Social Revolution'. It recognizes the fact that Indian society is broadly divided into two groups: a large majority which is getting continuously impoverished or threatened with impoverishment and a small minority which gets continuously enriched at the expense of the majority. It also undertakes that science is a p o w e h l weapon in the hands of the rich minority, enabling them to appropriate for themselves more than proportionate share of social production.
By the late 1980s, the KSSP has started very serious discussions on the-
concept of 'development'. This is partly due to the emerging world situation and partly due to the increased capability of the movement to go beyond science popularization or literacy. It is to empower the people to manage their own affairs democratically. The fight for democracy is also a fight against the minority which appropriates democracy for itself. The dominant political question of the post-independent period in the Third World has been how to develop. Since they had to develop in order to overturn their legacies of underdevelopment, every other process was sacrificed to the idea of development. Politics came to be subordinated to economics. It was held that development was the imperative of the time and politics was subsidiary to development. Development was considered to be a value-free social process and a desirable end. That it could breed its own patterns of social oppression was neither
recognized nor apprec~ated. The notion of development was based on a pervasive belief rhat society need to be guided in the channels of reform because it was unable to regulate itself The project of development itself was uncritically accepted in much o f the mainstream thinking. The kind o f doubts or alternatives now being put forward were certainly not a feature of the dominant discussions in that period" The ideal state became the developmentalist state. A central role for the
state was accepted by both Marxist and liberal states, capitalism and socialism was similarly statist in their orientation. Development empowered the state in a way that other ideologies could not; indeed development itself became a n ideology74 Karl Marx noted in Capital f All means for thc development of production transform themselves into means of domination over, and exploitation of the producers; they mutilate the labour into a fragment of a man, degrade him to the level of an appendage of a machine, destroy every remnant of charm in his work and turn it into a hated toil; they estrange from him the ~ntcllectualpotentialities of the labour-processes in the s q e proportions
as science is incorporated in it as an independent power; they distort the conditions

under which he works, subjects him during the labour process to a despotism the more hateful for its meanness; they transform his life time into worlung time, and and drag his w ~ f c child beneath the juggernaut of capital."
M.Dubo&s, "The Governance of the Thud World : A Foucauldian Perspective on Power Relations in Development" ,Alremtives , 16 f 1991), pp.1-30; MFriberg and B.Hettne, "Local Mobilization and World System P~litics'~, International Social Science Journal, 117 (1988), pp.34 1-6 1; P.Paraguli, "Power and Knowledge in Development Discourse: New Social Movements and State in India", Inrernational Social Science Journal, 127 (1991), pp. 173-90; M.Rahnema, "Power and Regenerative Pmcesses in M c o Spaces". International SocialSclence Journal, 117 (1988). ir
~p,361-75. Neera Chandhoke. "The Assertion of Civil Society Against (he State: The Case of the Post Colonial World* in Manoranjan Mohanty etal, (eds.),People's Rights Social Move~nent.~ the ond Stare In the Third World (New Delhi, 1998),p.32. 15 Karl M m . Capital I (Moscow. 1977),p.601.
'3
'The laws of progress of capital, Marx believed, create unforeseen and unprecedented destruct~onof communities and of traditional ways of life He looked for an agent who would be able to transform these forces and make them serve humanity, who would be able to bring the laws of progress under control, and in this way made us aware of the politics of development. The iron laws of development were to be transformed and controlled, so that their exploitation element could be regulated and even eradicated. As an economic project it had to be subordinated to political project to ensure justice.76 All goods and services which have exchange values and even ose values need not have welfare values The measurement of development in terms of GNP is unsatisfactory as it is a money measure which does not bother about qualitative and distributive aspects Welfare depends not only on wealth but also on equity, justice and wisdom- wisdom of using resources and wealth." M.K.Prasad observes, "development must be understood as enabling the majority of our people to come, o u t of their subhuman conditions in the economic, social and political spheres. Drinking water, sanitation and houstng must be provided before we talk of prestigious projects and programmes"
''
Human society is passing through a critical period. Never before it had to face with such rapid and unpredictable changes. Humanity is being drawn into an unfathomable whirlpool generated by the relentless laws of capitalism. The Science
-~
76
I7
-~-
Chandhoke. n.74, p. 134. M.P.Parameawaran. "Kerala Model : Prospects and Problems" in M.A.Oommen,Rethinking Development Kerala 3 Oevslopnr#?nt Experience (New Delhi, 1997), p.206. '* M.K.Prasad, .'?he Lessons of Silcnt Valley" in Anll Aganval et.al.,(eds.),The FfghtforSun~ivol (New Delhi, 1987), p.42
and Technology revolution has also led to the 'globalization' of economy of individual nations The Multi-National Companies are able to effect global division of labour Control over raw materials, capital and market and even labour is becoming more and more centralized. The KSSP has been sensitive to this situation The importance given to empower the people is based on this understanding. The have-nots do not want 'fair distribution of poverty'. They want the satisfaction of basic needs and be assured of minimum comforts. For this, production has to be increased several times without losing the grip on distribution. The social revolution - the KSSP had accepted the slogan of "Science for Social Revolution" 28 years ago - envisioned was nothing short of the process of havenots taking control of the societal processes.79 It becomes imperative to cut open a new path of continuous strengthening of democracy. The long-term objective is not unlimited and exponential increase in the production of goods and services, but the mobilization of every citizen to creatively participate in the process of production to satisfy the basic minimum needs and comforts of all. This can be achieved by the strengthening of smaller societies both politically and economically. The small has to become powerful enough to withstsind the onslaughts of global economies. The small cannot survive in a global market dominated by the large. The KSSP is a movement to make the small powerful, to make democracy and development real and participative. Power to the people has been one of the central slogans of the KSSP, the power taken by
79
-
M.P Pacuneswaran, "20" Cenhuy Sc~ence. Beyond the Metropolis Kerala S a m Sahitya Parishad Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow",IADD1- Reporl on the Workshop (1996), pp. 15760.
the people and not given to them They could wield power only when they can wield science and technology, that is to empower the people with the weapon of science and technology The haves of the world, both of developed and developing nations, will not kindly take to the concept of strengthening Democracy. Only through, fighting them, fighting them incessantly. can democracy be strengthened. It involved exposing and fighting against anti-people policies of government, fighting against the use of science and technologv against the mechanizations of the developed nations to recolonise the developing nations, fighting against the treacherous elements within the developing nations, campaign for decentralized democracy and local level planning, initiating field experiments in participatory planning, literacy campaign, energy conservation programmes, campaign for people oriented approaches to health, expose and oppose the abuse of environment, propose and help implement alternative models for development, carry out Research and Development work to transform lab technologies into mass technologies etc. All these actives of the KSSP are discussed in the succeeding chapters titled, The
KSSP and PPrticipstory Development, The KSSP and Appropriate Technology

Development and The KSSP and Environment and Development.

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Chapter IV

Kerala Sastm Sahitya Parishad: Origins and Development

It is through science. and only through science, that the transformation of

' Ibid., pp.1309 - 310.

P.T.Bhaskard Panicker. Adiyakoiam (Mal.), Unpublished Manuscript, 1982 "id.

M CNamboodiripad The main goal of the Sastra Sahitya Samithi to translate

N.V. Krishna Variyer were President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer

' Science ;LA

Social Activisnr:Keppnrts and Papers on (he People ',v kience ,I.lo~,enrenrs I n d ~ a , in

' o ~ . ~ . ~ m a s I s s a cB.Ekbal, n . 4 p.3. and

'' TMlhOmaS Issac and H.Ekbal. n.4.p 7.

- Malayalam (SSP (M)) at

July 1968, the KSSP was registered under the Charitable

Societies Act XXI, 1860'"t

1 noted that the SSP(M) Bombay adopted a s

Malayalam In 1967 the Sastragathi started publication

"Sastra Sahitya Prasfanam - Irmhikakaliuk~~l. pp.3-6. n.9,

Issac and .Ekbal, n.4, p.9.

In 1971, the KSSP adopted an emblem designed by T.S.Balagopa1; a

Social Activisni. n.7 pp.6-7~

It must be pointed out that saence literature in Malayalam was relatively

" 0.V.G.Childe.Society andKnowlerlge

(London. 1956), p.6.

The verses of K Avyappan on science may be considered as one of the best

first publications of the Language Institute, Vijnana Sabdavali and Mamika

of Kerala University and the mass memorandum submitted to the government on

'' V.K.Damodanu&" ~ N o k k u m p o l "Sastragathi, No. 19 (1971), p.7. .

"Malayda Sasim Sahityathunte Purogathiyil ON Nazhhkallu", Sastragcathi. No.4 (1%8),

issac and Ekbd, n4,p. 10.

e w with Prof. M.G Gopalakrishnan, Changanacheny, 3 August 2001.

I'ur~chaya Kosham (introducing

Issac and Ekbal, n.4. p. 14.

KSSP 1x25. pp.48-49. Issac and Ekbal, n.4, p. 15

was found that rural science fora were not capable of

Membership a n d Organizatio~~al Setup

By 1966, the membership of the KSSP wasopened to

'' KSSP, Kerala L%.~rro Sohiryo f'nrishorl - .I

~ ~ S ~ , . i i Y " ~ fkporll(2002). p. 12. nma

'"KSSP. Hhuranaghudana (The Conslitntion of KSSP, ZOOl). pp.3-5.

f'eople k !ii.ienr;. 2 i l n ~ ~ r m e n r , pampiilet), p.8. (n.d

'' IRTCAnn~oIReport2001-02 . p. 12.

" Numerous informal meetings are organized in the name of

'' Issac and Ekbal. n 4, p 1 9

" KSSP, t'r~vorthakaPonseeluna KeWla 19RI (Tnvandnull. 198 1). p 99

As J.D. Bemal comments:

KSSP. n.7. pp.4-5. Issac and Ekbal, n.4. p.24.

" Parameswaran,n. 1. p.248.

'" Bemal, n.2. pp. 1304 - 305.

'' Ibid., pp.18-19.

KSSP, 11.49. p.5

as science is incorporated in it as an independent power; they distort the conditions

KSSP and PPrticipstory Development, The KSSP and Appropriate Technology

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