Contestations on Climate Science in the Development Context: The Case of India

Climate science has generated deep societal divides in post-colonial countries such as India. These divides are ‘constructing’ the climate science in important ways. One of the most important divide comes from the fall out of the ideological positions created by post-colonialism. For centuries, religious and cultural systems that held the subcontinent India together was based on the principles of sacredness of nature, and the interdependent relationship that human being enjoyed with nature. Indigenous science was built on this principle. This also celebrated diversity. Modernity and its science brought ‘instrumentalism’ into this relationship. Along with this, there was rejection of indigenous science, and thus the attempt for homogenization of human communities with the help of science into ‘one nation’. The modern science was the accepted vehicle to remove poverty and to achieve development, and thus ‘nation-building’.

A second divide comes from the intra-regional variations (both for impacts and adaptation capacity) as well as inter-sectoral variations of economy (for mitigation).The division of livelihood emission vs luxury emission has emerged as an important contestation. Hence, science in itself is not what is being contested. Rather, survival considerations and economy are going to determine what science would gain legitimacy, and thus followed. Rather than technical fix, solutions are being sought to change ethical and cultural spheres where the genesis of the problem lies. This has important implications for entering into a new dialogue on science and ethics.  

The paper is based on the empirical analysis of three national newspapers based on the news reported on climate change during 2003-2008. Discourses around climate change are constructed through media analysis, and thus network of meaning-meaning is assessed vis-à-vis who holds such meanings. Based on this, a categorization is emerging. The societal responses to climate change, due to rejection or acceptance of climate science, can be classified into four categories: 1) Acceptance of Western Knowledge System but complete rejection of the validity of climate science; 2) Critique of Western Knowledge System and thus rejecting proposals put by this modern system as solution for climate change; 3) Acceptance of Western Knowledge System and acceptance of the validity of climate science, and thus solutions put forward for mitigation; 4) Importance given to economy and nationalism over science and thus addressing scientific challenges through non-science approaches. The paper identifies actors who hold these different positions on climate science in India, and their proposed responses, if applicable to climate challenge in the spheres of food security, energy requirements, health, water scarcity etc. Through such an analysis it is hoped to make an assessment about the socio-political environment for acting on climate change in India.