Science Governance in the context of diverse interests and meanings: a Study of the debate on Genetic modification of Food in India
Journal Title: Scholars Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences - Year 2017, Vol 5, Issue 11
Abstract
The belief that scientific knowledge is objective, true, invariant and infallible has been challenged by the new approaches in the post-Kuhnian social studies of science. Scientific knowledge has been undergoing a cultural transformation from a disinterested and morally neutral enterprise to an enterprise that is intimately connected to values of profit and efficacy (industry) and political hegemony (military research) since the latter part of the 20th century. The IPRs regime of the WTO has made scientific knowledge which was hitherto a public resource into an intellectual property. In other words, the divide between the internal world of science and the external world of science has become porous. In this context the governance of science becomes a significant issue. Hitherto public support to science was based on the belief that the output of science would serve some public good and the governments across the world extended support to science. In this model, science is seen as providing objective, true and invariant knowledge and the members of the public are expected to have trust in science as it is a public good. In this model, the government and its agencies play an important role in deploying and regulating scientific and technological knowledge to solve problems in the real world. In the present context in which science has become an intellectual property, what are the terms of contract between science and society? What is the governance model, given the perceived risks for human beings and environment associated with the application of scientific and technological knowledge? What is the broad based governance model which can accommodate the conflicting values and interests of different stakeholders, while taking a decision on technological choice? How does science deal with the anxieties of the stakeholders in this context? In the Indian context, the public debate surrounding the commercialisation of the Genetically Modified Brinjal has brought into focus the relationship between science and society and the complex character of expertise in the public decision-making process. The paper drawing on the Post Normal Science (PNS) perspective argues that there should be a shift in the regulatory paradigm from a government-centred one to that of a governance-centred one. Keywords: Genetic Modification, Brinjal, Governance, Post Normal Science.
Authors and Affiliations
Dr. Jacob Kalle
Keywords
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