Renowned nuclear scientist Dr M P Parameswaran, a leading figure in India’s people’s science movement, died in Thrissur, Kerala. He was 91. A former scientist at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Parameswaran dedicated much of his life to taking science beyond laboratories and classrooms. Through organisations including the Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad (KSSP), Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti (BGVS) and All India People’s Science Network (AIPSN), he helped promote scientific temper, literacy and rational thinking among the public.
From Nuclear Science to People’s Science
Parameswaran earned his engineering degree from the College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram, in 1956. He later obtained a PhD in nuclear engineering from the Moscow Power Institute in 1965. He joined BARC as a nuclear scientist and worked there until 1975. Between 1969 and 1973, he also served as an assistant director at Kerala’s State Institute of Languages. However, his career took a different direction when he became actively involved with KSSP. At the time, the organisation was working to make scientific knowledge accessible to ordinary people and encourage scientific thinking. Under Parameswaran’s leadership, KSSP evolved into a powerful people’s science movement.
Taking the People’s Science Movement Nationwide
Inspired by KSSP’s success in Kerala, Parameswaran expanded his work across India. He played a prominent role in the Bharat Jan Vigyan Jatha, a nationwide people’s science and scientific literacy campaign launched in 1987 amid public debate following the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy. The following year, in 1988, the All India People’s Science Network was established as a platform bringing together around 40 science organisations across the country. Parameswaran helped shape AIPSN into a movement focused on scientific temper, rationalism and secularism, giving the people’s science movement a broader national platform.
Key Role in India’s Literacy Movement
Parameswaran also made a significant contribution to India’s literacy campaign. Working with the National Literacy Mission, he helped lead KSSP’s literacy initiatives in Ernakulam district. In 1990, Ernakulam became the first fully literate district in India, marking a major milestone in the country’s literacy movement. That same year, Parameswaran played a key role in organising the Bharat Gyan Vigyan Jatha in support of the National Literacy Mission. The initiative subsequently contributed to the expansion of literacy campaigns across the country.
Advocate of Decentralised Development
During the mid-1990s, Parameswaran also contributed to the intellectual framework behind decentralisation and participatory development in Kerala. His approach drew inspiration from German-born economist E F Schumacher, particularly his influential work Small Is Beautiful: A Study of Economics as if People Mattered. Parameswaran advocated development models that placed greater emphasis on local participation and decentralised decision-making. His work subsequently influenced the Left’s approach to decentralised development in Kerala.
A Legacy of Science, Environment and Literacy
Under Parameswaran’s leadership, KSSP gained national and international recognition for its work in science popularisation, environmental awareness, literacy and decentralised planning. The organisation received several major honours, including the Right Livelihood Award in 1996, the UNESCO Literacy Award in 1990, the UNEP Global 500 Award and the Vriksha Mitra Award. Through these initiatives, Parameswaran demonstrated how scientific knowledge could be used not only for technological advancement but also to address social, environmental and educational challenges.
Prolific Writer and Science Communicator
Parameswaran wrote extensively in both Malayalam and English, covering subjects ranging from atomic science, astronomy and mathematics to politics, social science and ecology. Among his notable works are “Fourth World” and “Janakeeya Sasthra Prasthanam.” Through his scientific career, activism and writing, Parameswaran helped bridge the gap between science and society. As reported by the indianexpress.com, his efforts left a lasting impact on India’s people’s science movement, scientific literacy and public engagement with science.
