The Indian Home Minister, Shivraj Patil, made an astonishing revelation recently that a large share of development funds is appropriated by Naxal outfits. Their terror mechanism has spread across the country gravely affecting its development. There are many socioeconomic and political reasons for the Naxal expansion. One of the reasons is the scientific temper. The den of Naxal terror lies in the rural areas of Bihar, where the image of India as an emerging power is missing.

Science has been established to be a proven tool for social transformation, but, it is concentrated to the affluent classes. In most of big cities of India, access to electricity is taken for granted, but the people of Bihar have been living for many years in darkness. Electric wires and poles have become useless over the years. A rich few in Bihar use inverters to get light while the poor in Bihar have no access to energy. Collecting wood for fuel is an arduous and time consuming activity, taking 2-3 hours a day. When they are unable to collect wood, the poor have no choice but to use animal dung for cooking, which is a serious health hazard. Unequal access to modern energy is closely correlated with wider inequalities in opportunities for human development. This inequality provides a breeding ground for the Naxalites. The highly educated ideologues of the Naxals exploit the fact that the new India is only available to the affluent classes.

The lack of proper education and scientific tempers create a vicious superstitious belief system. There are many stories from Bihar villages narrating their woes generated by superstition. For instance, in a Dalit tola of a village in Ara district, news came that a well in the Dalit tola was haunted by ghosts. No one in the village questioned how its water could be haunted. In fact, many people became victims after drinking the water of that particular well. There were two wells in the village. One was in the upper castes area, which was on higher ground and another was in the Dalit area on lower ground. Rain water channels directed the dirty water into this well; so whoever drank its water became ill. The villagers adopted their supernatural diagnostic system and believed that the well water was haunted by ghosts. This problem divided the village into two separate segments, which provided space for the Naxal outfits to lure the poorer sections of the society into their fold. It was a matter of scientific temper. Well water needed to be chlorinated. This is one example of how simple science could make a difference to people's lives.

Villages in Bihar have a jajmani system in which the professions of Dalit castes are segmented. The families of the Chamars (cobblers), Doms (who carry away dead animals) and Dushadh were given corn by the affluent castes in the village. So each family of these Dalit castes was attached to a family of affluent castes, just as a pandit or Nai (barbers) is attached to specific families. As lives changed with the times, this jajmani system gradually eroded. This brought in new challenges for the poorer sections of society. Many of them fell into the trap of Naxal outfits to seek an alternative life style. This expanded the areas of the Naxal influence in Bihar.

Many poor people have migrated to cities to work as scavengers. More than half a million scavengers clean 10 million toilets in India today with their bare hands. Most of them are from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. So, the development of rural Bihar is required as the long term solution to Naxal violence. India is witnessing an unprecedented urban growth, leading to large scale increase in infrastructure development, and commercial and residential development. This, in turn, has resulted in a steep rise in the demand for energy to sustain modern lifestyles. In the last five years, more than a hundred multi-storey buildings and market complexes have arisen in Patna. It is reported that more than 60 per cent of electricity is diverted to Patna alone, with the remainder left for the rest of Bihar. The poorer sections of society are forced to use unsafe kerosene oil to light their houses. It is a myth that kerosene is cheaper. The poor, who use kerosene for lighting, pay more for their light than their urban counterparts.

There is a need to expand the horizons of science and technology to the poorer sections of society. Indian science has made some contribution to human development but has fallen short of expectations. Human development, poverty, eradication and disease prevention are all dependent on science and technology. It is all the more necessary in Bihar.