Bengaluru: Vice President Hamid Ansari on Friday said promotion and embedding of science and scientific temper in citizenry is a constitutional duty, apart from being a moral one, "if we are to emerge as a modern, progressive nation."

Poverty, hunger, disease, ignorance, superstition and obscurantism are impediments that exist in our society, he said while inaugurating the 15th All India People's Science Congress here.

"In fact, the latter three impede the eradication of the first three. In other words, to fight poverty, hunger and disease, we need to overcome ignorance, superstition and obscurantism," he said.

"The obvious instrumentality is education. At one level, it overcomes ignorance in a formal sense. But does it address itself to superstition and obscurantism? The answer is in the negative; the reason, regrettably, is to be found in ideologies and social belief and practices that prevail in various segments of our society," the Vice-President said.

"These induce narrowing of the mind and cultivation of prejudices and intolerance. They impede, even suppress the voice of rationalists," he said.

Terming science as the primary motor for social change in human history, he said it is indispensable for addressing major contemporary challenges of economic growth and social transformation in societies.

"Today, science is indispensable for addressing major contemporary challenges of economic growth and social transformation in societies.

"The socio-economic health of a nation now depends, more and more on, among other factors, the health of the state of its science and technology," he said.

The four-day biennial event was inaugurated in the presence of Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala, eminent scientist C N R Rao and former ISRO Chairman U R Rao.

The 15th All India People's Science Congress on 'Science

for Social Change' is being organised by All India People's Science Network, along with Karnataka Rajya Vignana Parishat and Bharata Gnana Vijnana Samithi.

Ansari said imbibing scientific reasoning and development of scientific outlook is intrinsic to modernity in our times.

He said the wealth and prosperity of a nation today depend on effective utilisation of its human and material resources through industrialisation based on scientific Research and Development.

"New scientific techniques can also make up for a deficiency in natural resources," he said.

Noting that inequality that exists between nations and within them, especially between the developed and developing world, has been exacerbated by the relative levels of scientific development amongst them, Ansari said, "These gaps can be bridged only through greater focus on the development of Science and Technology."

Science thus has a pivotal role in helping attain inclusive growth within nations and amongst them, he added.