COMMUNICATION 71 progressively becoming part and parcel of the ruling establishment. For historical reasons and otherwise this group has been essentially oriented towards the West. S and T cannot progress in India in the way in which it did in a country like the United Kingdom, more than anything else because the capital required could be made available in UK from the exploitation of the colonies which is not possible in India. Having known this it is not surprising that the native capitalists have lost tlieir faith in a local S and T plan. The new slogan called "leap-frogging" is virtually an idea promoted by the foreign and native capitalists to justify collaboration and thus do away with their dependance on the native S and T in Their efforts of capitalistic exploitation. The attitude of the industry towards S and T being as given above, how does it consider other areas? The so-called "high technologies'5 have been given very high priority and this includes atomic energy, electronics space and defense. These four departments consume 40 per cent of our R and D efforts, all from public sector funds! Why is it that NCST is oblivious of such serious draw backs in S and T planning? If the aim of S and T should be to "bring relief to the poor" why has NCST allowed these departments to get away with such a big share without even a qualm? Does it not show a callous indifference to mismanagement of public funds or is NCST compromising with the aspirations of the native bourgeoisie to fly high at the cost of misery and malnutrition engulfing the millions? Or possibly is it not a typical semi-fascist, reactionary attitude of life from the present ruling establishment? In short the NCST document is as hollow and eventually as damaging as the Five Year Plan document. It hardly brings out any positive steps to improve the state of S and T in our country. Rather it will serve only as another sham policy document of the Government. AD