The solar cooker was the first indigenously developed technological device in Independent India that a generation of scientists and Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, imagined would be an example of technology development. The promise was that millions of Indian villagers would use solar cookers to make their meals. It was breathlessly championed by the National Physical Laboratory, Delhi - a CSIR lab. Very soon however, its poor sale and lack of public acceptance led to a loss of morale among scientist and a fear of state-sponsored technology development. 

Tune in to this episode to hear why solar cookers were the God That Failed in India.

Hosts: Sobhana K Nair and Jacob Koshy

Recorded, produced and edited by Jude Francis Weston