The twentieth century was a period which saw debates on ecology, cytology, genetics and eugenics in the West develop in new and interesting ways both positive and negative to understand the position of humans within the natural world and ultimately leading to a non-racist science. This paper explores the history of these debates in the context of Britain and India, the scientific networks that emerged and the contribution of neglected colonial scientists an important new field in the history of science, one which has gone unexplored in the context of these discussions. By recording the unrecognised contribution of a remarkable Indian woman to these critical global debates of the mid-twentieth century we hope to enhance our understanding of the practices of science in this period by examining race, gender and science the role of indigenous knowledge and the cross fertilisation of ideas.
