We believe that the quality of education in India is another factor that has been hampering scientific progress in the country since independence (see M. Joseph and A. Robinson Nature 508, 36–38; 2014).

Hundreds of thousands of students graduate from Indian universities each year. However, our own experience in selecting students indicates that many are ignorant of the basics, with underdeveloped reasoning skills and an inability to apply the knowledge they have.

The inadequacy of teaching methods could explain why none of India's universities is among the world's top 200. Learning needs to be more enquiry-based and tutorials more demanding; syllabuses should be overhauled, upgraded and modernized; and, to improve accountability, student-feedback mechanisms must become more effective.

It is also important to emphasize the value of high-quality teaching skills when recruiting new faculty members, so that the students' technical and reasoning abilities can be fully developed.

Unless India reinvigorates its universities by reforming the teaching–learning process, it will keep failing to generate the workforce necessary to propel Indian science forwards.