- Prelims: Government initiative for Research and higher education, National Research Foundation, National Research Foundation (NRF) Bill 2023, GATI, KIRAN, STEM) etc
- Mains GS Paper I & II: Social empowerment, development and management of social sectors/services related to Education and women empowerment etc
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
- The Union Cabinet approved the National Research Foundation (NRF) Bill 2023 to “strengthen the research ecosystem in the country”.
INSIGHTS ON THE ISSUE
Context
National Research Foundation (NRF) Bill 2023:
- The Bill seeks to repeal the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) Act 2008
- The SERB was established as a statutory body of the Department of Science and Technology (DST)
- It carries out almost the same or similar functions which the NRF proposes to do.
- The SERB will be subsumed into the NRF.
- It will establish NRF, as an apex body to provide “high-level strategic direction” to scientific research in the country as per recommendations of the National Education Policy (NEP)
- Total estimated cost of ₹50,000 crore from 2023-28.
- The DST would be an “administrative” department of NRF that would be governed by a Governing Board consisting of eminent researchers and professionals across disciplines.
- The Prime Minister will be the ex-officio President of the Board and the Union Minister of Science & Technology and Union Minister of Education will be the ex-officio Vice-Presidents.
- NRF’s functioning will be governed by an Executive Council chaired by the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, the statement added.
- It repeals the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) established by Parliament in 2008 and subsumes it into the NRF.
Establishment of NRF:
- It was mooted by the Kasturirangan Committee in 2019 and adopted in the National Education Policy (NEP 2020).
- Institutions currently funding research:
- DST
- Department of Atomic Energy (DAE)
- Department of Biotechnology (DBT)
- Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)
- Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)
- Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR)
- University Grants Commission (UGC)
- Various private and philanthropic organizations
- It would continue to fund research according to their priorities and needs independently.
Issues:
- The list of institutions funding research did not separately mention the SERB.
- There was no indication in the policy document that it would be abolished or subsumed into the NRF.
Need for multiple funding agencies:
- Leading research-producing nations had multiple public and private funding agencies
- The idea of having multiple research funding agencies reinforced that the NRF would coordinate with other funding agencies.
- It will work with science, engineering, and other academies to ensure synergy of purpose and avoid duplication of efforts.
The financial outlay(Kasturirangan Committee):
- It said that the NRF would get an ‘annual grant of 20,000 Crores(0.1(zero point one)% of GDP)’.
- Research spending in the country was a meager 65(zero point six five)% of GDP compared to:
- 8(two point eight)% in the United States
- 1(two point one)% in China
- 3(four point three)% in Israel
- 2(four point two)% in South Korea.
- It expressed concern that research and innovation spending in the country had declined from 84(zero point eight four)% of GDP in 2008 to 0.69(zero point six nine)% in 2014.
What are the issues with funding?
- The proposed annual grant would continue until the research spending in the country reached the level it had been in 2008.
- The NEP 2020 adopted the idea, but without any specific financial commitment.
- Public and private expenditure on research and development taken together kept sliding to touch 64(zero point six four)% of GDP in 2020-21 compared to 0.76(zero point seven six)% in 2011-12.
- A Press Information Bureau release: NRF will have ₹10,000 crore for five years and thus get a total of ₹50,000 crore.
- The actual government grant or budgetary support would be at the most ₹14,000 crore
- The remainder (₹36,000 crore) is to be mobilized through industry and other private philanthropic sources.
- NRF would get a maximum annual grant of ₹2,800 crore over the next five years(14% of what the Kasturirangan Committee had recommended)
SERB:
- The SERB was established as a statutory body of the DST
- It plans, promotes and funds internationally competitive research in emerging areas of science and engineering.
- The SERB has been instrumental in building a sustainable research ecosystem ‘through a diverse programme portfolio includes:
- grant funding
- fostering young researchers
- recognising and rewarding research excellence
- promoting scientific networks and partnerships
- enhanced gender and social inclusiveness’.
Budgetary allocation for the SERB:
- It had steadily increased from ₹200 crore in 2011-12 to ₹1,000 crore in 2018-19.
- Allocation declined to ₹742 crore in 2020-21, but again rose to ₹911 crore in 2021-22.
- SERB programmes, schemes and activities have been important in financing basic research in science and engineering
- most of them will continue under the NRF with some tweaking and tinkering.
- Budgetary allocation for the NRF will not be reduced by the amount allocated for the SERB.
Way Forward
- The criticality of research and knowledge creation and the importance of enhancing funding for research has been amply highlighted by the New Education Policy.
- It insists that the economic prosperity of many developed countries, now and in the ancient past, can be attributed to their intellectual capital and to their fundamental contributions to new knowledge in science, arts and culture.
- It cites India, Mesopotamia, Egypt and Greece as examples.
- The NEP argues that a robust research ecosystem acquires greater importance now due to growing challenges in the world and opportunities due to technological advancements.
- The policy asserts that India has had a long tradition of research and knowledge creation in science, mathematics, art, literature, phonetics, language, medicine and agriculture.
- It needs to be strengthened to make India a leader.
- The ideas of NEP need to be backed by ample financial support, at least to the extent the Kasturirangan Committee had insisted upon.
QUESTION FOR PRACTICE
What are the continued challenges for women in India against time and space?(UPSC 2019) (200 WORDS, 10 MARKS)
Discuss the positive and negative effects of globalization on women in India.(UPSC 2015) (200 WORDS, 10 MARKS)
