NATIONAL RESEARCH FOUNDATION BILL – SCI & TECH

News: A new national foundation and the ease of doing research

 

What's in the news?

       The Union Cabinet recently cleared a bill enabling the setting up of the National Research Foundation (NRF), with a corpus of Rs 50,000 crore, to be placed in Parliament in the Monsoon Session.

 

Features of National Research Foundation Bill, 2023:

1. Establishment of NRF:

       The NRF Bill, upon approval by Parliament, will establish the National Research Foundation.

       This apex body will provide high-level strategic direction for scientific research in the country, aligning with the recommendations of the National Education Policy (NEP).

       The estimated cost for NRF’s establishment and operation over five years (2023-2028) is approximately Rs. 50,000crore.

2. Administrative Department:

       The Department of Science and Technology (DST) will serve as the administrative department for NRF.

       A distinguished Governing Board comprising eminent researchers and professionals across various disciplines will govern the foundation.

3. Governing Board:

       The Prime Minister will be the ex-officio President of the Board, while the Union Minister of Science & Technology and the Union Minister of Education will serve as ex-officio Vice-Presidents.

       The Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India will chair the Executive Council, which will oversee NRF’s functioning.

4. Collaboration and Participation:

       NRF will facilitate collaborations between academia, industry, government departments, and research institutions.

       It will establish an interface mechanism to encourage active participation and contributions from industries and state governments, in addition to scientific and line ministries.

       The foundation will focus on creating a policy framework and regulatory processes to promote collaboration and enhance industry spending on R&D.

5. Repeal of Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB):

       The NRF Bill will also entail the repeal of the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) established in 2008 through an act of Parliament.

       NRF will subsume SERB and have an expanded mandate covering activities beyond those of SERB.

6. Objective of NRF:

       The objective of NRF is to ensure that scientific research was conducted and funded equitably and greater participation from the private sector was forthcoming.

 

Significance of NRF:

1. Bridging the gap in the research ecosystem:

       The NRF’s primary objective is to bridge the gap between research and higher education in India, a dichotomy that has limited the development of the nation’s scientific capabilities.

       The foundation aims to build research capacities within Indian universities, bringing together the realms of education and research.

2. Industry involvement in research:

       The NRF will play a pivotal role in seeding, nurturing and promoting research, innovation and development across universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories.

3. Funding for research activities:

       Modeled on the highly successful US National Science Foundation, the NRF seeks to integrate the funding of scientific projects, breaking away from the siloed approach of the past.

       Until now, research funding has been conducted by various government departments and laboratories, leading to a lack of uniformity in infrastructure and funding.

       The NRF’s budget will be about Rs 50,000 crore and about 70 percent of this budget will be obtained from the private sector as research investments and the remaining amount will come from the government.

4. Multidisciplinary approach for promotion of research:

       In addition to promoting research in natural sciences and engineering, the NRF will also fund research in social sciences, arts, and humanities.

       This multidisciplinary approach is indicative of the foundation’s broad mandate and commitment to address India’s pressing societal challenges.

5. Will promote the democratisation of science funding:

       The NRF is also expected to promote the democratisation of science funding by shifting the focus from elite institutions to projects in peripheral, rural, and semi-urban areas.

       It will create an interface mechanism so that, in addition to the scientific and line ministries, the state governments and industries can also participate and contribute to scientific R&D.

 

Challenges of NRF:

1. Insufficient funding:

       India’s investment in research and innovation (R&I), as a percentage of GDP, has steadily dropped from 0.84% in 2008 to about 0.69% in 2018; whereas it was 2.8% in the US, 2.1% in China, 4.3% in Israel and 4.2% in South Africa.

2. Bias towards established researchers and institutions:

       Higher education institutions such as IITs get the lion’s share of all research funding.

       The current trend of promoting research in premier institutions should not be at the cost of exclusion of research in other institutions of higher education.

       This needs a separate effort of mentoring and joint research between the premier institutions (like the IITs) and other institutions of higher education.

3. Few applications for patents:

       India lags in the number of patents produced.

       According to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), China made as many as 1.538 million patent applications as the US made 605,571 patent applications, while India made a mere 45,057, of which over 70% were by non-resident Indians.

4. Fewer publications:

       A 2018 compilation of science and engineering indicators by the US National Science Foundation showed that both the US and China published at least four times as many articles as India in 2016.

5. Challenges in the private sector involvement in R&D:

       Unlocking the mystery of why the private sector in India hesitates to invest in research and development is crucial in fostering progress and innovation.

       The main obstacle for firms when it comes to innovation is the risk of imitation by local competitors, which further disincentives investment in R&D.

       One of the other reasons that private firms invest more heavily in R&D than the government in the US and China is the calibre of talent that their higher education institutions attract.

6. Government machinery and bureaucratic hurdles:

       Procuring laboratory equipment can be a nightmare for researchers.

       The present system is like a game of red tape roulette, where researchers must first try their luck with Indian manufacturers. This leads to delays in the availability of important research equipment.

 

In an increasingly knowledge-based global economy, the establishment of the National Research Foundation is a crucial investment. The NRF’s inclusive, democratic, and multidisciplinary approach ensures a broad-based development of the nation’s research capabilities, promising transformative impacts in the years to come.