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The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, has said that if the 21st Century was going to be a ‘Knowledge Century’, then it would not be military power, nor economic power, but ‘brain power’ that would determine our place in the comity of nations. Addressing a gathering of scientists, after giving away the CSIR Diamond Jubilee Technology Award, 2004 and Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prizes for Science & Technology for 2004 and 2005, here today, the Prime Minister urged the scientific fraternity to join the race for reaching science, as well as the benefits of science, to every nook and corner of the country.
Dr. Manmohan Singh said that the challenge before Indian science and technology was to generate high technology, creating wealth and prestige for the nation, at the same time ensuring that this technology improved the lives of the poor. The Prime Minister said that the Government was creating two institutes – one each at Pune and Kolkata, to deal exclusively with science education and research. He also said that the Government had provided a fund of Rs. 150 crore per year to the Department of Science & Technology to strengthen investment in basic science. Dr. Singh said that he was very keen on pushing forward meaningful and productive public-private partnerships. The Prime Minister specially commended the CSIR’s effort to install hand pump based units that do not require electricity in the villages, as the effort combined innovation with concern for social equity and compassion.
Dr. Manmohan Singh gave away the CSIR Diamond Jubilee Technology Award, 2004 to Midas Communication Technologies Private Limited for designing, developing and commercialising of corDECT WLL (Wireless in Local Loop) access system and optiMA, a Fiber-in-Local Loop (FLL) access system and for transforming the telecommunication services. The Prime Minister also presented the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar awards for Science & Technology for the years 2004 and 2005 to 21 scientists from different fields in science. He also released “India Science Report – Science, Education, Human Resources & Public Attitude towards Science and Technology” on the occasion.
Minister of State (MoS) for Science & Technology, Shri Kapil Sibal and President, CSIR, Dr. R.A. Mashelkar, besides hundreds of young scientists, were among those present on the occasion.
Following is the text of the Prime Minister’s speech on the occasion:
“I am truly delighted to be in your midst today, as I find myself in the company of some of our most distinguished scientists. You are truly the creators of a new India; an India that is free from the shackles of ignorance. It is an India imbued with scientific temper and a liberal outlook. I am happy to recognize the very important role our scientists and technologists have played and will play in the ongoing task of nation building. It is a pleasure for me to honour the very best of Indian science and technology today.
Several awards have been conferred today, but let me begin by complimenting CSIR for the good work being done under Dr Mashelkar’s leadership. His recent election as a Fellow of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences - the seventh Indian to be so recognized since 1863, adds one more feather in his distinguished cap.
I also congratulate the winners of our most coveted science prize - the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar award for 2004 and 2005. I am particularly happy that this prize is given to young scientists, who are in their prime. Becoming a Bhatnagar laureate gives you a status that you will undoubtedly enjoy. However, it comes with many responsibilities, such as the responsibility to continue to engage yourself in pursuit of good science. You are also the repository to serve the best interests of humankind and our natural inheritance. Most importantly, you will also have the responsibility to improve the quality of life and widen the span of knowledge in our country. My very very best wishes to you on the exciting journey that lies ahead of you. I hope it will be a never-ending journey of learning and creativity. I hope each one of you will dedicate your lives to the cause of science, to the pursuit of truth, to the well-being and welfare of our people and to the growth and development of this ancient land of ours. Last but not the least, I congratulate the team of Media Communication Technologies, who have won the CSIR Diamond Jubilee Technology Award. I applaud this selection for two reasons.
First and foremost, these technologies can provide affordable solutions for connecting our rural population through Internet and voice connectivity. I have often stated the need for ‘reaching the unreached’ and ‘connecting the unconnected’ in our country. I am therefore, glad that this technology can potentially fulfill this national goal. The telecom revolution and the development of roads, air and rail linkages have shown that connectivity enhances output and productivity. Connectivity is therefore, an important economic and social asset.
Secondly, I have always believed that India must assume a role of leadership among developing countries. Science and Technology can be and should be a powerful tool to achieve this national goal. Therefore, I am happy that these technologies have made inroads among a large number of developing countries. I hope this Technology Award will inspire other scientists and technologists to develop similarly useful and potentially winning technologies.
Apart from the awards, I am also happy today to release the ‘India Science Report’. I congratulate the Indian National Science Academy (INSA) for taking this very important initiative. I also congratulate the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) for their excellent work. In fact, I recall Prof. M.S. Valiathan discussed this with me this project some two years ago. I had suggested that INSA should approach NCAER for such a study. I had a chance to go through the report soon after it was printed and the findings of this report are in some ways truly revealing.
The Report shows that the proportion of enrolled students in science has gone up from 28.0 per cent in 1995-96 to 34.6 per cent in 2003-04. This is comforting. However, it also shows that while close to two-thirds of the students in class VI to VIII are satisfied with the quality of science teaching, this falls to 40% in class XI and XII ! This shows a shortage of good, highly motivated science teachers at higher levels. I would like our HRD Ministry and the State Governments to take due note of this and take necessary remedial action. It goes without saying that we must lay increased emphasis on improving the quality of teaching in science and mathematics at all levels in our country.
There are other causes for concern. The Report shows that 20 per cent of science graduates and 14 per cent of Ph.D.s in science do not find gainful employment. What is equally worrisome is the finding that many people employed in science-centered jobs are insufficiently qualified. There are lessons for us here. This Report also points to a grave regional imbalance in terms of educational institutions in different states. I hope the facts and analysis presented here will be of valuable guidance to our policy planners when they turn to the need for fresh approach to the management and the utilisation of science and technology as an instrument of national development. I trust our Government at the Centre, as well as State Governments, will take note of these findings and evolve policies to remedy these regional imbalances.
When I spoke at this very forum last year, I had reaffirmed our Government’s commitment to basic science, applied science and the promotion of excellence. I had committed our Government to rebuilding the science base in our universities. I had also made a commitment to de-bureaucratise our S&T institutions, to restructure our S&T support systems. I had committed our Government to create career opportunities to retain talent in the S&T sector. I am happy to say that we have made some progress on these counts though we cannot afford to rest on our laurels.
Firstly, I have always felt that it is a pity that a country of a billion people has only one Indian Institute of Science. To rebuild our foundations in basic science, the Government is creating two institutes dealing exclusively with science education and research, one to be located in Pune and the other to be located in Kolkata. I hope that these institutes will attain world class standards just as the Institute at Bangalore has done us all proud.
Second, the Ministry of Human Resource Development has already set up a Task Force on rejuvenation of scientific research in universities. The Task Force has set up a target of doubling the number of Ph.D.s coming out of India within the next 5 to 6 years. The necessary budgetary support for this has been provided.
Third, to strengthen our investment in basic science, as well as to improve our processes of funding, a new National Science & Engineering Research Foundation has been approved. It will receive generous funding and it will operate in an autonomous manner.
Fourth, we have provided a fund of Rs. 150 crore per year for this specific purpose to the Department of Science & Technology. I am very keen on pushing forward many meaningful and productive public-private partnerships. In particular, research in pharmaceuticals is of critical to us, particularly with the change of the patent regime that our Government has ushered in. Other initiatives will and must follow.
Finally, I had also stated that we would create exciting career opportunities for scientists to retain our talent at home. The recently announced Ramanujam Fellowship, J.C. Bose Fellowship and also Fellowships for Scientists and Technologists of Indian Origin (STIO) are part of our effort to fulfill this promise.
I realize that in a journey of a thousand miles, these are just the first small steps. We need to do much more and I promise we will do so. We have, therefore, formed a Knowledge Commission under the chairmanship of Shri Sam Pitroda, and with Dr P.M. Bhargava, as its deputy chairman. I do believe that if the 21st Century is going to be a ‘Knowledge Century’, then it is not military power, nor economic power, but ‘brain power’ that will determine our place in the comity of nations. We are expecting the Knowledge Commission to come forward with bold initiatives to create excellence in research and teaching, especially in the frontier areas of mathematics, science and technology.
Those of us who are elected to public office in a democracy face the challenge of finding resources for basic human development and the resources for advanced research and technological development. We also face the challenge of addressing the demands of promoting social equity and the requirements of promoting and encouraging excellence. I do sincerely believe that these need not become contradictory or contending objectives. I believe that at our stage of development, we must learn to “walk on two legs”, fulfilling both these objectives.
The challenge before Indian S&T is, therefore, to generate high technology, creating wealth and prestige for India, while also ensuring that this technology improves the lives of the poor. I compliment CSIR Society for some of their recent breakthroughs in advanced scientific areas that have the potential to meet the basic needs of our people. The high-technology membrane filter, that can remove bacteria, as well as viruses from water, has enabled CSIR to install in our villages hand pump based units that do not require electricity. At just 4 paise per liter, this technology makes safe drinking water affordable to all. I salute this effort of the CSIR to combine innovation with concern for social equity and compassion.
Let me, in conclusion, pose a challenge before our S&T community. I urge you to join a race for reaching science and the benefits of science to every nook and corner of our vast Motherland. You must set targets that are ambitious, but are do-able to increase the quantity and quality of our scientific manpower. We must aim to improve the quality of textbooks and teaching at the school level and to make science an exciting discipline and teaching – both at the school level and to make science an exciting discipline and also an attractive career. When people praise Indian science and technology, they invariably imply that some Indians are doing well. I would like to see a day, when people will say India is doing well. Our country needs each one of you to do well for us all to be able to do well.
With these words, I wish you great success in all your noble endeavours. May your path be blessed”.
HK/LV/RK
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