Design and Develop in India

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Innovation in India
With largest youth population, India is paving the path to Youth Evolution.

To promote youth development, 15 July is celebrated as World Youth Skills Day across the world, as declared by the United Nations at its General Assembly in November 2014. According to a latest UN report, India has the world’s largest youth population of 356 million aged 10-24 year-olds, but only 3% of India’s total population is skilled. Therefore, it is a challenge for young people, who are searching for financial security, personal satisfaction and sense of purpose that comes from meaningful employment.
Young people are almost three times more likely to be unemployed than adults and continuously exposed to lower quality of jobs, greater labor market inequalities, and longer and more insecure school-to-work transitions. In addition, women are more likely to be underemployed and under-paid, and to undertake part-time jobs or work under temporary contracts. Unfortunately, existing systems are failing to address the learning needs of many young people. According to a recent International Labour Organization (ILO) publication, 73.4 million young people were estimated to be unemployed in 2015 (13.1% youth unemployment rate), and this figure is expected to increase in most regions by 2017.
The UN designated day seeks to generate greater awareness of and discussion on the importance of technical, vocational education, and training and the development of other skills relevant to both local and global economies. It is hoped that it will contribute to reducing unemployment and underemployment among the youth across the globe.
Among other countries, India has initiated youth development via the broad spread of activities. India is offering business development and mentoring underprivileged entrepreneurs. Since the program began, more than 1,200 youth entrepreneurs have emerged, generating more than 11,700 new jobs. Every year, National Innovation Foundation, India organises ‘Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam IGNITE Awards’ to promote youth excellence.
 

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The latest push for Science and Technology incubators
India plans to build Science Cities
India will soon launch a hub and spoke model to set up science cities and science centres to encourage science and technology (S&T) incubators and create an enabling environment.
This was announced by Minister of state for science & technology and earth sciences, Y.S. Chowdary, at a day long conference by industry chamber ASSOCHAM in New Delhi on Friday.
In his inaugural address to the conference on ‘India: Entrepreneurial, Creative & Innovative’, Chowdary outlined the details of the project and insisted on the emphasis put on rural areas.
“The entire country can be divided in five zones so that each zone can have a science city, so that number of science centres can be there whereby rural population and youngsters can have a lot of access,” he informed.
Attract scientists from foreign countries
The initiative aims also at increasing the international attractiveness of India in the Science and Technology area.
“In addition to that if we create a proper ecosystem like bird migration we can definitely attract many scientists from foreign countries because of environmental conditions,” he added.
“India gives them very good weather conditions as there are many countries where we do not have productivity more than 4-5 months, at the most six months, so that is one area where we are seriously thinking,” the minister explained.
India can also rely on its diaspora, with a huge network of Non Resident Indians (NRIs) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs). Indian scientists form already one of the biggest world network, connecting, – in a typical circular migration way, where people spend time abroad and come back to India, – innovative hubs such as the Silicon Valley, in California, with home centers of excellence and research, such as Bangalore (Karnataka) or Pune (Maharashtra).
 

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Participates as chief guest in fifth convocation of IITH held on its campus

Proud moment:A student receiving her degree from ISRO Chairman A.S. Kiran Kumar during the convocation ceremony at IITH campus at Sangareddy in Medak district on Saturday.— PHOTO: Mohd Arif
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman A.S. Kiran Kumar called upon the students of Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad (IITH), to look at nature for it holds many viable ideas. He said even scientists and engineers turn to nature for new ideas.
Participating as chief guest in fifth convocation of IITH held at its campus on Saturday, Mr. Kiran Kumar said learning should be a continuous process and one should also know how to unlearn so as to acquire and understand new skills.
Referring to Mars Mission, he said it was completely developed using home-grown technology and India proved what it could do to the entire world.
Suggesting students to use their knowledge for betterment of those who were left behind in the society, the ISRO Chairman said they had a great responsibility to fulfil.
B.V.R. Mohan Reddy, Chairman, Board of Governors, IITH, said a nation cannot grow without investing in research and added that he was happy to inform that about 58 per cent of graduating students were involved in research activity.
“India is in positive spin and the environment is good for entrepreneurial activity. Initiatives like Digital India and Make in India are part of that. Make best use of such opportunities. At the same time, do not lose your values,” he said.
U.B. Desai, Director, IITH, said that the institute has grown from 120 students in 2008 to 2,046 students at present with 3.7:1 student faculty ratio. Informing that 68 research projects and 37 consultation projects were sanctioned for IITH, the Director said that the institute received 30 patents last year.
 

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First plane to be made in India may fly out of Maharashtra

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, when contacted, said that "his government will support Yadav" for the venture.
MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government is set to take concrete steps in the next 15 days to roll out what state officials say could well become the 'torch bearer' of the 'Make in India' initiative -the first 20-seater commercial passenger plane built in India.
The state will allot 46-acres of land in Palghar to Amol Yadav (40), a Jet Airways pilot, for building 20-seater commercial planes. No company in India has manufactured such an aircraft in India yet.
Yadav had created quite a stir during the Make in India week held in Mumbai in February this year with his six-seater passenger plane TAC-003, which he built along with his family and friends on the terrace of his flat in Charkop, Mumbai.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, when contacted, said that "his government will support Yadav" for the venture. Government officials said that Fadnavis has told them "to make sure that all necessary support is provided within the legal framework". Yadav told ET that the price of his 20-seater planes will be significantly less than similar aircraft imported from abroad, and can "revolutionize air travel" in the country.
"These aircraft can fly between smaller cities with tickets priced at less than Rs 2,000, which will improve air connectivity and boost tourism," said Yadav. He is in talks with aircraft engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney to supply engines for his aircraft. The first two prototype 20 seater planes will be rolled out by the end of next year.
Yadav had met the Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and other officials after the Make in India week, and had presented a plan to manufacture aircraft in the country.
Officials in the state government, who had studied Yadav's proposal, firmly believe that the plan can work and are ready to back him all the way ."Maharashtra and India could be on the world aviation map once he starts manufacturing these aircraft. We could soon be looking at exporting them as they can be more economical than the imported ones," said a Maharashtra government official, who didn't wish to be identified.
The state is not just allocating Yadav land but is also trying to help him get his startup capital by talking to a few banks. A top state government official said that they would also be exploring whether Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) can extend a loan for this venture.
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Why scientists of Indian origin are leaving a better life and returning to India

After staying in US for 12 years and getting a taste of various universities, Shashi Kumar returned to India in 2010 on a Ramalingaswami Fellowship.
By Vanita Srivastava

Call it the Swades 2.0. Ambitious and bright, a rash of scientists had left India for better opportunities and, over the years, gained vital exposure to the best global research labs. After years of experimenting and collaborating with some of the top scientists in the world, they have now chosen to return to their homeland.
Traditionally, such homecomings are driven partly by family compulsions, but of late it is a flurry of fellowships and incentives by the government that has helped the scientists relocate to India. The main attraction now is absorption into an institute where they can be part of the permanent faculty.
Says department of science and technology secretary Ashutosh Sharma: "Turning brain drain into brain gain requires creation of appropriate opportunities at certain critical stages in the progression of a scientific career." The first critical point, he adds, is right after PhD when substantial resources to train a scientist have already been committed. The second intervention is to attract the scientists who have gone abroad back to the country.
RA Mashelkar, a former director-general of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), says, "India is moving from brain drain to brain gain to brain circulation. An Indian scientist would love to stay in India, provided he is given a challenging job here. And I strongly believe that India is becoming a land of opportunity."
India is indeed rapidly becoming a global research, design and development hub. More than 1,000 companies from around the world have set up their R&D centres in India. Over 2,00,000 scientists and engineers are working there, at least a fourth of whom have returned from overseas. Here are eight of them:
Shashi Kumar group leader, metabolic engineering, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology.
From Uttar Pradesh to the United States may seem a long journey, but for Shashi Kumar it was a logical progression.
Now a group leader at the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in Delhi, Kumar, who was born in Tanda village, went to the US in 1988 soon after submitting his PhD thesis in the University of Delhi. After staying there for 12 years and getting a taste of various universities — University of Virginia, Charlottesville, University of Central Florida, Orlando, University of California, Berkeley — he returned to India in 2010 on a Ramalingaswami Fellowship. "Coming back was a tough call and I kept postponing it for almost a year. But deep within I wanted to do something for Indian science, which perhaps triggered my decision," says Kumar, the son of a farmer.
The best part of working in India is the sense of belonging. "But Indian science has serious challenges that need to be addressed, including that of research funds and quality of research," says Kumar. Although the government is making an effort to arrest brain drain, it should enhance measures to attract the talent back to the country, he adds.
Is he here in India for good? Maybe not, says Kumar who would have been a farmer if he hadn't chosen the scientific path. Has he thought about returning to the US? "Yes," he lets on, "I may go back after my retirement. Science has no retirement age."
Shilpi Gupta assistant professor, electrical engineering, IIT-Kanpur

When Shilpi Gupta left for the US in 2008 after doing her BTech in engineering physics from IITDelhi, she was clear that she was going there only for higher studies.
She joined the University of Maryland for an MS and PhD in electrical engineering.
In July 2014, Gupta moved back to India under the Ramanujan Fellowship and is currently an assistant professor in electrical engineering at IIT-Kanpur.
She works in the field of nanophotonics to study how light interacts with matter and how to make chipscale devices for application in optical communication and sensing.
The Ramanujan Fellowship is targeted at global talent in scientific and engineering who are keen to take up scientific research positions in institutions and universities in the country.
"I never debated coming back to India. The Ramanujan fellowship is an excellent initiative to provide startup, flexible funds to scientists who wish to return.
Having a constant inflow of funds for the first five years, which are the most important formative years for an experimental lab, was the main incentive for me to apply for this fellowship," she says. Gupta is at home at IITKanpur.
"The best thing about working in India is the satisfaction of being able to contribute, in however small way, towards education in India.
The pool of researchers and scientists in India is still very small relative to the size of our young population."
Lipi Thukral computational biologist, Institute of Genomics & Integrative Biology

One of Lipi Thukral's favourite quotes is by American televangelist Robert Schuller: "Let your hopes, not your hurts, shape your future." The context is her "hope" for an improvement in the status of science in India.
"My past years of scientific investigation suggest that one can do great science in India as long as we do not relegate it to second place," says Thukral, who has been working as a computational biologist at the CSIR Institute of Genomics & Integrative Biology (IGIB), Delhi, since 2012.
Thukral has just finished a short-term deputation to a laboratory in Germany. She had done her PhD there — from the University of Heidelberg in 2011 — followed by a short postdoctoral at the University of Southampton, UK.
She came back to India in 2012 under the INSPIRE Faculty award. Her research area explores interdisciplinary sciences to study how proteins interact with lipids (fat) in our body.
Getting the independent fellowship, she feels, was the main incentive behind her return to India. However, she is candid enough to not rule out the possibility of going bac", not immediately but at some point in time.
"Perhaps. Although the current science scenario is far better than it used to be, there exist certain problems." The biggest challenge is bolstering R&D programmes focusing on basic science and technology. "Many researchers focus on short-term deliverables and basic research is ignored. The funding opportunities are also shrinking and this will further limit our efforts."
Arindam Sarkar assistant professor, department of chemical engineering, IIT-Bombay
Arindam Sarkar is not too comfortable with funds driving research. He gives the example of the "massive funding" by the Obama administration on batteries, which has "pushed most research work in electrochemistry towards batteries. My passion should drive my research, not funds," he says.

Passion is what fuelled Sarkar's journey, from the small town of Kuju in Jharkhand's Ramgarh district to a PhD at the University of Texas in Austin, and then a postdoctoral from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Before that he made an unsuccessful attempt at an IIT exam and settled for the Bhilai Institute of Technology in Durg, from where he moved to IITBombay for his master's.
"Returning to India was always at the back of my mind. When I was offered the Ramanujan Fellowship, I grabbed it," says Sarkar, who came back in 2013. He is currently working at IIT-Bombay as an assistant professor in the department of chemical engineering. The Ramanujan Fellowship, he says, provides a handsome grant for conducting experiments, hiring students in addition to a monthly salary.
Ask him whether he would like to go back to the US after some years, and he replies: "Although it is hard to predict the future, I think I will stay put here in India." Reason: Unlike the West, India still provides plenty of academic freedom in research.
Aadesh P Singh INSPIRE faculty, department of physics, IIT-Delhi
He's gone a long way — and to many destinations. After growing up in the village of Taramai in Firozabad, UP, Aadesh Singh packed his bags for an exchange programme in the University of Maryland, US, as part of his PhD from Dayalbagh Educational Institute, Agra.

He then joined the University of Cologne, Germany, as a postdoctoral fellow where he worked on the generation of renewable fuel through the conversion of solar energy into chemical fuel.
In 2012, he was back in India, this time under the INSPIRE Faculty Award of the department of science & technology, and joined IITDelhi for further research in the field of solar water splitting.
"My wife is working as a scientist in a government organisation and I came back from Germany without a second thought," says Singh.
While he is open to going back to a foreign destination, he says, "The main problem in India is the lack of advanced research infrastructure and funds.
Besides, we do not have a strong academia-industry collaboration for research and development."
Singh is encouraged by the government's efforts to reverse brain drain, although he does feel more needs to be done.
"The government and the institutes should work together to provide a more stimulating research environ."
Bushra Ateeq, assistant professor, department of biological sciences & bioengineering, IIT-Kanpur
Bushra Ateeq identifies two problems with the Indian scientific landscape — one structural, and the other cultural. "In India, we are largely dependent on our PhD students who, by the time they are scientifically mature and productive, will graduate and move to the US for their postdoctoral training," says Ateeq.
The other challenge is dealing with the quintessentially Indian passive mindset of chalta hai. "What I do not like is that there is no respect for time and commitment."
After growing up in Bareilly, UP, and getting her early education, and then a PhD, from Aligarh Muslim University, she briefly worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences and the National Institute of Immunology, Delhi, before exploring research opportunities abroad. She got her postdoctoral training from McGill University, Canada, and University of Michigan, US.
After the exposure to foreign research labs, Ateeq came back to India in 2013 as an Intermediate Fellow, Wellcome Trust-DBT India Alliance, and joined IIT-Kanpur's department of biological sciences & bioengineering as an assistant professor.
Ateeq avers that India needs to attract the best scientists — and not just those of Indian origin. "Government should have schemes to attract foreign researchers as well."
Sarika Chaudhary Ramanujan Fellow, Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology
In 2013, Sarika Chaudhary returned to India and joined CSIR's Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology as a Ramanujan Fellow. And there's one reason why she will entertain the thought of going back to the US — not for better opportunities or the lack of them in India but "as a collaborator to learn some of the latest scientific advancements".

After completing her master's from Chaudhary Charan Singh University, Meerut, Chaudhary moved to the US in 2000 and was associated with the University of Virginia School of Medicine and the University of Central Florida.
She later moved to the University of California, San Francisco, where she developed a passion for structural biology, before making the trip to India. "Even though I am still getting used to the research environment here, I am satisfied that I am able to serve the people of my country," she says.
Rewarding performance, she feels, is a surefire way to arrest brain drain. "We need to provide the scientists with opportunities for research funding at par with other international institutes.
The opportunities should be available to researchers on the basis of their ideas and performance during the past five years."
Syed Mansoor assistant professor, department of biotechnology, Jamia Millia Islamia
Born in Jaipur, Syed Mansoor got a chance to do postdoctoral research in the University of Illinois in 2008. After three years, he joined Yale University and got a faculty position there. He returned to India in 2015 under the Ramanujan Fellowship.

"It was a tough decision for me; India doesn't have good research opportunities like in the West, and the salary is much less. But after a lot of introspection, I decided to return," says Mansoor.
The Ramanujan Fellowship, he says, provides a platform for independent work. "You can run your own lab and you can apply for better funding. I got a permanent position in Jamia Millia Islamia in March 2016, within a year of my return," Mansoor adds.
Mansoor reckons the government should organise more fairs and events abroad to make scientists aware of new opportunities in India.
"There are many problems in the scientific terrain of India, lack of funds and resources being the main ones. But I love my country and will never go again to any foreign shore for work," he says.
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And repeating my old "sickular" narrative against my modern discomfort with Muslims, I don't say all are alike.
For every traitor like Umar Khalid, we've a Kalam.:)
 

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Former ISRO chief seeks more funds for science

Representative Image
Pune: Spending on science and technology must rise to 2% of the gross domestic product from the current 0.8% to usher in transformation in the field, former chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) K Kasturirangan said.
"Of this, 1% should come from the government, and 1% from the private sector or public-private partnership. We need to enhance socially relevant programmes like energy, education, health, agriculture so that they add to the field. We need to increase provision of research grants under the university system and bring in private sector investment in the areas of their interest, increase the number of full-time research workers and create new infrastructure. We should aim for long-term planning," he added.
He was at the Automotive Research Association of India for its 50th year celebrations. The scientist, who has all three Padma awards to his credit, said there is need to expand inter-university centres to the automobile sector.
Kasturirangan, who was a member of the planning commission, said India is on its way to becoming the third largest economy after the US and China in 10-15 years.
"I have worked in the Planning Commission and I can say that these calculations are based on sound logic and projections," he added.
Kasturirangan said the country has come a long way in its space journey. Referring to the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and Geosynchronous Launch Vehicle (GSLV) programmes, the 75-year-old scientist, said, "These were extremely critical for the country's autonomy in space which helped us put satellites into space independently. Now, over a 100 satellites have been launched using Indian rockets and from Indian soil."
 

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India on 66th spot in most innovative economies, up 15 places

(Representative photo)
HIGHLIGHTS
  1. India has been ranked 66th in a list of most innovative economies by UN.
  2. India's position has jumped 15 places from last year.
  3. India also improves in ranking of firms offering formal training by 56 spots.
UNITED NATIONS: India has been ranked 66th in a list of most innovative economies, jumping 15 places from last year, according to a new UN report which calls for more transparent policies if the country aspires to become a global driver of innovation.
In the report by the UN World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), India moved up 15 spots from 81st last year to 66th this year in the overall global rankings.
The Global Innovation Index 2016, released by the WIPO, Cornell University, and the multi-nation business graduate school INSEAD, said India ranks among the top 50 economies overall in two pillars: Market sophistication, 33, and Knowledge and technology out-puts, 43.
The country maintains stable or improved rankings across all pillars, with the most significant improvements in Human capital and research, up 40 spots and Busines sophistication, up 59 spots.
Within Human capital and research, India data coverage increased, specifically in graduates in sciences and engineering, ranked eighth overall this year while this was a missing value last year, affecting the jump in its ranking.
India's ranking in the Business sophistication pillar is affected most by a substantial improvement in Knowledge workers, up 46 spots and Knowledge absorption, up 33 spots.
India also improves in the ranking of firms offering formal training by 56 spots to reach 42nd place.

"Furthermore, India improves across all indicators within the Knowledge absorption sub-pillar and it turns in a solid performance in the GII (Global Innovation Index) model's newly incorporated research talent in business enterprise, where it ranks 31st," the report said.
However, India shows weakness in two sub-pillars of business environment, 117th, and education, 118th and within this has potential to improve in the the ease of starting a business and pupil-teacher ratio.
"India has all the ingredients needed to become a global driver of innovation: A strong market potential, an excellent talent pool and an underlying culture of frugal innovation. Innovative countries have demonstrated the leverage of their cultural advantage to capture markets," the report said.
Similarly, India can build on its cultural bias of frugality and sustainability to capture markets not only within its shores but globally.
"For this to happen India's industries need to have the hunger to be at the top of the value chain, its customers have to be more demanding, its policies have to be more transparent, and its talent pool has to get more hands-on experience while simultaneously growing to leverage the global talent pool," the report said.
 

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World’s first leprosy vaccine, developed in India, to go on trial

About 60% of the global leprosy patients live in India, where detection and treatment leave many of them crippled.
HIGHLIGHTS
  1. The exclusive vaccine for leprosy will be piloted in five districts of Bihar and Gujarat.
  2. The vaccine has been developed by G P Talwar of National Institute of Immunology.
  3. About 60% of the global leprosy patients live in India.
CHENNAI: The first exclusive vaccine for leprosy, made in India, will be piloted in five districts of Bihar and Gujarat in a few weeks as a part of the country's efforts at eradicating the crippling disease that affects 1.25 lakh people every year.
About 60% of the global leprosy patients live in India, where detection and treatment leave many of them crippled. If the pilot phase shows satisfactory results, the programme will be implemented in other high-prevalence districts across the country.
The vaccine, mycobacterium indicus pranii (MIP), will be administered as prevention for people living in close contact with those infected by the bacteria. "It is the first vaccine for leprosy, and India will be the first to have a large-scale vaccination programme. Trials have shown that if the vaccine is given to people in close contact with the affected, cases can be brought down by 60% in three years. It expedites cure rate if given to people with skin lesions," said Indian Council of Medical Research director general Dr Soumya Swaminathan.
The vaccine developed by founder-director of the National Institute of Immunology (NII) G P Talwar, has been approved by the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) and the US-FDA.
Union health minister Jagat Prakash Nadda said the Centre has begun door-to-door screening in 50 high-prevalence districts across the country. At least 7.5 crore people have been screened, of which 5,000 have been confirmed with leprosy. The next phase will cover 163 endemic districts including Erode in Tamil Nadu.
"We don't want to leave any person. Those diagnosed will be given treatment. Those living in close contact will be given a dose of antiobiotic Rifampicin," the minister told the National Awareness Convention on Leprosy organised by the Sri Ramakrishna Math, Central Leather Research Institute and Saksham.
 

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India world's third biggest tech startup hub: Study

"In the technology driven startups, India has moved up to third position with the US occupying the top position with more than 47,000 and the UK with over 4,500."
NEW DELHI: India is home to the third largest number of technology driven tartups in the world, with the US and the UK occupying the top two positions, according to a report.
The study, done by Assocham in association with Thought Arbitrage Research Institute, also revealed that Bengaluru is host to the largest share of technology startups in the country, followed by Delhi NCR and Mumbai, while Hyderabad and Chennai are also quite popular among budding tech entrepreneurs.
"In the technology driven startups, India has moved up to third position with the US occupying the top position with more than 47,000 and the UK with over 4,500.
"India's tech startups numbered around 4,200 up to 2015," the report pointed out.
In terms of total number of startups, comprising both tech and non-tech areas, India again figured among the five largest hosts in the world, along with China (10,000 each).
The US occupies the top slot with 83,000 startups.
IT hub Bengaluru is host to 26 per cent of domestic tech startups, followed by Delhi NCR (23 per cent) and Mumbai (17 per cent). In the 'catching up' category were Hyderabad (8 per cent), Chennai and Pune (6 per cent each).
"The disruptive innovation in technology and process is creating newer Indian startups and foreign investors, including some of the well-known venture capital funds, are showing immense interest in these startups," Assocham President Sunil Kanoria said.
The awareness that a startup is a vehicle of rapid growth through technological disruption and innovation, has to spread across the economy, the report said. Otherwise, if any small traditional business is treated as a startup, then the ecosystem will never develop properly, it added.
The study recommended that synergising 'Startup India' with 'Make in India' and 'Digital India' initiatives has the potential to expand the domestic ecosystem for new entrepreneurs.
It also suggested tax exemption for research and experimentation to encourage fresh ideas without fear of failure. Recommending a Stanford University model in various Indian universities, the Assocham-Thought Arbitrage paper said courses on creation of small businesses should be encouraged in campuses.
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A look at India's 15-place jump in Global Innovation Index

In 2008-09, India was ranked 41 and China 37; India gradually slipped every year, reaching a low of 81 last year.
Soumitra Dutta first thought about creating an index for innovation ten years ago. He was then at the Paris-based business school INSEAD, observing the rise of innovation as a key idea for business. But the concept, as it was understood then, was mostly technology driven. Dutta had seen that a lot of innovation did not require patents or PhDs. Was there a way to capture the idea in broader terms, and to measure it for countries around the world?
This holistic approach to innovation was particularly relevant to India, although Dutta had a global perspective in mind when he conceived the idea. India was poor in intellectual property development. It generated few science PhDs and fewer engineering PhDs. Its R&D investments were low. But the country was still innovating in business models and select areas of technology.
Innovation of a unique variety was thriving in its villages. Dutta and his colleagues started developing an index that could capture innovative capability in broad terms. Ten years later, the Global Innovation Index (GII) has become an annual feature, and examined carefully by policy-makers around the world. "I am surprised at how quickly the holistic view of innovation has been accepted," says Dutta, who is now dean of the graduate school of management at Cornell University. Although still a work in progress, GII offers insights about i nnovation in India and where it stands compared with other countries.
Last week's results show that India is improving fitfully, with pockets of excellence. It also shows that China is in the big league, and that India is wasting a lot of its capabilities. "There is a big gap between India's achievement and potential," says Dutta. A few numbers first, along with a few caveats.
In 2008-09, India was ranked 41 and China 37. India gradually slipped every year, reaching a low of 81 last year. China improved gradually, and broke into the top 25 this year. India's position improved to 66 this year, which was where it was four years ago. Such jumps are rare. The GII index authors always warn against reading too much into individual rankings, and to focus on the trends. The trends show one thing unambiguously — India is on a roller-coaster ride while China is constantly improving.
GII parameters and methodologies are being tweaked continuously, and the changes in ranking are as much due to new parameters and data as they are due to changes within a country. And yet the truly innovative nations remain steady in their rankings. Switzerland has been ranked one for six successive years.
India is among the few big countries with fluctuating positions, which indicates the rapid changes the country is going through. In spite of the low ranking, this year's GII report marks India as an innovation overachiever, a small number of countries that perform at least 10 per cent better than their peers based on GDP.

Winds of Change
Researchers, venture capitalists and policymakers in India think that the country is changing rapidly, and expect these changes to reflect in its ranking over the next few years. "There has been a significant broadening of the innovation ecosystem in recent years," says former Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani. The ecosystem consists of educational institutions, research output, patents, entrepreneurship, venture capital, government policies and so on. Improvement is evident in some of these areas, and some of the improvements have been captured in this year's GII's sub-indices.
India has improved its ranking primarily because of better achievements in human capital, research, market sophistication and business sophistication. In human capital, India improved its ranking to 63 from 103. This was mostly achieved because of improvements in education, and specifically tertiary education. Indian universities have improved their rankings internationally, and this improvement has had an impact on scores for education and in turn on overall rankings. The Indian Institute of Science (IISc), for instance, broke into the top 150 universities in the QS University ranking system, a first for any Indian university.
The research output from Indian universities has been increasing steadily in the last decade, and has helped bag higher rankings. A deeper look at the education rankings show that the improvements are partly in perceptions, as the QS University Ranking system uses opinion of peers as a key input. As the government invested more on education — through new institutions and improved research funding — Indian educational institutions improved in the eyes of their global peers.
Even so, India fares poorly in education. Its overall rank in education, including primary and tertiary, is 118. China is ranked 4 here. This ranking is somewhat deceptive, as some data are not available for China. But India compares poorly with China where data are available. China has superior student-teacher ratio. In fact, the GII report marks poor student-teacher ratio as a weakness of the Indian innovation ecosystem, and the scores have worsened since last year. But there is a surprise here. In spite of having five universities in the top 100 in the world, China ranks lower than India in tertiary education, ostensibly due to paucity of data. India is ranked eighth in the world in the number of graduates in science and engineering, while China is not ranked.
Things look much brighter for India in R&D compared with previous years, as the country has been investing consistently, with a few dips, in R&D over the last decade. India bounced back quickly from the 2008 recession. R&D powerhouses like the UK and the US are still struggling in R&D. Even China, which has been investing increasingly R&D for three decades regardless of GDP growth, is now showing signs of slower R&D growth. India's investment has vacillated in recent years, but R&D impacts the innovation ecosystem with a time lag.
Within the GII, India improved its ranking in R&D this year because of a new parameter: top multinational R&D centres within a country. With over 1,000 multinational R&D centres, India is a global R&D powerhouse. Precise figures are not disclosed by companies, but senior bureaucrats estimate their spending to be roughly at same level of that of the union government. These R&D centres raise the level of technical knowledge and skill in the country, but have no direct and significant impact on the economy. In spite of such a large base, India's global ranking is 20, an indication of the relatively low investments by the global R&D in India.
Overall, the GII shows a country's weaknesses and strengths, and tells policy-makers where to focus for producing innovationled growth. "Innovation is the greatest component of economic growth," says Francis Gurry, director-general of WIPO, a partner in the GII report. "It is the principal means of improving the quality of life in a country." It is not easy to capture the essential and inessential parts of an innovation system. "The US is the innovation centre of the world but it doesn't top the rankings," says Gurry.

India's low ranking, therefore, has to be taken with a pinch of salt. With a large and poor population, India has plenty of weaknesses. But it has unique strengths and capabilities that do not reflect in global rankings. "The GII does not measure the best in a country," says Dutta. International rankings help a country to benchmark achievements that are globally relevant.

The GII report shows some strengths and glaring weaknesses too for India. Its large technical workforce and R&D system are strengths, compared with peers measured by GDP. Its market scale and ease of protecting minority investors are also strengths. As is growth rate of GDP per person. "A lot of innovation in India is about creating affordable products," says IIM Indore director Rishikesha Krishnan. "I am not sure this is captured in indices." Weaknesses are also significant. Low political stability is one, especially when combined with terrorism impact. Difficulty in starting and closing a business is a big weakness. Poor education system is a weakness in spite of recent improvements. Indian innovation is also hampered by poor environment performance, low density of startups, and low publishing output.

The Missing Link
One big drawback is the absence of elite universities that can expand a country's innovation capability rapidly. "Poor investments in education is the most important reason for India's under-leverage," says Dutta. India has its IITs and a few good technical institutions, but broad-based elite universities have an influence beyond creating technology capabilities.
"Science-led innovation is almost absent in India," says RA Mashelkar, former director-general of CSIR and National Research Professor. Science-led innovation can create entire industries that last long.
The emergence of campus startups is a significant change. Top Indian institutions like IIT Bombay and IIT Madras are generating student startups of quality. "One in four undergraduate students are now interested in either starting a company or joining a startup," says IIT Bombay director Dewang Khakhar. Faculty at the National Chemical Laboratory in Pune and IISc in Bengaluru are starting companies that try to solve serious scientific challenges. The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-Camp) now incubates similar startups using biology. For a large country like India, science startups are still at sub-critical levels. However, there is hope among policy-makers and business leaders that this trend will expand into a country-wide movement in the near future. "The government is taking a number of steps that are making science-based innovation and entrepreneurship hassle-free," says Mashelkar.
New programmes by the current government would accelerate this trend. The government has funded research parks and incubation centres around the country, but will start investing in companies in these parks. "Supporting entrepreneurship is now getting integrated into policy," says Rishikesha Krishnan, director of IIM Indore. As incubation centres generate startups in large numbers, they are forcing venture capitalists to look at companies of a different kind: from companies that copy western models - like e-commerce - to those that solve genuine Indian problems.
IIT Bombay and IIT Madras are leading this change at the moment. At IIT Madras (IITM), for example, incubation centres and the research park have supported 104 companies.
In the recent ET Startup awards, four out of the five finalists for campus startups came from IIT Madras. The winner, Ather Energy, was a student startup incubated four years ago at the IITM. "Most of these companies are trying to solve Indian problems," says Ashok Jhunjhunwala, professor of electrical engineering and mentor-in-chief of many companies. "They have plans to compete in the global market as well later."
The market is also forcing a change in the nature of startups. "The copy-paste model is dead," says angel investor Sharad Sharma. "Companies have to focus on uniquely Indian problems." These companies can have a big impact on the economy over the next few decades, provided they are supported by improved infrastructure, good universities, sustained R&D investments and a good public procurement system.

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Nandan Nilekani|Indian Institute of Science|IIT Madras|IIM Indore|et startup|Cornell University|Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms
 

Indx TechStyle

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IITs dare to dream: Can India create 15 Stanfords?
Govt approves new scheme to provide 1,000 research fellowships a year to B.Tech students of the IIT to encourage them to opt for research in India.

A file photo of IIT-Delhi. Its yearly budget is less than Rs.900 crore or one-ninth of Stanford. Photo: Ramesh Pathania/Mint
New Delhi: On Tuesday, the union government approved a new scheme to provide 1,000 research fellowships a year to B.Tech students of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) to encourage them to opt for research in India instead of pursuing it abroad.
It is designed to address the weakest link in the IIT ecosystem, otherwise a premier domain of quality engineering education in the country. The fellowship, which would pay out Rs.60,000 every month, is only a part of the story.
It’s the first time that an enabling environment for research is being made available in India, a $2 trillion economy that’s seeking to achieve its growth potential and aiming for a rapid increase in foreign investment in manufacturing and technology.
Clearly, the IITs are daring to dream. The question is whether India will succeed in fostering 15 Stanfords in the country; Stanford University in California is the world’s leading research and teaching institution.
The government is likely to spend some Rs.360 crore for these 1,000 Prime Minister Research Fellowships over a five-year period to retain its best talent in the campus for research, both applied and core.
Research has been a weak link in IITs which were known more as quality teaching institutions than research-focused schools. For example, in the 2015 world university rankings published by UK based ranking agency Times Higher Education (THE), IIT Bombay scored 28.6 out of 100 on research parameters. The research score was just ahead of its worst performing parameter of international outlook (17.7/100).
Authorities believe that the Rs.60,000 per month fellowship will be incentive enough for graduating B.Tech students to register for a PhD and pursue a career in research in India. Though some IIT insiders believe that the offer may not be enough to keep the best talent at home, here is why it actually may do so.
Also read: IITs to increase student intake by nearly 40% to 1 lakh
In 2015-16, some 1,143 students across various levels—both post-graduates and under-graduates at IIT-Bombay were offered jobs by several companies. Of these, at least 531 got a salary belowRs.9.5 lakh per annum and of these some 350 were offered between Rs.4.5 lakh andRs.8 lakh. So, Rs.60,000 monthly fellowships (Rs.7.2 lakh per annum) is not a bad amount in the first place for B.Tech students.
Second, amenities like subsidized living inside the campus, access to research resources, mentors, and the brand IIT put together should tempt graduating students. Above all, the opportunity to enter a PhD program after B.Tech is a good proposition.
To be sure in recent years, the IITs have taken steps to improve research and enroll more research scholars. This apart, both the IITs and the government are working on a plan to create a more conducive enabling environment to encourage research.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about IIT Madras and its research park during the Start-up India event in January and promised to help set up seven such facilities across the country. There are incubation centres where faculties are helping students in their entrepreneurial journey and helping connect them to industry for research and development activities.
“If you look at the older IITs, then nearly 25% of their fresh students are doing research. Besides, there is a fresh push for research in campuses at various levels. The tilt has happened gradually and we don’t see why IITs cannot become Stanford or MIT in near future,” said Gautam Barua, a former director of IIT-Guwahati.
But for that, India has to grow economically and missions like Make in India need to become a success, he argued. “Unless industry seeks IIT support, it will be tough to ramp up research. So industry academic collaborations are a must and a better economy is its catalyst,” he added.
It won’t be easy for IITs to emulate Stanford University, set up in 1891. Check these facts: Stanford has now 5,500 externally sponsored projects, as per its website. The university, the number three in the world as per the world University rankings 2015, has a $1.22 billion (above Rs.8,050 crore) budget. Stanford has 2,153 faculty members including 20 Nobel laureates and four Pulitzer Prize winners.
Compare this with IIT-Delhi: Its yearly budget is less than Rs.900 crore or one-ninth of Stanford. In 2015-16 IIT Delhi had 136 sponsored research projects, of which just eight were funded by the private sector, as per the institution’s data. The engineering school has a near 30% vacancy in its faculty to fill.
TOPICS: IITS|STANFORD|RESEARCH FELLOWSHIPS|B.TECH|ENGINEERING
15 Research Institutions like Standford in India. Succeed or not, it'll definitely improve rank in score of scientific researchers indicators. So, an appreciable step.:)
 

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BEL’s gen-next night vision plant in 4 years


Bengaluru: Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) will take the first step towards adding another wing to its state-of-the-art-facilities when the foundation stone for its Advanced Night Vision Products Factory at Nimmaluru village in Krishna District of Andhra Pradesh will be laid on August 29.

BEL says it would build the new facility in stages in the next four years, with an estimated investment of Rs 300 crore already earmarked. The new facility is part of the diversification and business growth envisaged by BEL.

“We have been continuously engaged in design, development and manufacturing of electro-optics equipment and night vision products for defence and paramilitary forces. The new facility will cater to the futuristic requirements,” says S K Sharma, BEL CMD.

During the annual press meet held in Bengaluru recently, Sharma had said that the BEL would expand to areas such as high-end image intensifier tubes and thermal imaging detectors for night vision products, inertial navigation systems, electronic ammunition fuses, air traffic management radars, intelligent traffic management systems and solar power plants.

Sharma says to achieve self-reliance in defence, BEL would set up world-class manufacturing facilities in India.

“We have maintained a consistent policy of R&D investments and also launched new facilities. BEL is coming up with a modern Defence Systems Integration Complex at Palasamudram in Ananthapur District of Andhra Pradesh to give further thrust to indigenous development and production of future defence systems,” he adds.

The new factory at Nimmaluru will enable BEL to expand its electro-optics business and carry out manufacturing and integration for the ongoing and upcoming projects.

“It will have modern optics workshops, clean rooms of the highest standards, facility for thin film coating with higher durability,” Sharma adds.

An official said that in order to support the Centre’s Make in India push, BEL is extending its support to start-up companies and MSMEs through procurement of specific items from them.

“We have been supporting the MSMEs for a long time and efforts are now on to take these bonding to the next level with our expanding business plans,” says the official.

A host of Union ministers will be present at the new facility on August 29, which is around 16 km from one of the existing units of BEL at Machilipatnam.

http://english.mathrubhumi.com/news...ision-plant-in-4-years-english-news-1.1309418
 

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