Mumbai: The ease of doing research is as important as ease of doing business, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday as he promised the scientific community that he will cut red tape and pitched for greater academic freedom and autonomy to universities.
He also underscored the need for making investment in science and technology a part of corporate social responsibility and said digital connectivity must be “as much a basic right” as access to schools while calling for efforts to “revive the romance” of science in society and “rekindle” the love for it in children.
“When I speak of ease of doing business in India, I also want to pay equal attention to ease of doing research and development in India…. We need to put science, technology and innovation at the top of national priorities,” Modi, whose government has made a strong push for improving business environment to attract investment, said inaugurating the 102nd Indian Science Congress.
Reaching out to scientists, who often complain of bureaucratic hurdles and funding troubles for research, he said, “We want our scientists and researchers to explore the mysteries of science and not of government procedures. We want them to consider publications not government approvals.” “Funding proposals should not take too long to clear. Meeting applications, requirements should not become more complex than research,” he said.
Emphasising on the need for spreading knowledge of technology, particularly among children, Modi said, “Let us use internet to bring our scientists in direct contact with our children and youth. Digital connectivity should become as much a basic right as access to schools.”
“Investment in science and technology activity should also become part of the expenditure on corporate social responsibility to be funded directly or through an autonomous fund,” he said.
Maintaining that a nation’s progress and its human development were linked to science and technology, he said
China’s emergence as the second biggest economy was parallel to its rise to the second place in the field of scientific activity.
Stressing on the need for placing universities at the “cutting edge” of research and development activity, he said investment in the field at present was “far too concentrated” in the agencies of central government and called for making it broad based. “Our universities must be freed from excessive regulations and cumbersome procedures. They must have a higher degree of academic freedom and autonomy. There must be as much emphasis on research as on teaching. In turn, the universities must also subscribe to highest standards of academic excellence and accountability,” he said.
Modi said he has placed science and technology at the forefront of the country’s diplomatic engagement.
The Prime Minister lauded Indian scientists for putting ‘Mangalyaan’ in the Mars orbit in the very first attempt for and saving thousands of lives through accurate forecast during cyclonic storm Hudhud.
“We need to put science, technology and innovation at the top of national priorities…. Above all, we must restore the pride and prestige of science and scientists in our nation,” the Prime Minister said.
Modi recalled the role of the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in nurturing science and technology to make it a tool for national development.
“At the dawn of freedom, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru placed science and technology at the heart of national development. Our scientists launched pioneering research and built outstanding institutions with modest resources that continue to serve us well,” he said.
Modi said he wanted India’s “vast pool of scientists” to spend some time teaching and guiding students in universities.
The Prime Minister said the Indian scientific community had proved equal to the challenges faced by the country.
“Whenever the world shut its door on us our scientists responded with the zeal of a national mission. When the world sought our collaboration, they reached out with openness that is inherent in our society,” he said.
While extolling the role of scientists in reducing poverty, fighting hunger and conquering disease, Modi said science and technology can remove national barriers, unify the world and bring nations together in a shared effort to address global challenges.
He cautioned that science can also increase inequality, make wars more lethal and damage the environment.
Modi, however, insisted human development has been the “larger purpose and the driving force” of Indian scientific pursuit. “We must restore the pride and prestige of science and scientists in our nation, revive the romance of science in society, rekindle the love for it in our children and encourage our scientists to dream, imagine and explore…you will never find a better supporter than me,” Modi told the gathering.
The five-day event, being held after a gap of 45 years in the city, will see deliberations and presentation of papers by the scientific fraternity from across the globe. (PTI)