196
Secretary.—The Public Health Commissioner with the Government
of India, and during his absence, the Deputy Public Health
Commissioner with the Government of India.
4. The Governing Body appoints a Scientific Advisory Board to advise
them on technical matters and on the allocation of funds to specific
inquiries. The constitution of this Board has varied from time to time
but it has always contained a majority of senior laboratory workers who
have had experience and practical knowledge of the conduct of medical
research inquiries in India.
5. Applications for grants from the Association for the financing of
inquiries on definite lines may be submitted by any suitably qualified
and experienced person who has the necessary facilities for carrying out
the proposed investigations. These are usually required to be submitted
to the Secretary, Indian Research Fund Association, by October of each
year, the grants, if sanctioned, commencing from April of the following
year.
6. An annual conference of Medical Research Workers is held in
December which is also attended by the Public Health Officers and others
interested. The results of the previous year's work are discussed at this
Conference and proposals for work in the coming year are put forward.
A consensus of opinion is obtained as to the suitability of each proposal
for financial support by the Indian Research Fund Association. The
Scientific Advisory Board, the members of which are always present at
the Research Workers' Conference, subsequently considers the proposals
and, within the limits of the funds available, prepares a combined budget
which forms a programme of research for the following year. Allocation
of funds is made by the Governing Body after detailed consideration of
the Scientific Advisory Board's recommendations.
7. Although in no way restricted to any special policy with regard to
medical research by the terms of its Memorandum of Association, the
Indian Research Fund Association has in practice usually expended the
greater proportion of its funds on investigations into the major epidemic
and endemic diseases of India and on causes of inefficiency on a large
scale such as malnutrition. Clinical research in medicine and surgery
has been financed to a much lesser degree as also basic research not
directly connected with major problems although these subjects are
eligible for grants.
8. The Indian Research Fund Association depends primarily on funds
provided by the Government of India. In the early years of the Associa
- t i o n a n a n n u a l G o v e r n m e n t g r a n t o f R s . 5 l a k h s e n a b l e d i t t o f i n a n c e
enquiries and to accumulate a capital of about Rs. 52 lakhs. It was this
capital and the income derived from it which has helped and is helping
the Association over the lean years after the year 1931-32 when the Gov
- e r n m e n t g r a n t f o r m e d i c a l r e s e a r c h w a s d i s c o n t i n u e d . A t t h e c l o s e o f
the financial year 1937-38 the accumulated funds of the Association will
be r educed t o Rs. 32½ l akhs appr oxi mat el y. A st at ement showi ng t he
annual grants from the Government of India, invested funds and interest
thereon and annual budget grants of the Association for the past 12 years
is attached.