Lok Sabha Question No. 6099 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-04
Subject: Level of Innovation
Ministry: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: TARIQ ANWAR

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

## DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.6099 TO BE ANSWERED ON 4/4/2018

## LEVEL OF INNOVATION

## †6099. SHRI TARIQ ANWAR:

Will the Minister of SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ÉÊ´ÉYÉÉxÉ +ÉÉè® |ÉÉètÉÉäÉÊMÉBÉEÉÒ àÉÆjÉÉÒ be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the country is likely to be strengthened in healthcare, education and agriculture sectors by increasing the level of innovation;
- (b) if so, the details thereof; and
- (c) the extent to which the development rate is likely to increase in the agriculture sector through digital economy?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, MINISTER OF EARTH SCIENCES AND MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

(DR. HARSH VARDHAN)

ÉÊ´ÉYÉÉxÉ +ÉÉè® |ÉÉètÉÉäÉÊMÉBÉEÉÒ àÉÆjÉÉÒ, {Éßl´ÉÉÒ ÉÊ´ÉYÉÉxÉ àÉÆjÉÉÒ +ÉÉè® {ÉªÉÉÇ´É®hÉ, ´ÉxÉ A´ÉÆ VÉãÉ´ÉÉªÉÖ {ÉÉÊ®´ÉiÉÇxÉ àÉÆjÉÉÒ

(bÉ. c­ÉÇ ´ÉvÉÇxÉ)

- (a) & (b):   Yes, Madam. The country is likely to be strengthened in healthcare, education and agriculture sectors by increasing the level of innovation. Various Government Departments like Department of Science & Technology (DST), Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) are working towards this goal. The details are as follows :
- 1) The Department of Science & Technology (DST) has launched a National Initiative on Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI) which promotes innovations right from idea to commercialization.
- 2) The funding support provided for undertaking innovative Research and Development in the area of Biotechnology has resulted in development and commercialization of several products. The details of publications, patents and technologies generated as an outcome of competitive funding to R&D projects during FY 2016-17 and 2017-18 is given below:

|   No of Publication |   No of Patents Filed |   Patents Granted |   Technologies Developed |   Technologies Commercialized |
|---------------------|-----------------------|-------------------|--------------------------|-------------------------------|
|                1300 |                    34 |                14 |                       65 |                            13 |

## Some of the major achievements are :

- (i) Two bacterial blight resistant Basmati rice varieties namely, Pusa Basmati 1728 and Pusa Basmati 1718 have been developed and released.
- (ii) 3 new brucella diagnostic kit launched.
- (iii) A cocktail vaccine for poultry salmonellosis was developed.
- (iv) National Biopharma Mission was launched on 30th June, 2017. The Mission with a total budget of US$250 million aims to bring Industry and Academia together to promote entrepreneurship and affordable product development.
- (v) First  indigenous  Rota  Virus  Vaccine  was  launched  in  March,  2015.  A  1-day  Dengue  Diagnostic  Test  was developed.
- 3) To  increase  the  level  of  innovation  in  the  health  sector,  Indian  Council  of  Medical  Research  (ICMR)  has established a Innovation and Translation Research (ITR) Division in 2015. The ITR Division offers financial and other support to innovators for leads to be  translated into products in terms of  intellectual property protection, handholding for up-scaling, transfer of ICMR technologies. These steps are meant to encourage our innovators to generate new processes and products in the health sector.
- (c) The digital economy would certainly benefit the agriculture sector as it would help the farmers in faster and better price realisation of their produce.

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