Lok Sabha Question No. 1980 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-07-30
Subject: Research and Development Infrastructure
Ministry: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Sushil Kumar Singh

## MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 1980

TO BE ANSWERED ON 30/07/2021

Research and Development Infrastructure

1980.  SHRI SUSHIL KUMAR SINGH:

Will  the  Minister  of  SCIENCE  AND  TECHNOLOGY िव²ान और ÿौīोिगकì मंýी be pleased to state:

- (a) whether his Ministry has tried to gauge the expenditure on R&D as percentage of GDP in the country and if so, the details thereof and the value of R&D as percentage of GDP in India;
- (b)  if  not,  the  ways  in  which  the  Ministry  is  designing  R&D  policies without taking into account this important figure;
- (c)  the  steps  being  taken  by  the  Government  to  promote  linkage between universities, institutes of higher learning and industry and to augment research and development infrastructure in the country; and (d) the steps being taken by the Government to incentivise investment
- by the private sector in R&D?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCES (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

ǒव£ान और Ĥौƭोिगकȧ तथा पृØवी ǒव£ान क े राÏय मंğी ( .

èवतंğ Ĥभार) (डॉ ǔजतɅġ िसंह)

- (a) & (b)   Yes Sir. The ministry has been gauging the Gross Expenditure on R&D (GERD) as percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in India at regular intervals. As per latest available statistics, the National GERD as percentage of GDP remains at 0.7% during last three years. These figures have always been taken into consideration while formulating  R&D policies.
- (c)     The Government has taken up several initiatives to strengthen the linkage  between  all  stakeholders  in  the  STI  ecosystem  to  boost

knowledge  generation  and  product  manufacturing.  The  Government through Department of Science and Technology has recently initiated setting up of shared, professionally managed, Science and Technology infrastructure  facility,  which  can  readily  be  accessible  to  academia, start-ups, manufacturing units, industries  and  R&D  Labs  named "Sophisticated Analytical & Technical Help Institutes (SATHI)." These SATHI  centres focused on Technology, Testing, Certification  & Compliance,  will  boost  manufacturing  clusters  and  industries.  The Government  through  Office  of  Principal  Scientific  Adviser  (PSA)  to Government of India has set up 5 city clusters (Delhi, Pune, Jodhpur, Bhubaneswar & Hyderabad) for creating a shared ecosystem for sharing of resource-infrastructure and  human capital, providing regional solutions and bringing national and global competitiveness contributing to national missions and mega science projects.

(d) The Government has taken several steps to incentivise investment by the private sector to increase expenditure on R&D. The government  has  been  offering  various  financial  incentives  that  fall under  the category  of direct incentives in the form  of funding programmes for the private sector to contribute to the national R&D ecosystem  through  R&D  programmes  being  implemented  by  various ministries  and  their  associated  departments.  It  also  offers  indirect incentives  in  the  form  of  tax  incentives  on  R&D  investments  to  the private sector. Government has already allowed the corporate sector to make  R&D  investments  under  their  mandatory  Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). There are specific investment incentives offered such as Location-based tax incentives that lead to 100% deductions of profits generated from establishing and doing business in northeastern states of India for a period of 10 years. The government has also taken specific  steps  for  the  ease  of  doing  business,  IP  management,  and procurement policies that  will  aid  in  stimulating  the  private  sector's participation in the national R&D ecosystem.

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