Lok Sabha Question No. 2424 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-03-15
Subject: Policy to Encourage Youth towards Science and Technology
Ministry: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Jaswantsinh Sumanbhai Bhabhor

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 2424 TO BE ANSWERED ON 15.3.2023

## POLICY TO ENCOURAGE YOUTH TOWARDS SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

† 2424. SHRI JASWANT SINGH BHABHOR:

मंğी

Will  the  Minister  of  SCIENCE  AND  TECHNOLOGY ͪव£ान और Ĥौɮयोͬगकȧ be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has formulated any new policy to encourage the students/youth towards the field of Science and Technology;
- (b) if so, the details thereof; and
- (c) the details of the achievements made so far along with the measures taken by the Government in this regard?

## ANSWER

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

ͪव£ान और Ĥौɮयोͬगकȧ तथा पृ Øवी ͪव£ान मंğालय क े राÏय मंğी ( èवतंğ Ĥभार) (डॉ . िजतɅġ ͧसंह)

- (a) Yes Sir.
- (b) & (c). Government has framed the policy to encourage the students/ youth towards the field of Science and Technology. The key elements of the policy are promoting the spread of Scientific temper amongst all sections of society and making careers in science, research and innovation attractive enough for talented bright minds.

The National Geospatial Policy notified on 28.12.2022 seeks to enable and support innovation, creation and incubation of ideas and start-up initiatives in the  Geospatial  sector,  capitalising  on  the  opportunities  arising  out  of continually evolving technology.  The policy is aimed to encourage capacity development and education programs in the Geospatial sector the value and benefits  of  which  is  sustained  in  the  long  term.   It  also  aims  spread  of

Geospatial  thinking  and  education  to  the  young  minds  from  school  level onwards wherein there would be standardisation and certification of courses and skill sets in line with the global best practices."

'Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired  Research (INSPIRE)' Scheme of Department  of  Science  and  Technology  (DST),  aims  to  attract  meritorious youth to study basic and natural sciences at the college and university level and  to  pursue  research  careers  in  both  basic  and  applied  science  areas including  engineering,  medicine,  agriculture  and  veterinary  sciences.  The ultimate aim is to expand the R&D base of the country.

INSPIRE  -  MANAK  (Million  Minds  Augmenting  National  Aspirations  and Knowledge)  targets  young  students  in  the  age  group  of  10-15  years  and studying in class VI to X   to promote creative thinking and foster a culture of innovation and attract them to study science and pursue research career. The nominations  are  sought  from  schools,  by  the  Department,  during  specific period of the year, through online mode at E-Management of INSPIRE Award Scheme (E-MIAS) portal. Under INSPIRE-MANAK, in a financial year, ten (10.0) lakh ideas are targeted from more than five (05) lakh middle and high schools across the country, out of which one (1.0) lakh ideas are shortlisted for an initial  award  of  Rs.  10000  /-  each,  directly  into  the  bank  accounts  of  the students through Direct Benefit Transfer for preparation of project/model/showcasing of idea. Since inception of the program a total of 16.38  lakh  INSPIRE  Awards  have  been  sanctioned.  About  47.02  %  of  the awardees are girls and 25.61% SCs/STs. The Department has so far conducted nine  National  Level  Exhibition  and  Project  Competitions  (NLEPCs)  starting from 2011. More than 6000 awardees have so far exhibited their projects/models in these exhibitions held so far.

INSPIRE Internship aims at providing exposure to the top 1% students at Class X Board level by organizing Science Camps either during summer or winter and provide  opportunity  to  them  to  interact  with  Science  icons  from  India  and abroad, including Nobel Laureates, to experience the joys of scientific pursuit. These science camps nourish the curiosity of students in science, help them to think out-of-the box and attract students at an early age of 16-17 years to choose science subjects for further studies.  So far more than 4 lakh students have  participated  in  the  organised  INSPIRE  Internship  Science  camps  and

availed the opportunity to interact with the eminent scientists. More than 50 % of the beneficiaries are female.

Scholarship  for  Higher  Education  (SHE)  aims  to  enhance  the  rate  of attachment  of  talented  youth  to  undertake  higher  education  in  science intensive programs by providing scholarships and mentoring through summer attachment with leading researchers. The scheme offers 12,000 Scholarships every year @ Rs 0.80 lakh per year for undertaking Bachelor and Masters level education in natural and basic sciences for the talented youth in the age group 17-22 years. So far 1.37 lakh students have been awarded the Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE) for pursuing Bachelor and Masters level education in natural and basic sciences. About 57 % of the awardees are female.

INSPIRE Fellowship  is  offered  to  1000  students  having  secured  1 st  Rank in Basic  &  Applied  Sciences  including  engineering,  medicine,  agriculture, veterinary  at  the  University/  academic  institute  of  national  importance  i.e. IITs, NITs, IISERs level examination as well as Inspire Scholars having secure 70% marks in aggregate at the MSc level who are eligible for admission to the PhD Program in any recognized university/ academic institutions in the country every year. The Fellowships are tenable for maximum 5 years (2 years as JRF and 3 years as SRF) or completion of PhD, whichever is earlier to pursue fulltime  PhD  program.  So  far  9531  fellows  have  been  awarded  the  INSPIRE Fellowship  for  pursuing  Ph.D.  Programme.  About  63%  of  the  awardees  are female.

INSPIRE  Faculty  Fellowship  provides  opportunities  to  100  post-  doctoral researchers  in  the  age  group  of  27-32  years  for  5  years  in  both  basic  and applied  sciences  area  including  engineering,  agriculture,  veterinary  and medicine every year.  Aspirants having Ph.D. with consistent academic track record are considered on competitive basis. So far 1486 faculty fellows have been  awarded  the  INSPIRE  Faculty  Fellowship  for  pursuing  post-doctoral research, 29% of the awardees are female. Out of 1486 faculty fellows, 52% have secured a regular position.

DSTSTUTI  (Synergistic Training program  Utilizing the Scientific and Technological Infrastructure) program was launched on a pilot scale in early 2022 for a period of one year to cater to human resource and its capacity building  through  open  access  to  S&T  Infrastructure  across  the  country  by

organizing  short  term  courses/  workshops  on  the  awareness,  use  and application of various instruments and analytical techniques. As a complement to  the  various  schemes  of  DST  funding  for  expansion  of  R&D Infrastructure to deal with the demands of researchers, scientists, students, startups, manufacturing units, industries and R&D Labs, STUTI Program envisions a hands-on training program and sensitization of the high-end state of the art equipment as well as promoting transparent access and  sharing  of  scientific  equipment/  infrastructure. As  of  now,  around  160 Science Awareness Programs have been held that has given exposure to over 8530 school students. 206 Trainings have been conducted to train more than 6840 researchers, from various academic organizations/ industry in different areas of S&T across the country.

Encouraging the youth in the field of Science & Technology is important aspect of the Department in all its programmes including International Co-operation programme.  Joint  research  projects  funded  with  various  foreign  countries provide  opportunity  for  young  researchers  to  work  in  these  collaborative projects  as  Junior  /  Senior  Research  Fellow;  Research  Associate,  Project Assistant,  Project  Associate  etc.  As  part  of  collaborative  research  these research students get unique opportunities to live and work in an international context,  to  gain  practical  experience  and  to  acquire  professional  skills. Department of Science & Technology has also supported mobility fellowships and visitation programs for young Indian scientists and researchers like HOPE Meeting; Lindau Nobel Laureates meetings; Asian Science Camp; Fellowship and  Internship  programs  with  Australia,  France,  Germany,  Switzerland,  S. Korea and USA. Such collaborative exchanges are envisaged as a source of mutual cultural and professional enrichment for both the young researchers and  their  host  institutions  thereby  building  contacts  between  the  next generations of researchers.

Department of Biotechnology (DBT) is encouraging youth and young scientists/researchers and students by providing studentship/fellowship under postgraduate teaching programme, fellowships for doctoral and post-doctoral research for Indian students.  The following Programmes are implemented by Department for encouraging students/youth:

Postgraduate  Teaching  Programme  (M.Sc./M.  Tech./M.V.Sc.): Department  of Biotechnology  has  implemented  70  postgraduate  teaching  courses  in  62 universities and institutions across the country, offering general

biotechnology courses and specialized courses such as medical, agricultural, marine,  veterinary,  industrial,  food  and  pharmaceutical  biotechnology,  and human genetics. For encouraging the R&D activities, Department is providing thesis  grant  of  Rs.  50,000/-  per  student  for  in-house  dissertation  work  of  6 months duration as an integral part of post graduate degree to ensure hands on training.

DBT-Junior Research Fellowship Programme (DBT-JRF): Department is providing 500 fellowships per year for pursuing research in universities and / or  research  institutions  in  the  country.  The  students  are  selected  through Biotechnology Eligibility Test (BET) conducted at national level.

DBT-Research Associateship Programme (DBT-RA): DBT Research Associateship programme provides 100 fellowships per year for post-doctoral research  in  frontier  areas  of  Biotechnology  and  life  sciences  at  premier institutions in India including 25 fellowship for NER candidates.

M K Bhan Young Researchers Fellowship Programme: The Department has instituted M K Bhan-Young Researcher Fellowship Programme (MKB-YRFP) in 2020-221 with an aim to encourage young bright researchers to continue their research  in  the  country  after  PhD.  The  scheme  is  to  offer  an  independent research grant to young Post-Doctoral Fellows for three years, so as to enable them to emerge as future leaders and take up cutting edge research focused on issues of national relevance. This fellowship is awarded for research work to be carried out at DBT Autonomous Institutes only. Till now Department has selected 73 candidates under this fellowship program.

Ramalingaswami  Re-entry  Fellowship:  The  aim  of  the  programme  is  to encourage researchers (Indian Nationals) working outside the country, who would like to return to the home country to pursue their research interests in Life Sciences, Modern Biology, Biotechnology, and other related areas. The scheme has attracted talented pool of scientists below 45 years of age to pursue  mainstream  research  in  various  host  institutes  in  India.   Since inception  in  2006-07,  more  than  550  fellows  have  joined  the  fellowship program and around 400 of them have secured the regular positions in the Indian institutions.

Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) through its National S&T Human Resource Development Programme has been providing doctoral and postdoctoral  fellowships  to  young  budding  researchers  through  its  various

fellowship  programmes  such  as  JRF-NET,  SPMF,  SRF-Direct,  Research Associateships  and  CSIR-NPDF.  These  young  researchers  are  basically involved in science and technology development. The main objective of the National  S&T  Human  Resource  Development  programme  is  to  nurture  the budding scientific talent (Young science and engineering graduates/students) and to nourish the objective of pursuit of scientific research. Annually CSIR offers fellowships to young students who are going to be future scientists. At any given time, CSIR supports about 9000-9500 young researchers in  their pursuit  for  doctoral  and  postdoctoral  research  in  the  field  of  science  and technology.  Apart from the doctoral and postdoctoral fellowship programmes, the  CSIR  has  been  engaged  in  connecting  school  students  with  scientists through its 'Jigyasa' (student-scientist connect) program which was initiated in 2017. The programme envisages opening up the national scientific facilities to school children, enabling CSIR scientific knowledgebase and facility to be utilized by school children to develop 'Scientific Temper' in the young minds. The Jigyasa program is being implemented through CSIR laboratories. More recently, CSIR has signed MoU with NVS (Navodya Vidyalaya Samiti) and Atal Innovation Mission of NITI Aayog to further accelerate the Student-Scientist outreach program of CSIR.

Under Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) supported programs and  schemes,  scholars  at  various  levels  were  engaged  in  Research  and Development activities. Through Accelerate Vigyan Scheme, SERB supports the potential postgraduate and Ph.D. level students in selected areas/disciplines/fields  to  participate  in  Science  and  Technology  activities through  high-end  workshops,  training,  and  skill  internship  programmes. Through SERB- SSR (Scientific Social Responsibility) policy, Grantees foster the  research  culture  among  the  students  through  research  internships, delivering scientific awareness lectures, and research facility training, for the benefit  of  youth  in  science.  Under  the  International  travel  support  (ITS) scheme, SERB provides support to young scientists (below 35 yrs) to attend International training programs, short-term schools, workshops and conferences.

Department of Science and Technology (DST), under the Scheme for Young Scientists and Technologists (SYST), provides research opportunities to young scientists and technologists to take up Science & Technology (S&T) based projects  for  affordable  and  sustainable  innovations  to  address  societal

challenges  with  lab-to-land  approach  from  across  the  country.  The  young researchers  are  encouraged  to  align  themselves  with  academic  institutes, Research  and  Development  (R&D)  laboratories  or  S&T  driven  Voluntary organizations to address local challenges using new and emerging areas as indicated  below:  ·  Artificial  Intelligence,  Robotics  and  IoT  for  Societal Application  in  Agriculture,  Rural  Development,  Disaster  Management  and Health · Nutritional Supplements and Value-added Food Products for Humans and Animals · Plant-Based Health Products, Scientific Validation and Upscaling  of  Traditional  Knowledge  Systems  ·  Cost-Effective  Health  and Hygiene  Aids  ·  Effective  Indigenous  Methods  of  Disease  Identification  and Monitoring · Natural Resource-Based Livelihood Systems · Agricultural Tools and Agriculture Produce · Income Augmenting  Agricultural Practices. Environment Sustainability & Renewable Energy · Additive Manufacturing In the last five years, 165 young researchers have been supported, and various technologies/technology  packages  for  the  benefit  of  society  have  been developed.

DST under National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber Physical Systems (NMICPS), 25 Technology Innovation Hubs (TIHs) have been set up in academic institutions  of  repute  across  the  country.  These  Hubs  work  as  canters  of excellence with core expertise in various advanced technology verticals.

DST supports nurturing of ideas and science, technology & innovation-based start-ups  through  its  National  Initiative  for  Developing  and  Harnessing Innovation (NIDHI) initiative. The NIDHI program includes EIR (Entrepreneur in Residence) - a fellowship support program and NIDHI PRAYAS (Promoting and Accelerating  Young  and  Aspiring  Entrepreneurs  &  Start-ups)  Program  providing  prototype  grant  to  convert  their  ideas  into  prototypes.  These programs aim to provide solutions to the pressing needs of the society and create new avenues for wealth and job creations.

DST  under  the  Water  Technology  programme  has  supported  7  Water Technology  Research  and  Innovation  Centres  (WATER-IC)  all  over  India  to address the gap areas in Water Technology research, development, demonstration, adaptation, adoption and commercialization of water and to create Joint Virtual Networked Centres which will enable capacity building of Indian scientists from academia and laboratories to carry out joint research activities by leveraging existing infrastructure and funding through linkages

established by a virtual networked centre. These centres are being implemented  by  premier  institutes  like  Indian  Institute  of  Technology(s), Indian  Institute  of  Science.  The  Indo-U.S.  Science  and  Technology  Forum (IUSSTF) have  partnered  to  nurture  cooperation  between  students  and scientists from India and USA in the area of water through Water Advanced Research and Innovation (WARI) Fellowship Program which is a dynamic and transformative program developed to foster long term Indo-American science and technology partnerships. WARI has supported fellows and    interns, during its  two  phased  duration.  Water  Quality  Monitoring  Networks  in  3  States  in partnership with relevant stakeholders has also been set up by DST which function through capacity building of water managers and stakeholders.

Indian  Council  of  Medical  Research  (ICMR)  has  set  up  Medical  Device  and Diagnostic Mission Secretariat MDMS) at ICMR HQ to promote affordable and sustainable biomedical innovation by fostering 'Make-in-India' product development of medical device & diagnostic technologies. ICMR is fostering collaboration with IITs for technology development by setting up ICMR-DHRCentres of Excellence (CoEs) at 7 IITs across the country. These CoEs aim to foster  strategic  'Make-in-India'  product  development  in  synergise  with  the requirement  of  the  National  Health  Missions,  Ayushman  Bharat-Health  and Wellness Centres and Public Health programs of Government of India for major public health impact. Launch of "ICMR-DHR Policy document for Innovation and Entrepreneurship' for Medical Professionals, Scientists and technologist at  Medical  /Dental/  Para  Medical  Institutes/  Colleges  and  allied  Biomedical Research  and  Academic  Institutions  by  Honorable  Union  Health  Minister. ICMR-Centre for Innovation and Bio-Design (CIBioD) at PGIMER, Chandigarh aims to emerge as an innovation centre for designing and developing indigenous technologies, instruments and devices for affordable healthcare. Setting  up  of  ICMR-DHR-Large  Animal  House  Facility  at  AMTZ,  Vizag  in MedTech sector and ICMR- National Animal Resource Facility for Biomedical Research at Hyderabad.

Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) - Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) is working on development of sustainable apiculture technologies  such  as  resource  use  efficient  and  climate  resilient  crops, microbe-based  technologies  to  minimize  chemical  fertilizers,  solar  based storage systems and conservator agriculture technologies etc.

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