INDIA'S ANCIENT SCIENTIFIC FEAT CAME AT A PRICE!

There is a greater emphasis and debate about India’s ancient scientific achievement these days, overlooking the modern India burdened by expensive scientific imports.

Union Minister for Science and Technology, Harsh Vardhan was recently quizzed if the budget allocation of the past, towards Research and Development (R&D,) had anything to do with India’s scientific feat - if considered for the sake of a discussion that India was once a superpower in science and technology.

 

Vardhan does seem to think so and said that India was one of the top economies of the world from 1AD till the advent of British rule. India’s contribution, Vardhan said, at one point of time towards the global economy was about 30 percent. He believes that with such resources at stake the allocation for scientific development could have been significant.

Now, when it comes to modern India – which is of primary concern to many – the India allots a paltry 0.88 percent of its total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) towards R&D.

USA, China, UK, Japan, Germany, France, Russia and other larger economies than India allocates more from its GDP towards R&D than New Delhi.

For instance, US allotted 2.79, China   1.98, Japan 3.35, UK 1.72, France 2.26, Germany 2.92, Russia 1.12 (per cent) of their total GDP towards R&D in 2014, according to World Bank data.

On the other hand economies like South Korea, Israel and Chinese Taipei spend 4.35, 3.93 3.6 per cent respectively of their total GDP towards R&D, to cite some examples. These are some of the countries that could be termed as pioneers in science and technology in the present age and are inventing major technologies.

Vardhan said the budget allocation towards R&D in India cannot be increased in a matter of days. He, however, added that the “Make in India” is a good initiative and would help R&D.

He further pointed out that India is one of the five Nations – US, China, Canada and Japan - of the world which would be building the world’s largest telescope.

“We would be contributing Rs. 1300 crore towards the project, but that would be in kind in the form of technologies and software,” the Minister said.

The Minister, moreover, lashed out at his critics saying these days it has become “fashionable to criticize” those who speak about India’s glorious past.

He said, much before the western world, India was far advanced in medical science and other fields of scientific knowledge. He said Indian physicians inoculated people for small pox much before Edward Jenner.

But realistically, what India needs more than reflection on its past, is injection of funds and patronage towards R&D as such "ancient India scientific feats " could not have come without a price.

BRING OUT IDEAS-TECHNOLOGIES NOT MERE JOURNALS: HARSH VARDHAN TO RESEARCHERS

Union Minister for Science and Technology, Harsh Vardhan said India urgently needs new ideas and technologies, not  mere research journals.

The Minister added that researchers must start developing these new ideas and technologies, instead of merely showing published journals as their contributions towards the society.

Citing an example of his recent visit to the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-North East Institute of Science and Technology, Jorhat in Assam, the minister said he asked the researchers what the Institution developed in terms of technologies and ideas in its 30 years of history - he was only handed 100s of published journals instead.

“I asked the researchers at Jorhat what are the breaking news from the Institute in terms of new ideas and technologies, to which they showed me the journals that have been published by the Institute,” the Minister said while speaking as the Chief Guest at the North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institution of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS) in Shillong the State Capital of Meghalaya in India's northeast.

Vardhan said, journals are “theoretical” in nature and have little value in terms of benefit for the society, unless the theories are implementable on the ground and changes people’s lives.

Urging the researchers to start “thinking out of the box” rather than going through their “routine and casual” regime, Vardhan added, 60 years have gone by due to such casual attitude.

“This has to change. There must be a re-orientation of our thinking in terms of research. There has to be breaking news. India must begin by identifying its priorities and then build and also create a pool of entrepreneurs,” he said.

Vardhan said India has a great advantage over other countries be it its ancient past with scientific advancements or the present demographic dividends. He said the demographic dividend of India gives the country “great hope” and therefore urged the young people to think and work differently in a deviation from the past 60 years.

 

Asked about budget allocation towards Research and Development in India, Vardhan said that this area would always be a concern. “There is always a constraint,” but at the same time added that increase in budget allocation “cannot be done in a day.”

The Minister, however, said that the Make In India is a great initiative of the Government to boost R&D and at the same time help in the growth of the country’s Gross Domestic Product and the overall economy.

MEDICAL COUNCIL OF INDIA (MCI) DEAD HORSE ON A PACEMAKER

Union Minister for Science and Technology Harsh Vardhan today said the Medical Council of India (MCI) needs reform and there must be more transparency in terms of its functioning.

Vardhan, who was earlier the Union Health Minister and is also a medical practitioner, said that the MCI has the “potential to function better.”

“The MCI could have functioned better. I too feel that the MCI has to be more transparent in terms of its functioning,” Vardhan said.

The Minister was responding to questions posed by journalists after the Director of North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institution of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS), AH Ahangar launched a scathing attack against the MCI calling it a “sick Institution” during his address in the presence of the Union Minister.

Ahangar said the MCI is the “road block” for medical education and research for the country and said the “sick institution” must be urgently reformed for the sake of medical education and research.

“The MCI is the biggest roadblock for medical education in India. It is a dead horse on a pacemaker. Unfortunately the monitor showing picks doesn’t mean the Institution is alive,” Ahangar said.

He said the MCI “must be taken care of” which in turn would help medical education and research in India. “If MCI is taken care of than medical education in India would be much better and India would not only be able to take care of itself but would also be able to export manpower to the rest of the world by 2050,” he added.

MEGHALAYA WITHDRAWS FERTLISER SUBSIDY

With an eye on brand-building and market Meghalaya as an organic food producing State, the State government has withdrawn the chemical fertilizer subsidy to farmers, thus raising serious livelihood questions.

Although there is a growing demand for organically-farmed food globally for health and environment benefits, however, the decision of the government to withdraw the subsidy altogether has left the farming community in the lurch dependent on conventional methods of farming.

Recently, farmers from different parts of the State staged a rally in the State Capital pleading the government to continue with the subsidy. But, the government said it would not retract its decision.

P Khargonkor, Principal Secretary, Agriculture Department, while stressing the health benefits of organically-farmed food, said chemical fertilizers and pesticides are available in the open market for those willing to buy them.

“The farmers can buy the chemical fertilizers and pesticides from the open market, but the government would not provide the subsidy,” Khargongkor stressed.

However, the affected farmers are questioning why the government did not give a window period to make the transition from chemical to bio-fertilizers. Another important question raised is that if the government is in no mood to give such a breather, why does it not give some sort of subsidy on bio-fertilizers to the farmers, which would have worked as an incentive.

Meghalaya is an agrarian economy, but the State is not self-sufficient in food-grains and vegetables and much of these produces are imported from the neighbouring State of Assam and elsewhere, which uses conventional method of farming and the respective governments providing subsidy on fertilisers.

It may be noted here that although those who have taken to organic farming are getting better cost on their produce, but then it is a niche market produce. Organic farms need more land as the yield is low compared to conventional method of farming. The verdict is not out yet on the viability of organic farms over conventional method of farming.

This means that Meghalaya, which is not self-sufficient in agriculture produce, would produce even lesser and with other States like Assam not taking up organic farming in the near future, the State residents would have to partake more of food produced by conventional farming methods.

What is ironic is that local farmers would now have to sell their produce at a higher price with locally sourced chemical fertilizers and pesticides from the open market.

On the other hand, prices of such imports would remain the same because of continued subsidy offered to farmers in different State of India.

The Mission Organic was launched by Chief Minister Mukul Sangma this year. “The new policy of the State government aims to build the ‘Organic Meghalaya’ brand producing organic certified food and products...,” the Agriculture Department says. But the question is, at what cost?

Brahmaputra Board now history

The Brahmaputra Board (BB) has been consigned to the pages of history today with the central government stating it has outlived its mandate and would “reincarnate” with a new nomenclature and concept.

After holding the last meeting of the board here at the State Capital Union Minister for Water Resources, Uma Bharti said, the BB would now have a new name “within a week or two” and the entire functioning and mandate would be changed.

“I can declare with a firm conviction that today is the last meeting of the Brahmaputra Board. The next meeting will be held under a new name and concept. It would reincarnate with a new name and concept in which the views of every state will be incorporated. We would decide on the new name within a week or two,” she said at the sidelines of the 8^th meeting of the board here at the State Convention centre.

The Union Minister added the board has outlived its mandate.  The Board which was established in 1980 and was not performing to the expectation of the people and therefore it would be overhauled.

“When the board was formed the aspirations from it was different so was the technology. We would now take suggestions from all stakeholders how to revamp the board and make it more effective with the present day aspirations of the people,” Bharti said.

One of the important roles of the board would be to take care of the flood and erosion caused by the River Brahmaputra annually – an aspect the BB has not been able to tackle effectively.

On the other hand Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma has suggested that a Brahmaputra River Basin Management project be established on the tributaries of the River, which would benefit most of the Northeastern States. The Union Minister has already hinted that she has taken a liking for the proposal of the Meghalaya Chief Minister.

On cleaning of the River Brahmaputra, she said, that since the Ganga and the Brahmaputra have the same source of origin and cleaning work on the Ganga has begun, the Ganga cleaning project would have its impact on the River Brahmaputra.

“River Brahmaputra is the elder brother of Ganga and has its origin at Mansarovar so the Ganga cleaning project would have its impact on it. Nonetheless, the Ganga cleaning model would be replicated on different Rivers of the country,” she informed.

Meanwhile, speaking about the controversy over building of dams in the region, she said that the water resources ministry was not against building of dams, but the ecology of the River and the people’s sentiments have to be taken care of while implementing the projects.

“The technical aspect of dam building must be safe in such a way that the ecology is not disturbed and kills Rivers. Moreover, the sentiments of the people must also be taken care of while building the dams and this, I have been told, is being looked into by the Ministry of Power,” Bharti said.