The Hindu Business Line : PM calls for corporate support to science education

Bangalore, Dec. 3 The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, has called upon corporate India to invest in science research and education to supplement governmental funding to support future India.

Launching the centenary celebrations of the Indian Institute of Science here on Wednesday, Dr Singh said corporate leaders should emulate the vision of IISc’s founder and promoter, J.N.Tata, in equally contributing to industry and science – the two pillars of modern India. “I hope business leaders of today and tomorrow will believe in the same philosophy and invest more in this ‘constructive philosophy’,” he said.

Dr Singh called the institute – also known here as the ‘Tata Institute’ – a fine example of public-private partnership and “the most visible symbol of India’s presence in the arena of science and research.” As a tribute to it, his government in 2004 had granted Rs 100 crore to the IISc and rolled out five replicas of it at Kolkata, Pune, Bhopal, Mohali and Thiruvananthapuram - besides starting six new IITs.

“We are doing all we can to free the processes of public funding of research from unnecessary bureaucratic impediments,” Dr Singh said.

Making science attractive

The Prime Minister, during his engagement at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research at Jakkur near here earlier in the day, also called for ‘a blueprint to transform Indian science’ and make basic sciences and maths attractive in schools and colleges.

“What we need is a blueprint for the transformation of Indian science, a blueprint for making basic sciences and mathematics the preferred discipline of our school going and college going children and for the effective and creative utilisation of [various Central S&T] funds.”

Science teaching must fire the curiosity and imagination of the youth – as the Chandrayaan-1 recently did – and inspire them to choose science as career.

“This is important given the disturbing and declining interest among today’s youth in pursuing science as a career.”

The Centre, for its part, was doubling the S&T spend to 2 per cent of the GDP. It had proposed an autonomous National Science and Engineering Research Board – formally announced in May this year - to provide unfettered funds to scientists, academic institutions, research labs and industrial concerns. To be created by an Act, it can sanction projects up to Rs 75 crore.

Science cannot be an esoteric academic discipline but be central to the life of the nation; it should solve problems of energy, health, water, food security and climate change, Dr Singh told a gathering of 500 faculty members and 1500 students of the institute.

“If India is to be one of the top ranking scientific nations in the world and we must be, we need a huge step up in investment in basic sciences. … We hope that these institutes will eventually become nerve centres of scientific creativity and feed into [India’s] technological capabilities, social and economic development.”

The scientific establishment should also create a supportive environment to the many Indian scientists and engineers who want to return from the West.

SECOND CAMPUS

Karnataka has offered 1000 acres for a second IISc campus in the State and shown 2-3 places, according to the Chief Minister, Mr B.S.Yediyurappa. He urged the institute to finalise a site soon.

At the JNCASR, Dr Singh dedicated the International Centre for Material Science to the nation and opened the CNR Rao Hall of Science; the latter has been built out of the savings of Dr C.N.R.Rao - Chairman of the Prime Minister’s Scientific Advisory Council and former IISc Director – his wife and donations.

He complimented Dr Rao for setting up the C.N.R Rao Hall of Science partly from his and his wife’s personal savings and from donations from industry and others.

“I sincerely hope that other people with wealth will make up mind to use part of their wealth for promotion science and research, particularly research.”

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