How NRF aims to boost research in higher educational institutes

Source: The post is based on the articles “Express View on National Research Foundation: Changing the game” and “How NRF aims to boost research in higher educational institutes” published in “The Indian Express” on 30th June 2023.

Syllabus: GS 3 – Science and Technology

News: The Union cabinet decided to set up a National Research Foundation (NRF) as an apex body to promote, fund and mentor scientific research in higher education institutions across the country.

How does the NRF aim to boost research in higher educational institutes?

Broad-basing research: One of the main objectives of the NRF is to involve colleges and universities in scientific research. Currently, less than one per cent of the nearly 40,000 institutions of higher learning in the country are engaged in research.  Research activities are mostly carried out by specialized institutions, while colleges and most universities primarily focus on teaching. NRF aims to end this artificial separation between research and education by acting as a bridge between specialized institutions and less-funded colleges, universities, and polytechnics.

Research in social sciences: The NRF would also fund and promote research in humanities, social sciences and arts. As of now, research in these areas has very limited sources of funding.

National priorities: The NRF aims to identify priority areas in which science and technology interventions can help larger national objectives like clean energy, climate change etc. Also, NRF would coordinate research developments in mega international projects like LIGO, in which India is involved.

Funding:  India spends less than 0.7 percent of its GDP on research and development. This has a direct impact on the quality and quantity of research output. The core objective of NRF is to sharply increase funding for research from government as well as private sources.

Partnerships: Partnerships between industry, academia, government departments, and research institutions have led to groundbreaking developments in the global knowledge economy.  But in India, even scientists in top institutes struggle for securing funding. The NRF has the potential to overcome these challenges by addressing funding challenges and bureaucratic hurdles.

The estimated allocation of Rs 50,000 crore over the next five years is not substantially higher than the current spending. Completing projects and making full utilization of available resources is very important. The funding can increase once the NRF starts to make an impact.

The NRF project is modelled on the National Science Foundation in the US which is an independent federal agency. The dominant presence of the government in the NRF may be unavoidable due to its significance but the government should ensure the institution’s autonomy.