Q1. In economically advanced countries, the private sector contributes significantly to Research and Development investment, unlike India, where public funding dominates. Discuss the challenges faced by science research in India. (250 words)
Topic- Science and technology policy:
Introduction:
Science and technological developments are key drivers of India’s journey towards becoming a developed country by 2047. India is committed to making this progress through sustainable means, as evidenced by its commitments under the Paris Agreement, participation in global fora for sustainable development, and reinforced in this year’s theme for Science Day.
Body :
- Background
- Data
- Comparison with developed countries
- Research Budget Utilisation
Conclusion :
Political prioritisation of R&D spending and recognition of it as a core, irreplaceable element of India’s growth journey is need of hour. Ministry of Finance, which disburses the funds has to prioritise scientific funding. Incentives for private investment, including relaxation of foreign direct investments, tax rebates, and clear regulatory roadmaps for products will help build investor confidence.
UPSC Syllabus Science and technology policy:
Scientific research in Indian universities is declining, because a career in science is not as attractive as our business operations, engineering or administration, and the universities are becoming consumer-oriented. Critically comment. (UPSC Main 2014)
Introduction
Science and technological developments are key drivers of India’s journey towards becoming a developed country by 2047. India is committed to making this progress through sustainable means, as evidenced by its commitments under the Paris Agreement, participation in global fora for sustainable development, and reinforced in this year’s theme for Science Day.
Body Status :
- Background
- The 2024 theme for National Science Day, which India celebrates every year on February 28, is “Science for Sustainable Development”.
- For India to reach the ‘developed nation’ status, it needs to spend more to scale R&D than developed countries spend to maintain that status.
- Many experts have called for India to spend at least 1%, but ideally 3%, of its GDP every year until 2047 on R&D for science to have a meaningful impact on development.
Data
- Funding for fundamental research in India is amongst the world’s lowest, particularly for a country with high science and technology ambitions.
- In the recent past, India’s research and development (R&D) expenditure has dropped to the current 0.64% of GDP from 0.8% in 2008-2009 and 0.7% in 2017-2018.
- In 2022-2023, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) used 72% of its estimated budget allocation on centrally sponsored schemes/projects while the Department of Science and Technology (DST) used only 61%.
- The Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), which receives the lowest allocation for centrally sponsored schemes, spent 69% of its allocation.
Comparison with developed countries
- Most developed countries spend between 2% and 4% of their respective GDPs on R&D.
- In 2021, member-countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on average spent 2.7% of their GDP on R&D.
- The U.S. and the U.K. have consistently spent more than 2% of their GDPs on R&D for the past decade.
- In economically developed countries, a major share — 70% on average — of R&D investment comes from the private sector.
Lack of Private Sector funding
- India’s current spending on research and development is inadequate.
- In India research is primarily dependent on public money.
- In 2020-2021, the private sector industry contributed 36.4% of the GERD whereas the Union government’s share was 43.7%.
- State governments (6.7%), higher education (8.8%), and the public sector industry (4.4%) were the other major contributors.
- The hesitancy of private-sector funding may be because of the poor capacity to evaluate R&D in India, ambiguous regulatory roadmaps that can deter investors, lack of clear exit options for investors in sectors such as biotechnology, and fears of intellectual property rights theft.
- Strategies for how ₹7,200 crore from the private sector is to be raised have not been clarified yet.
Delay in Anusandhan NRF
- The ₹2,000 crore annual budget that was earmarked for implementing Anusandhan National Research Foundation has been delayed. The last budget was revised to ₹258 crore this year.
- Thus, there is a perceived need to determine the overall quantum of R&D funding and its primary sources, given India’s ambition to be a developed country by 2047.
Underutilisation of Budget
- The Union Ministry of Science and Technology has consistently under-utilised its budget.
- Such underutilisation is not a one-time error but has been consistently recorded over several years to varying degrees.
- The reasons for under-utilisation, as with under-allocation, may indicate tedious bureaucratic processes for approving disbursements, lack of capacity to evaluate projects or clear utilisation certificates, lack of prioritisation for science funding by the Ministry of Finance or inadequate planning or implementation strategy for the requested funds by the Ministry of Science and Technology.
- The lack of capacity also reflects in delays in grant and salary disbursements. Proper capacity building within different governmental agencies should be done at the earliest.
Conclusion
Political prioritisation of R&D spending and recognition of it as a core, irreplaceable element of India’s growth journey is need of hour. Ministry of Finance, which disburses the funds has to prioritise scientific funding. Incentives for private investment, including relaxation of foreign direct investments, tax rebates, and clear regulatory roadmaps for products will help build investor confidence.
Q2. Supreme Court Judge A.M. Khanwilkar was recently appointed as the chairperson of the Lokpal. In light of the above statement, discuss composition and appointment procedure of Lokpal. How far have the institutions of Lokpal and Lokayuktas been effective? (250 words).
Topic- Statutory Bodies :
Introduction
India ranked 93 out of 180 countries on the corruption perceptions index for 2023, according to a Transparency International report. Lokpal, country’s first anti-corruption body, was established in an effort to promote clean and responsive governance. In order to tackle the problem of corruption, the institution of the ombudsman needs to be strengthened
Body
- Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013
- Composition of Lokpal
- Appointment
- Challenges in working of Lokpal and Lokayuktas
- Way ahead
Conclusion
Corruption has a disproportionate impact on the poor and most vulnerable, increasing costs and reducing access to services, including health, education and justice. In order to tackle the problem of corruption, the institution of the ombudsman needs to be strengthened both in terms of functional autonomy and the availability of manpower.
UPSC Syllabus Statutory Bodies :
Why was this question asked?
‘A national Lokpal, however strong it may be, cannot resolve the problems of immorality in public affairs’. Discuss. (UPSC Main 2013)
Introduction:
India ranked 93 out of 180 countries on the corruption perceptions index for 2023, according to a Transparency International report. Lokpal, country’s first anti-corruption body, was established in an effort to promote clean and responsive governance. In order to tackle the problem of corruption, the institution of the ombudsman needs to be strengthened.
Body Status
Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013
- The Lokpal has jurisdiction to inquire into allegations of corruption against the Prime Minister, or a Minister in the Union government, or a Member of Parliament, as well as officials of the Union government under Groups A, B, C and D.
- Also covered are chairpersons, members, officers and directors of any board, corporation, society, trust or autonomous body either established by an Act of Parliament or wholly or partly funded by the Centre.
- It also covers any society or trust or body that receives foreign contributions above Rs.10 lakh.
Composition of Lokpal
- The Lokpal is a multi-member body with one chairperson and up to eight members.
- Half of the maximum eight members will be judges, and at least half of the members will be from the SC/ ST/ OBC/ Minorities and women groups.
- The Lokpal will have to appoint an Inquiry Wing, headed by a Director of Inquiry, and a Prosecution Wing, headed by a Director of Prosecution.
Appointment
- The President appoints the members after a Selection Committee recommends them.
- A search panel of at least eight people is formed by the selection committee (Headed by PM) to select the chairperson and members.
- Lokpal Chairman and Members serve for five years or until they reach the age of 70.
Challenges in working of Lokpal and Lokayuktas
- According to data provided by the Lokpal office to a parliamentary panel on the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), since 2019-20, the anti-corruption body received 8,703 complaints, out of which 5,981 complaints were disposed of.
- As many as 6,775 complaints were rejected for not being in the correct format.
- The Lokpal and Lokayukta Act of 2013, despite being passed in 2014, was not implemented due to the absence of a Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the 16th Lok Sabha.
- However, the Supreme Court clarified that this absence should not stall the appointment process for the Lokpal.
- According to a report by Transparency International, out of the total states and UTs, nine — Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh — have not amended their Lokayukta Acts to bring them in line with the Lokpal and Lokayukta Act of 2013.
- Only four states — Bihar, Manipur, Odisha, and Tamil Nadu have appointed judicial and non-judicial members of the anti-corruption ombudsman Lokayukta.
Way ahead
- Parliamentary committee recommends Lokpal not to reject genuine complaints merely on the technical ground that the complaint is not in the prescribed format.
- To prevent the concentration of power in one institution, various decentralized institutions with proper accountability mechanisms should be strengthened.
Conclusion
Corruption has a disproportionate impact on the poor and most vulnerable, increasing costs and reducing access to services, including health, education and justice. In order to tackle the problem of corruption, the institution of the ombudsman needs to be strengthened both in terms of functional autonomy and the availability of manpower.