An annual salary of $1 lakh per annum is in the offing for foreign faculty of the Indian origin to work in some of the leading science institutes.

The department of science and technology and the planning commission has finalised a package to attract some of the well-known names in the world of science to Indian institutes as part of its new "brain-gain" policy expected to be unveiled by finance minister P Chidambaram in this year's budget.

"We want to hire at least 15 faculty members from best universities in the coming year," said a senior planning commission official. A provision of Rs. 15 crore would be made in the department's budget for the financial year 2013-14.

The official said role of the foreign faculty would not only be teach but also to mentor the institutions in a bid to inculcate new concepts of science education and research. "The aim is to bring a culture change," the official said.

Getting the proposal through was not easy as similar bids of the Indian Institutes of Technology had failed to take off because of resistance from the ministry of home affairs. The IITs wanted a work visa for five-years, which the home ministry was not willing to issue.

The government has been able to get around this technical issue with the Plan panel deputy chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia getting the home ministry on board.

The package to be offered would be for a year and extendable by another four years. "The ministry has no objection in granting teaching visa for a year," an official said. The package would also provide for accommodation within the campus and personal staff.