Cabinet approves introduction of National Research Foundation Bill in Parliament
The Cabinet allocated ₹50,000 crore to set up an apex body that will “seed, grow and promote” research and development throughout India
New Delhi: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the introduction of National Research Foundation (NRF) Bill, 2023, and allocated ₹50,000 crore to set up an apex body that will “seed, grow and promote” research and development (R&D) throughout India’s universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories over the next five years.
“The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today (Wednesday) approved the introduction of the National Research Foundation (NRF) Bill, 2023 in the Parliament. The approved Bill will pave the way to establish NRF that will seed, grow and promote Research and Development (R&D) and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout India’s universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories,” the Centre said in a statement.
“The bill, after approval in Parliament, will establish NRF, an apex body to provide high-level strategic direction of scientific research in the country as per recommendations of the National Education Policy (NEP), at a total estimated cost of ₹50,000 crore during five years (2023-28).”
Out of the allocated ₹50,000 crore, the government plans to raise ₹36,000 crore through investments from industries and philanthropists, while the remaining amount will be funded by the government— ₹10,000 crore from the Centre and ₹4,000 crore through subsuming Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) into the NRF.
Union minister of science and technology, Dr Jitendra Singh, said that the NRF will create a “vibrant ecosystem of research in the country, which will go beyond the Indian Institutes of Technology and encourage uniformity in development of research institutions”.
A senior official from the ministry of science and technology said that the initial idea for a dedicated funding agency to promote research in India was mooted in 2018 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address at the annual Indian Science Congress. A proposal to this effect took shape between 2020 and 2022.
“Currently, there is a major disparity in the funding of research institutes in the country. Institutes such as the IITs take up a major chunk of the funding because of their infrastructure and rankings, but it is also because of this funding that they have been able to improve their facilities. There is so much research happening in other universities, including state-level institutes, that is going unnoticed because they are not receiving the required financial help,” the official explained.
“We aim to do away with this disparity,” he added.
Officials explained that the department of science and technology (DST) will be the administrative department of NRF, which will have a governing body headed by the Prime Minister who will be the ex-officio president, and an executive council, chaired by the principal scientific advisor to the government of India.
“Since the scope of the NRF is wide-ranging – impacting all ministries - the Prime Minister will be the ex-officio president of the board and the union minister of science and technology, and union minister of education will be the ex-officio vice-presidents,” the government has said.
The government said that NRF will forge collaborations among the industry, academia, and government departments and research institutions, and create an interface mechanism for participation and contribution of industries and state governments in addition to the scientific and line ministries. It will also focus on creating a policy framework and putting in place regulatory processes that can encourage collaboration and increased spending by the industry on research and development.