‘Come, work and serve in India’: Industry minister Piyush Goyal calls for stronger research ecosystem to attract Indian talent back home

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has called for stronger industry-academia partnerships and better research facilities to encourage Indian scientists, engineers and researchers working abroad to return to India.

Addressing Indian science and technology research students in Berlin, Germany, Goyal said the government would work with educational institutions, research organisations and industry to understand the needs of young researchers and create conditions for them to work in India.

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"I have asked them to tell us what they will need in order to consider and how can we support more young researchers or our talented engineers and scientific community to come and work and serve in India," he said.

Goyal said attracting talent required more than financial incentives, with the research environment and institutional support also playing a key role.

He said India could take a global leadership role in several technology sectors and called for closer collaboration between industry and research institutions.

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Areas with scope for collaboration include power electronics, semiconductors, quantum computing, smart manufacturing, automobiles and auto components, batteries, logistics and agriculture.

Referring to Germany's research ecosystem, Goyal said the Fraunhofer institutes engaged around 22,000 scientists and operated with a budget exceeding 2 billion euros. He said his meetings with German research institutions and industrial innovation enterprises had focused on taking research from laboratories to commercial applications.

Goyal said German companies increasingly viewed India as a partner and a base for manufacturing, research and development, and innovation.

"German precision and research and Indian scale and talent" could create opportunities for innovation, manufacturing and investment, he said.

Goyal is on an official visit to Germany from October 22 to 24, followed by a visit to the Netherlands from October 24 to 27. The visit aims to expand India’s cooperation with European partners in technology, industrial partnerships and research and development.