Economic Survey: How India can become a global science & technology leader

As India emerges as one of the world’s largest economies, the Economic Survey 2017-2018 has cautioned that it needs to gradually move from being a net consumer of knowledge to becoming a net producer. In fact, the Survey has called for a doubling of R&D spending - led by the private sector - to help propel the country to a global science and technology leader.

"The open spirit of inquiry that is fundamental to science can provide a bulwark against the darker forces of dogma and religious obscurantism that are resurfacing around the world," said the Survey.

Building its case around this premise, the Survey has hailed innovations in science and technology a key driver of economic performance, suggesting a string of ideas to help recapture its true spirit in India.


Private intervention
As per the Survey, investments in science in India - measured in terms of Gross Expenditure on R&D (GERD) - have shown a consistently increasing trend over the years. However, as a fraction of GDP, public expenditures on research have been stagnant over the past two decades – between 0.6-0.7% of GDP – well below that of major nations like US and China.

In these countries, private sector carries out the bulk of research and development unlike in India, where the government is the primary source of R&D funding.

In fact, the Survey states that private investments in research have severely lagged public investments in India. According to an anaylsis conducted by Forbes and quoted by the Survey in 2017, there are only 26 Indian companies in the list of the top 2,500 global R&D spenders, out of which, 19 are concentrated between just three sectors.

What is more, universities in India also play a relatively small role in the research activities of the country.

This is critical because educational institutions in many countries across the globe play a massive role in both creating the talent pool for research as well generating high quality research output.

The other critical input for R&D is a well-trained workforce among which Ph.D. students play an especially important role.

Indian Ph.D. students obtain their degrees either within India or abroad, especially in the US. However, it appears that fewer Indian students have been enrolling in recent years for such degrees, whether due to more attractive options after a master’s degree or rising work visa challenges.

Transforming Science & Technology in India
Clearly, India needs to redouble its efforts to improve science and R&D in the country, first and foremost by doubling national expenditures on R&D with most of the increase coming from the private sector and universities.

But what can lead to a broader contribution to providing value for society?

As per the Survey, these include:
1. Investing in educating its youth in science and mathematics
2. Reforming the way R&D is conducted by engaging the private sector
3. Taking a more mission-driven approach in areas such as dark matter, genomics, energy, agriculture and mathematics
4. Matching efforts directed at improving "ease of doing business" to the "ease of doing science" index as well.