National Technology Day Celebrated

Union Minister for Science & Technology and Ocean Development, Shri Kapil Sibal has called for promotion of a multi-disciplinary and multi-faceted innovation capacity to address the challenges the country is facing today. Speaking at a function to celebrate National Technology Day today in New Delhi, he said strategies have to be deployed to develop skilled human resource in our education institutions in order to accelerate innovation and boost our R&D. The public and private research institutions then, the Minister pointed out, will be able to recruit and retain leading scientists and researchers, engineers, technicians and skilled experts. He said strong intellectual property protections are the foundations for innovative R&D and his Ministry would soon introduce a legislation in Parliament for sharing IPR generated in Government funded/ aided research activities and also expressed hope that the level of R&D expenditure may increase to 2 per cent of GDP allocations. Pointing out that global economy is knowledge driven Shri Sibal also emphasized the need to create, grow and nurture high technology clusters.

Addressing the gathering, the Chief Guest Dr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission said that the country has comparative advantage in development of technology in terms of skilled manpower but its supply has to keep pace with the demand. He observed that out of 98 per cent children who enroll for primary education only 8 per cent pursue higher studies. We ought to be aiming at 20 per cent in order to expand the core of our comparative advantage that is skilled manpower, he said. Dr. Ahluwalia also called upon the public sector as well as private industries to come forward to invest in R&D instead of depending heavily upon Government investments.

Various awards for excellence in technology were presented and some new products were released on the occasion. The awardees included Bharat Biotech International Limited, Hyderabad and Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, Delhi for developing technology for commercialization of recombinant human Epidermal Growth Factor through a public-private partnership under the Brand Name REGEN-DTM –150 fir diabetic foot ulcers and REGEN-DTM -60 for burns and skin grafts. Award to SSI Unit for the successful commercialization of a technology-based product was given to SEC Industries Private Limited, Hyderabad and Eagle Engineering Works, Chennai.

Source : Press Information Bureau
Date : May 11, 2006