- Make no mistake, the modern world belongs to governments that will not only invest large sums of money in critical research and development of cutting-edge technology but will also persuade private investors to invest in the sector as well. Because competition is fierce, government investments may not be enough to keep a country relevant on the global stage. Smart policies that entice large corporate behemoths to fund and sponsor some of the most cutting-edge technologies would go a long way toward solving the modern world’s needs.
PC: Guest author
- If a country wants to be regarded among the best, it must devote sufficient time and money to R&D. Period. Nonetheless, the rapidly emerging technologies around the world indicate that no country can afford to relax or take its foot off the pedal in terms of investment. In this context, the Union Government’s initiative to establish the National Research Foundation is a brilliant concept. The Union Government’s problem, however, is to persuade private enterprises to significantly expand R&D spending. As previously noted, India and South Korea were on the same footing in an important area in 1980.
- Both countries spent 0.6% of their GDP on R&D. The difference is apparent four decades later. India’s R&D expenditure as a proportion of GDP remains less than 1%, while South Korea’s is close to 5%, with the private sector accounting for four-fifths of it. For example, the Korean company Samsung now outspends India’s total yearly R&D effort. This is the setting in which the Union Government intends to enact legislation establishing a National Research Foundation. The foundation, which would have a corpus of Rs 50,000 crore for five years, is intended to serve as an apex entity to provide high-level strategic direction to scientific research.
PC: Bing AI and Millennium Post
- The GOI is going all out for the proposed NRF, with the PM serving as its ex-officio president. It’s a strong indication of the seriousness of the effort, which includes a mission to facilitate collaborations between public and commercial research organizations. Consider the structure of India’s endeavor at this point. The government spends about 56% of R&D dollars, while the private sector spends 35%. In technologically advanced countries, the profile is distinct. R&D is headed by the private sector, which contributes up to 88% in Israel. When it comes to R%D, India is at a crossroads.
- There’s the example of Mexico where the R&D spend to GDP ratio has stagnated for decades, and so has Mexico’s per capita income growth. On the other side, South Korea and Taiwan have emerged as technology leaders and rich countries as a result of private-sector-led growth in R&D’s percentage of GDP over the last four decades. The amount to which the NRF nudges India’s large corporations to increase R&D spending will be a gauge of its success. Disappointingly, India’s top ten most profitable non-financial corporations spend only 0.3% of sales on R&D, with TCS leading the list at 1.4%. This level of investment will not develop technology leaders. Additional work is required!
