Modi gives scientists a ‘new formula’

Bengaluru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said his government is making all efforts to “effectively use Information Technology to reduce red tape” and ensure “ease of doing of science”.

Addressing the 107^th Science Congress at the lush-green Gandhi Krishi Vignana Kendra Campus, University of Agricultural Sciences here, he also gave a new ‘formula’ for young scientists to take the nation forward —  “innovate, patent, produce and prosper.” These four steps would lead to a giant leap for India through “faster development,” he said.

In this context, the PM said: “I am happy to learn that India’s ranking has improved in the Innovation Index to 52. Our programs have created more technology business incubators in the last five years than in the previous 50 years… I congratulate our scientists for these accomplishments.”

He also said India needs “to explore, map and responsibly harness the vast oceanic resources of water, energy, food and minerals. “Our successes in space exploration should now be mirrored in the new frontier of the deep sea.”

But the PM dedicated a large portion of his speech to agriculture – a field that is a worry for India.  

“There is a need for revolution in technologies assisting agricultural practices. Can we find farmer-centric solutions to the problem of stalk burning for instance? Can we also redesign our brick kilns for reduced emissions and greater energy efficiency,’’ he said adding that like in all fields, there is need to use technology and new practices to boost agriculture production.

Modi also underlined the need on waste management. He said along with ‘’plastic waste, we also need new technology, new solutions to remove and reuse metal from electronic waste’’.

‘’Another important point I wish to make is the significance of “Make in India” in medical devices to bring the fruits of advances in diagnostics to our people. Mahatma Gandhi once said, “It is health that is the real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver,” he said.

‘’We know from science that the potential energy, the silent form of energy, can move mountains by its conversion to the kinetic energy of motion. Can we build a Science in Motion.” he added.

He patted Bengaluru saying “the city of gardens, is now a wonderful field for startups. The world is coming to innovate here. Science and Technology is being used for governance in the country, like never before. Globally we aim to develop India into a 100 billion bio-manufacturing hub by 2024.”

According to the varsity, the five-day event will also see the participation of Nobel laureates Stefan Hell from Max Planck Institut Germany and Ada E Yonath, an expert in structural biology from Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel. Around 15,000 people are expected to attend the event.