Science And Technology

With support from the Government, considerable investment and development has incurred in different sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, space research, and nuclear power through scientific research. For instance, India is gradually becoming self-reliant in nuclear technology.

Some of the recent developments in the field of science and technology in India are as follows:

• In March 2022, Toyota launched its Mirai hydrogen fuel cell car in India. The Indian Oil Corporation would be supplying hydrogen to power the car.
• As per the Economic Survey 2022, India’s gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD) as a percentage of GDP stood at 0.66%.
• India's Top 5 IT firms (TCS, Infosys, Wipro, HCL and Tech Mahindra) added more than 122,000 employees in in the first six months of FY22, nearly matching the 138,000 employees hired in the entirety of FY21.
• In 2021, the Indian pharma industry showed double digit growth of around 13-15% led by growth of Covid-19 products, as against a single digit growth of 3% shown in 2020.
• In November 2021, the Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Earth Sciences, in association with Vijnana Bharati (VIBHA), launched India International Science Festival 2021, a unique platform, with its theme being celebration of creativity in science, technology and innovation for a prosperous India
• In November 2021, Atal Innovation Mission and Vigyan Prasar collaborated to drive synergies between Atal Tinkering Labs and Vigyan Prasar’s unique platform, Engage With Science.
• In October 2021, the government announced plans to establish 75 science technology & innovation hubs in India for scheduled castes (SCs) and scheduled tribes (STs) and empower them to contribute to the socio-economic improvement of the country.
• In October 2021, the government launched the Indian Space Association (ISpA) to accelerate technology advancements and strengthen the space sector in the country.
• India offers various opportunities for research & development and innovations. As of 2021, >70% of the 50 most innovative firms across the world have a research and development centre in India.
• In October 2021, Biz2Credit, a fintech company, announced plan to invest US$ 100 million in India over the next five years on research and development activities and expansions.
• In October 2021, India and Denmark agreed for a five-year plan to implement green strategic partnership for enhancing collaboration in various areas including science and technology.
• In October 2021, India and Europe held discussions to review the progress on science and technology bilateral cooperation and strengthen efforts on research and innovation.
• On September 27, 2021, DRDO tested a new version of the Akash Missile, Akash Prime, equipped with an active Radio Frequency (RF) seeker for improved accuracy.
• In September 2021, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology, Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh, launched the ‘AmritGrand Challenge Programme’ called ‘JANCARE’. This programme has been launched to identify 75 start-ups in several sectors such as telemedicine, digital health and mHealth with Big Data, AI, blockchain and other technologies.
• In September 2021, Atal Innovation Mission and Dassault Systèmes announced their plan to set up an innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem across India.
• In August 2021, the Government of India announced its support to 75 start-ups in the areas of telemedicine, artificial intelligence and digital health.
• From 2014 to 2021, India recorded a 572% growth in patent approvals.
• In September 2021, India published the amended Patents Rules (2021) and reduced fees by 80% for educational institutions.
• In July 2021, ISRO announced that its geo-imaging satellite ‘EOS-03’, which will enable near-real time monitoring of natural disasters such as floods and cyclones, is scheduled for launch in the third quarter of 2021 and Chandrayaan-3 is likely to be launched in the third quarter of 2022.
• In August 2021, the central government approved Deep Ocean Mission (DOM), which will be implemented by the Ministry of Earth Sciences at a total budget of Rs. 4,077 crore (US$ 548.54 million) for five years. The mission is a multi-ministerial, multi-disciplinary programme to develop deep-sea technologies such as manned submersibles (that are rated for 6,000-metre water depth) and enable deep-sea mining, exploration of deep-sea mineral resources and marine biodiversity, acquisition of a research vessel to explore oceans, conduct deep-sea observations and build capacities in marine biology research.
• In August 2021, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology, Dr. Jitendra Singh announced that gamma irradiation technology for food preservation has been shared with private players and at present, 26 gamma radiation processing plants are operational in the country in private, semi government and government sector for irradiation of various products.
• In August 2021, ISRO announced that it is in discussions with European and Israeli space agencies to boost cooperation and recognise potential opportunities to work.
• In August 2021, INDIAai and NASSCOM launched the first edition of the Lab2Market initiative to boost industry-academia collaboration.
• DST and GE India are likely to collaborate for Advanced Technology Research, according to the Science and Engineering Research Board. Over the next five years, academic institutes will get up to US$ 2.68 million in funding for research in the fields of energy, healthcare and aviation.
• In June 2021, DRDO developed an anti-drone technology to detect and neutralise unmanned aerial vehicles. This technology uses radar system that offers 360-degree coverage.
• On June 28, 2021, DRDO tested a nuclear-capable ballistic missile ‘Agni P’ with range capability of 1,000-2,000 kms.
• On June 9, 2021, ICAR signed a MoU with the Digital India Corporation to provide location-specific demand-based tele-agriculture advisories.