PM Modi focuses on localised solution to global problems at first meeting of ANRF

New Delhi [India], September 10 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the first meeting of the Governing Board of Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) at his residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg on Tuesday.

The meeting focused on discussion about India’s science and technology landscape and redesigning of research and development programmes, according to the Prime Minister’s Office press release.

During the meeting, PM Modi said that today a new beginning has been made with the first meeting of the governing body of ANRF. He stressed the need to identify and remove obstacles in the research ecosystem of the country. He talked about setting big targets, focusing on attaining them and doing path breaking research.

PM Modi said that research should focus on finding new solutions to existing problems. He emphasised that problems might be global in nature but their solutions must be localised in accordance with Indian needs.

He discussed the need for upgradation and standardisation of institutions. He suggested preparing a list of domain experts on the basis of their expertise. PM Modi also talked about developing a dashboard where information related to research and development happening in the country can be easily tracked.

The Prime Minister stressed the need for scientific monitoring of the utilisation of resources for research and innovation. Saying that this is an ambitious beginning, he said the scientific community of the country should have faith that there will be no dearth of resources for their endeavours.

Discussing the positive impacts of Atal Tinkering Labs, the Prime Minister suggested that grading of these labs can be done. He also discussed research in various areas, like looking for new solutions to climate change, battery ingredients for EVs, lab-grown diamonds, among others, added the release.

During the meeting, the Governing Body decided to launch a programme in hub and spoke mode by pairing universities where research is at a nascent stage with top tier established institutions in mentorship mode.

Governing Body also discussed several areas of strategic interventions of ANRF which include global positioning of India in key sectors, aligning R&D with national priorities, promoting inclusive growth, capacity building, driving scientific advances and innovation ecosystems, as well as bridging the gap between academic research and industrial applications through industry-aligned translational research.

The ANRF will launch programmes on solution-focussed research in mission mode in select priority areas like electric vehicle (EV) mobility, advanced materials, solar cells, smart infrastructure, health & medical technology, sustainable Agriculture and photonics. The Governing Body observed that these efforts would impactfully supplement our march towards Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

While underscoring the translational research with active participation from the industry, the Governing Body also emphasised promoting fundamental research for the advancement of knowledge. It was decided to set up Centres of Excellence to support interdisciplinary research in the humanities and social sciences. It was also agreed that there was a need to empower our researchers with flexible and transparent funding mechanisms towards achieving ease of doing research.

The Governing Body also directed that the ANRF strategies should align with the goals of Viksit Bharat 2047 and implementation should follow global best practices adopted by research and development agencies across the world.

The meeting was attended by Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Education as the Vice-President of Governing Body, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India as Member Secretary, Member (Science), NITI Aayog and Secretary, Department of Science & Technology, Department of Biotechnology, Department of Scientific & Industrial Research and Department of Higher Education as its ex-officio members. Other prominent participants included Prof Manjul Bhargava (Princeton University, USA), Dr Romesh T Wadhwani (Symphony Technology Group, USA), Prof Subra Suresh (Brown University, USA), Dr Raghuvendra Tanwar (Indian Council of Historical Research), Prof Jayaram N Chengalur (Tata Institute of Fundamental Research) and Prof G Rangarajan (Indian Institute of Science).

ANRF has been established to promote research and development and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout India’s universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories.

ANRF acts as an apex body to provide high-level strategic direction of scientific research in the country as per recommendations of the National Education Policy. ANRF forges collaborations among the industry, academia, and government departments and research institutions.