India and UK Set to Step Up Their R&D Collaboration

Engagement between India and the United Kingdom in the area of research and development is set to get a major boost with top officials of the two countries expressing their commitment to give the collaboration a new thrust.

At a panel discussion organised here today to celebrate the impact of a decade-long partnership of research and innovation, the officials recalled how the investments on collaborative projects has gone up from a mere one million pound in 2008 to over 300 million pounds now and emphasized the need for continued efforts to tap future opportunities and challenges with a similar spirit.

Sir Dominic Asquith, British High Commissioner to India said, “The UK-India research and innovation partnership sets an example of how our two countries can act as a joint force for good in the world.  It has generated innovative scientific and technological solutions that will help transform both our societies and economies”.

Professor K. VijayRaghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, expressed satisfaction that the India-UK joint research and innovation projects over the last ten years had helped pool the expertise of the academic and business communities to address shared challenges. “I wish the India-UK collaboration greater success in times to come”.

Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, Dr. Ashutosh Sharma, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, Dr. Renu Swarup, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Dr. M.Rajeevan, Secretary, Atomic Energy Commission and Head of the Institutional Collaboration and Programmes Division of the Department of Atomic Energy, Arun Srivastav, Director General of Indian Council of Medical Research, Balram Bhargava, Chairman of Indian Council of Historical Research, Prof Arvind Jhamdekhar and Member Secretary, Indian Council of Social Science Research, Prof. V.K.Malhotra, spoke about the various opportunities and challenges that could be taken up for research and development in the coming years.

Executive Chair of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) programme’s Science and Technology Facilities Council, Prof. Mark Thomson, Executive Chair of UKRI’s Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Melani Welhem, and Director of UKRI India Office, Daniel Shah, highlighted the various possibilities available for India and UK to take forward the collaborations.

In the last 10 years, UK and India have funded over 200 collaborative projects, involving over 175 research institutions and more than 100 industry partners. The projects have covered an array of themes, including, energy, environment, food security, health, next-generation IT networks, social sciences, and humanities. (India Science Wire)

By Sunderarajan Padmanabhan

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