The Prime
Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh released the first Report the People of the Nation
Innovation Council Function in New Delhi today. He also launched Council’s
portal on the occasion. Speaking on the occasion Prime Minister emphasized that
his government would like to pioneer a model of innovation that addresses
problems in areas of poverty eradication, people’s health, rural
communications, development of agriculture, development of animal husbandry,
green energy and similar other challenges. Following is the text of Prime Minister’s Address:
“I am very
happy to participate in this unique function which marks one year of solid work
by the National Innovation Council. This
Council has very eminent men and women as its members and I thank each one of them
for their contribution during the past year or so. The Report to the People
just released today contains a summary of the
Council’s activities during this period of one year and it is a matter of
satisfaction for all of us that the progress achieved so far has been very
good.
As you are
aware, in 2009, our government declared its intent to make the next decade a
Decade of Innovation. This is because we realize that innovation has a critical
role to play in the processes of India’s economic and social growth and
development. The sets of challenges that we as a nation face is not only
diverse but in some ways also unique. It is only through creativity and
innovation, by coming up with novel solutions appropriate to the Indian
condition and Indian context, that we can meet these challenges effectively.
Indeed we see innovation as truly a game changer to move from incremental
change to radical change. And therefore it is our resolve to build an enabling
environment for innovation to flourish in our country.
There are some
advantages that we have in achieving the task that we have set for
ourselves. Our democracy, our diversity
and our demography are all facilitating factors which encourage innovation in
our country. Our democracy, which has been deepening through Panchayats and
broadening through civil society action, gives an opportunity to multiply to
multiple thoughts to contend with each other.
Our diversity is an advantage as there is evidence that innovation
happens when people with diverse talents engage in a common endeavor. And demographically we are also a very
youthful nation. The young people are restless, they are impatient for change,
and they are innovative. We need to fully exploit these enormous advantages that
we have as a nation.
Our legacy of
innovation goes a long way back. As Sam mentioned, we were the first to realize
the vision of “universities” at Nalanda and Takhshashila. Our freedom struggle
that we won without recourse to arms was a social innovation in peaceful
resistance. In recent times, we have
made several innovations in areas such as space technology, atomic energy, and
automobiles. But innovation in our country has by and large focused mostly on
the needs of the upper income groups and not adequately on solving the problems
of the poor and the underprivileged. We
wish and we must change this state of
affairs. We would like to pioneer a model of innovation that addresses problems
in areas such as poverty eradication, people’s health, rural communications, development
of agriculture, development of animal husbandry, green energy and similar other
challenges. We are currently witnessing an innovative experiment in
rights-based delivery through a Right to Work, Right to Education and Right to
Information, while a Right to Food Security is on the anvil.
I have been
told that in the first year of its work, the National Innovation Council has
focused on nurturing a culture of innovation through education. It has built on
the earlier work of the National Knowledge Commission towards creating a
National Knowledge Network which would ultimately connect all colleges in our
county. It also proposes to launch a meta-university, which would provide a
student the opportunity to pursue another discipline of study in another
college that is part of the network.
This would enable a student of astrophysics in the Indian Institute of
Science, Bangalore, for example, to take up a course in comparative literature
at the Jadavpur University. Such
creative reconfigurations are expected to create “new minds” conducive to the
growth of innovation.
A number of
other initiatives have also been taken. The Ministry of Human Resource
Development under the leadership of Kapil Sibal proposes to introduce
Innovation Fellowships to reward talent at the school level. It also proposes to engage students at High
School level to map local history, ecology and local cultural heritage to make
them critically conscious of their immediate surrounding environment. Similarly, to increase competitiveness of local
small scale industry, the National Innovation Council together with the
Ministry of Micro Small and Medium enterprises and with the assistance of CSIR
is setting up industry innovation clusters.
Two University clusters have signed in for setting up courses in
innovation—the University of Delhi and recently the MS University of
Baroda. To promote innovation, the 13th
Finance Commission has provided a Rs 1 crore grant to each District called the
District Innovation Fund. State level
Innovation Councils have been set up to complement activities of the National
Council. The Prasar Bharati has taken a decision to champion local innovations
and local heroes of innovation. In
addition they will be showcasing India’s legacy of creative innovative thought
and our major innovations in the contemporary India.
With these
words I would like to compliment Sam and his team at the National Innovation
Council for these steps. I also wish to thank my Cabinet colleagues
particularly Shri Pranab Mukharjee for extending their whole-hearted support to
these new pioneering initiatives. I wish the National Innovation Council all
success in the noble work it is engaged in.”
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RCJ/SH/RK/LM