{"id":52686,"date":"2025-08-30T19:14:27","date_gmt":"2025-08-30T13:44:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=52686"},"modified":"2025-09-04T13:39:43","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T08:09:43","slug":"funding-concerns-in-dbt-biocare-programme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/30-08-2025\/funding-concerns-in-dbt-biocare-programme","title":{"rendered":"Funding Concerns in DBT Biocare Programme"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS3\/Science and Technology<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Almost five months after being selected for the <strong>DBT Biocare programme<\/strong>, none of the 75 chosen candidates has received the funds promised or salaries.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The DBT, which is under the <strong>Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST),<\/strong> has been running the <strong>Biocare programme since 2011.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It is mainly meant for the <strong>career development of unemployed female scientists, <\/strong>for whom it will be the first extramural research funding sanctioned by the government.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A doctoral woman researcher selected under the programme is eligible for a <strong>\u20b960 lakh grant for three years<\/strong>. This includes a salary component of <strong>\u20b975,000 a month.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>From 2020 to 2024, <\/strong>on average annually, nearly <strong>50 women scientists<\/strong> have been beneficiaries of the programme.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This year,<strong> 75 women scientists<\/strong> were chosen; however, in the absence of the required sanction letters or funds, they were unable to commence their research.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>R&amp;D Expenditure in India<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India\u2019s Gross Expenditure on Research and Development (GERD) as a percentage of GDP remained between <strong>0.6% to 0.7% <\/strong>which is <strong>below the global average<\/strong> and lower than countries <strong>like China, South Korea and the US.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Another factor contributing to this is the <strong>relatively low investment by India\u2019s private sector in GERD<\/strong>, accounting for <strong>only around 36%,<\/strong> whereas in the aforementioned countries, <strong>private sector contributions are more than 70%<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Need for Funding in R&amp;D<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Economic Growth<\/strong>: Drives new industries, improves productivity, and enhances global competitiveness.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Technological Advancement<\/strong>: Facilitates breakthroughs in fields like AI, biotechnology, and renewable energy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Social Challenges<\/strong>: Helps address poverty, healthcare, education, and environmental sustainability issues.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Job Creation<\/strong>: Innovation generates employment opportunities and stimulates entrepreneurship.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Global Positioning<\/strong>: Positions India as a global leader in science, technology, and knowledge.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Attracts Investment<\/strong>: Promotes foreign and domestic investments in research-driven sectors.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Implications of Low Funding<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Investment Concerns<\/strong>: Limited investment in research and development, especially in public institutions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Infrastructure Gaps<\/strong>: Inadequate research facilities and resources in many institutions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Brain Drain<\/strong>: Loss of talent to other countries due to better opportunities abroad.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Lack of Industry Collaboration<\/strong>: Limited partnerships between academia and industry for practical innovation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Skill Gaps<\/strong>: Insufficient training and development of skilled researchers and innovators.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Government Initiatives<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) Scheme: <\/strong>Approved with a \u20b91 lakh crore corpus, this scheme aims to energise private-sector R&amp;D and deep-tech startups.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It offers long-term, low- or zero-interest loans, equity investments, and funds a new Deep-Tech Fund of Funds via the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>National Quantum Mission: <\/strong>Allocated \u20b96,003.65 crore for 2023\u201331, to advance quantum technologies through scientific and industrial R&amp;D.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Atal Innovation Mission (AIM): <\/strong>To foster innovation at the grassroots level by providing support to students, startups, and entrepreneurs.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The National Mission on High-Yielding Seeds <\/strong>will focus on strengthening the research ecosystem and developing high-yielding, pest-resistant, and climate-resilient seeds, aligning with DBT\u2019s efforts in agricultural biotechnology.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>National Manufacturing Mission (NMM): <\/strong>Aligned with the government\u2019s <strong>\u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/27-08-2024\/bioe3-policy\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/27-08-2024\/bioe3-policy\">BioE3 Policy<\/a>\u2019 <\/strong>for fostering high-performance biomanufacturing, the NMM announced in the Budget aims to accelerate technology development and commercialisation.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The Seaweed Mission and Learn &amp; Earn Program<\/strong> empower women entrepreneurs, supporting economic inclusion.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Way Forward<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>To raise R&amp;D spending, there is a need to have increased partnerships with the private sector.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Efforts are being made to create better synergies between industry, research labs, and educational institutions to broaden both research activity and the funds to support it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/sci-tech\/science\/women-biotech-scientists-await-funds-for-research\/article69989176.ece#:~:text=It%20is%20mainly%20meant%20for,lakh%20grant%20for%20three%20years.\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>TH<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Almost five months after being selected for the DBT Biocare programme, none of the 75 chosen candidates has received the funds promised or salaries.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<h3><strong>About<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The DBT, which is under the Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST), has been running the Biocare programme since 2011.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It is mainly meant for the career development of unemployed female scientists, for whom it will be the first extramural research funding sanctioned by the government.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">A doctoral woman researcher selected under the programme is eligible for a \u20b960 lakh grant for three years. This includes a salary component of \u20b975,000 a month.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">From 2020 to 2024, on average annually, nearly 50 women scientists have been beneficiaries of the programme.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/uncategorized\/30-08-2025\/funding-concerns-in-dbt-biocare-programme\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read\u00a0More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52686","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52686","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52686"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52686\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":52969,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52686\/revisions\/52969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}