Recently, the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), an autonomous body of the Department of Science & Technology (DST) under the Union Ministry of Science & Technology, has brought the ‘Accelerate Vigyan’ scheme into the limelight by inviting applications for the summer season under its program ‘ABHYAAS’.
Understanding the Accelerate Vigyan Scheme
The ‘Accelerate Vigyan’ (AV) scheme revolves around promoting high-end scientific research and nurturing a scientific workforce that can contribute to a knowledge-based economy. The scheme seeks to broaden the research base in India with three fundamental objectives — unifying all scientific training programs, initiating high-end orientation workshops, and creating avenues for training and skill internships.
Components of the Accelerate Vigyan Scheme
Consisting of two primary components, ABHYAAS and SAMMOHAN, the AV scheme is instrumental in fostering research and development in the country.
The ABHYAAS program caters to potential postgraduate and PhD students by fostering dedicated research skills through high-end workshops referred to as “KAARYASHALA” and Training and Skill Internship known as “VRITIKA”. This approach is particularly beneficial for researchers with limited opportunities to access such learning facilities or infrastructure.
SAMMOHAN consists of two subdivisions – SAYONJIKA and SANGOSHTI. SAYONJIKA is an open-ended program designed to record capacity building activities in science and technology funded by all government funding agencies in India. SANGOSHTI, on the other hand, is a pre-existing program by SERB aimed at organizing workshops.
Benefits of such Steps
The AV scheme contributes significantly towards capacity building, with the help of a database that records skilled manpower developed across different disciplines via all its sub-components. Furthermore, the scheme also attempts to harness the social responsibility of India’s scientific community.
Initiatives Taken in 2022-23 Budget to Boost Science and Technology
A noticeable allocation of Rs 50,000 crores, spread over five years, was announced for the National Research Foundation in the 2022-23 budget. This allocation aims to reinforce the overall research ecosystem in India while focussing on identified national-priority thrust areas.
In addition, the budget declared the establishment of umbrella structures in nine cities. These structures aim at enhancing synergies among R&D institutions, universities, and colleges supported by the government, whilst maintaining their internal autonomy. This will be managed by the Ministry of Education, with a dedicated Glue Grant set aside for the purpose.
The Department of Biotechnology is also implementing the URJIT clusters (University Research Joint Industry Translation Clusters) in 10 locations, as per the budget announcement in February 2020, to complement the activities of the umbrella structures.
