By Moiz Mannan
Indian brains are fueling the growth and development of societies across the globe. It’s been decades now since the term ‘brain drain’ was coined and numerous attempts are said to have been made to reverse it.
One more such attempt is now being made by the Narendra Modi-led dispensation in New Delhi. His minister for science and technology has said that more avenues are being laid for leading non-resident Indian (NRI) brains, mainly scientists and researchers, to lend their talent to India on a permanent or even temporary basis.
According to social scientists, one of the major drawbacks of the earlier attempts to woo back NRIs has been the misconception that they all migrated for money. Whereas, the flight of intellect could only in part be for higher earnings, it is mainly for career and professional improvement.
The bureaucratic hurdles, petty politics, nepotism and official lethargy are some of the main causes of frustration among the meritorious and talented individuals. They feel choked in a work environ where factors other than merit and results affect one’s career and professional fortunes.
Scientists, researchers and academics need freedom, flexibility and facilities to show their true worth. If administrative set-ups of their workplace are corrupt and inefficient, they are denied the kind of equipment and instruments they need to compete with counterparts elsewhere in the world.
Just over a month back, the Minister of State (Independent charge) for Science and Technology in the NDA government, Jitendra Singh, told the Indian parliament that several NRI scientists working abroad have expressed willingness to work in India as their confidence in the work environment in the country had increased.
Strengthening infrastructure for research and development in universities, encouraging public-private R&D partnerships, recognition of R&D units and national awards for outstanding R&D for industries are some of the efforts being made to promote scientific research, he was quoted by the media as having told the Lok Sabha.
The Modi government was also said to have initiated talks with some eminent NRI scientists in an effort to engage their expertise. These scientists, mostly coming back to India through different government fellowships will be inducted in various well-known institutions and departments that include the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bose Institute and many other research centres, and other institutions mainly funded by the government.
Besides the two major existing re-entry fellowships - Ramalingaswami and Ramanujan – the science and technology ministry plans more such programmes to woo scientists and researchers back. According to Singh, the government was trying to facilitate and create a favourable environment along with social infrastructure.
Ministry officials have told the media that some NRI scientists have shown interest in projects run by India Meteorological Department. Most of them want to work in India on a temporary basis, though.
The Manmohan Singh government too had done its bit in this regard. The UPA, which ruled Indian for a decade, had plans to introduce a scheme whereby “very high quality” scientists would be offered an annual remuneration of $100,000 in addition to fully furnished accommodation and relocation expenses for a minimum of one and up to three years in India.
The then chairman of the Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, had prepared a “conceptual note” that was circulated to secretaries of scientific departments of the government. He had also pioneered the introduction of the “National Jawaharlal Nehru Science Fellowships”.
However, the basic ailment remained. An NRI scientist would be as effective, or otherwise, as an Indian scientist if the system did not improve. The experience has been that most Indian researchers do quite well when working in systems that are conducive to research and where science comes first.
There was a rather embarrassing case a few years back where purported “leadership issues” in the Council of Scientific and Industrial Resaearch (CSIR) drove away a Fullbright Scholar, V A Shiva Ayyadurai, from such a re-entry scheme.
The Modi government would do well to learn from past mistakes and misjudgments. It its haste to prove itself to a massive electorate the NDA must not deviate from the basic need of creating a favourable work and social environment first and wooing the NRIs later.
The new government also needs to prioritise on the areas in which it wants NRI assistance and develop a need-based approach. Surely, this country doesn’t want and can’t afford research for the sake of mere awards and patents.
Prioritising critical R&D areas like agriculture, telecommunications, energy, water management, health and drug discovery, materials, environment and climate variability and change is essential. Rolling out the red carpet for any and every NRI researcher would not be prudent.
The Peninsula
