Universities are the backbones of a country.
Universities are the backbones of a country.
The research activities going in top universities of a nation decide the direction of technological developments of a nation.
Be it doing research on protective clothing for military or missile and aircraft research. These all lead to an elevated level of self-dependence & hard and soft Power of a country.
We can, for example, consider our neighbour country china which is technologically advanced in many domains compared to India which is the country of zero and decimal which boasts of its exceptionally advanced and prosperous glorious history. The land is known in the name of Maths, Mythology and the world's first university.
There were times when India was seen as the west of south Asian countries.
What's the reason that China can quickly copy technology and find a market in India until India is unaware of it?
The reason India lags against China in most technological aspects despite having the youngest population in the world is its low quality as well as a number of researches.
Professors and students are more inclined to publish as many research papers as possible, with the minimum possible funds to improve their portfolios.
Lack of funds is a significant concern which comes in the way:
A research Scholar who comes from in many cases a poor or average middle-class family despite struggling with limited resources available in university laboratories and in an atmosphere where higher education has no or less place in industries gets one-tenth of the scholarship in these so-called exceptionally excellent institutions of India as compared to the scholars in those countries considered to be technologically advanced, despite of knowing the fact that the only way forward is to be a professor or a government servant through very few, irregular, delayed vacancies and joinings coined by the government once in a blue moon.
In such a situation many parents don't allow it or the economic background restricts the researchers to enroll on a master's or doctoral program after graduation. Because of course the basic needs of a human Food, Cloth and Shelter have to be arranged somehow for the growing demands of the generation ahead.
In such situations, many good brains are diverted to industries in pursuit of fulfilling needs and adding a sum of a few rupees.
The rest of those who have anyhow managed to enrol in such high-level programs remain mentally stuck on how to balance the requirements of their own family and research with such limited funds.
Leave the family, the personal basic needs and stationary needs aren't fulfilled. This situation worsens when the student falls ill, or buys a laptop, bicycle or something else yet reasonable but away from the limited scope of the available funds.
One brutal and unfortunate opinion put forward by some government authorities is that "we provide funds only for students, not their families".
Then the question arises: what about your married scholars? How can they bear the burden of their little children and family? Some students along with studies were trying to cut his necessities and anyhow supply some small yet insufficient amount of money to their cancer-suffering father.
Such poor and economically disabled scholars don't have the right to get sufficient funds to fulfil their own needs.
India, such a country where most people are poor or Middle class as far as their economic status is concerned and in such a scenario where research quality and output is soo less, the reason being despite of struggling with complex equations and research papers, the young minds are also struggling with simple calculations how to adjust their monthly expenditure even if they don't need to do so.
Doesn't the government need to look into this matter and provide them with sufficient funds so that away from other constraints these young scholars can smoothly focus on their research output and make the country more technologically strong? Such a contribution to the country doesn't deserve an amount of money even equal to a piece grade government employee.
I wish some amount of money from the pocket of those corrupt politicians could be snatched & seized whose income increases miraculously by a few thousand per cent after winning the magical elections and spent on this great r&d work which has great inherent objective and potential in the welfare of the nation.
Of course, other reasons like infrastructure might also be there responsible for the low quality of research but this is also equally prevalent and solvable if it's a necessity is felt and realized. India is the youngest country with immense potential which has 65% of people under 35 years of age. This youthfulness isn't going to persist forever. it'll grow older like china and japan in a few decades. For this country to harness the potential of these young minds this is truly the best chance.
It'll be beneficial to invest a major part of GDP in education and R&D to become technically self-dependent, powerful and prosperous in future.
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