Tamil Nadu - Thanjavur   

India lagging behind in basic research: VC

By Our Staff Reporter

THANJAVUR, APRIL 7. The future of India lies in three core areas — research, infrastructure development and entrepreneurship — said Prof. C. Ramasamy, Vice-Chancellor (VC), Tamil Nadu Agriculture University.

Delivering the convocation address at Sengamala Thayaar Educational Trust Women's College, at Mannargudi, today, he said that while research system generated new products and processes, infrastructure development fostered production and marketing process and entrepreneurship envisaged efficient use of resources for mass production of prototypes of research system and fulfilling the needs of the society.

Mr. Ramasamy regretted that India was lagging behind in basic research, which was fundamental for developing new inputs, products and processes. "So far major investments in basic research have been done only by public sector, probably on account of long gestation period for returns and huge investment. It is high time for augmenting investments for basic research so that India does not stand to lose in the Intellectual Property Rights Regime," Mr. Ramasamy said.

The software and information technology sectors in India have registered a phenomenal growth and it was estimated to touch 16 billion dollars in exports in 2004-2005. Information technology was a new tool to propel the progress of India's rural economy, he said.

Referring to globalisation, the VC said that it enhanced the value of technological revolution. Technology on the other hand facilitated the globalisation process. Global competition required three basic capabilities, capability to innovate, capability to generate and capability to globalise. Globalisation is tough for non-innovative firms, he said.

Basic requirement

Stating that infrastructure was the basic requirement for the development of the nation, he said that India's investment in infrastructure in 2002 was only six per cent of the GDP while in China it was 20 per cent of the GDP.

Over 500 million were expected to live in urban India by 2020 and the number of metropolitan cities was likely to increase to 70. Shortfall in basic amenities would lead to unsafe, unhealthy environment that would retard the pace of development. It was estimated that about $700 billion would be required over the next ten years for infrastructure development in India, the Vice-Chancellor said.

He gave away under graduate degrees to 666 graduates at the convocation and prizes and certificates to 64 rank holders in Bharathidasan University.

Dr. V. Dhivakaran, Correspondent of the college participated in the convocation.

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