Office of Principal Scientific Adviser joins hands with FICCI to create conducive R&D environment

The Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

The MoU establishes a broad cooperative framework across five key areas: Industry–Academia Collaboration; Problem Identification and Solution Development; Global Collaboration; Policy Dialogue and Advisory Support; and Capacity Building and Knowledge Sharing. To operationalise this partnership, the parties may establish a Joint Coordination Mechanism and conduct six-monthly reviews to assess progress and impact.

The partnership addresses a critical gap in India's innovation landscape. While India ranks highly in scientific research output and academic patent filings, it continues to lag in technology commercialisation and industry–academia collaboration.

India's Gross Expenditure on R&D (GERD) as a percentage of GDP remains at approximately 0.6–0.7%, significantly below global innovation leaders such as South Korea (5.21%), the United States (3.59%), and China (2.56%). Moreover, the private sector's contribution to R&D funding in India accounts for only around 36%, compared to over 70% in these nations.

Among the key priorities identified under this partnership are: facilitating structured collaborations between industry, academic institutions, and research organisations; accelerating the commercialisation of research with clear pathways for pilot deployment and scale-up; co-creating problem statements of national importance to drive demand-led innovation; and supporting the effective utilisation of the Government of India's Rs 1 Lakh Crore Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) Fund through industry-specific awareness initiatives and last-mile handholding support.