BRICS nations have endorsed India´s Young Scientists Forum Initiative and this will form part of the BRICS STI work plan for the period 2015 to 2018. Expressing happiness at this, the Union Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences Dr. Harsh Vardhan told the meeting of Science & Technology Ministers of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) in Brazil that the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi had declared India´s strong commitment to the strengthening of cooperation within BRICS in this key sphere of Science, Technology & Innovation (STI) which directly impacts the welfare and progress of all our peoples.
The Indian delegation led by Dr. Harsh Vardhan at the second BRICS Science Technology Innovation Ministerial Meeting, held at Brasilia this week, also proposed establishment of a BRICS Technology Foresight for Climate System to address scientific and innovative solutions for climate change and natural disaster management while identifying viable R&D initiatives for the future. The Minister said the institutional framework established in the form of a BRICS Memorandum of Understanding for Science, Technology, and Innovation at the meeting will act as an enabling vehicle to take our cooperation forward. Earlier he apprised delegates attending the meeting about various measures being taken by the Indian government for development of skills among its large youth population. He informed them about various steps for the promotion of innovation through allocations made in the this year’s annual budget for the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), named after the previous Prime Minister of India Shri Atal Bihar Vajpayee. He said, the AIM will be an Innovation Promotion Platform involving academics, entrepreneurs, and researchers and draw upon national and international experiences to foster a culture of innovation, R&D and scientific research in India.
Dr. Harsh Vardhan said the Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) have emerged as the major drivers of national development globally and India now aspiring for faster, sustainable and inclusive growth, with the advantages of a large demographic dividend and the huge talent pool is expected to use the STI system to the utmost extent to play a defining role in achieving its national goals. The national STI enterprise is central to national development. A strong and viable Science, Research and Innovation System for High Technology-led path for India (SRISHTI) is the goal of India’s new STI policy, he asserted.