Hyderabad: ‘Viksit Bharat’ can be realised only by actively imbibing a science culture among children, students and youth of the country, believes the Narendra Modi government. It is setting up science experience centres (SEC) all over the country and the first such unit is coming up in Telangana in pursuit of the target of Viksit Bharat, said Union minister for science and technology Dr. Jitendra Singh.
He was addressing a gathering after laying a foundation stone for SEC at the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) premises in Tarnaka along with his cabinet colleague G. Kishan Reddy, here on Monday.
Dr. Singh underscored the need to synergise several research institutes and laboratories working under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) to bolster ease of living of people. The research institutes must reach out to the masses, particularly students to educate them about the importance of science.
The SEC to be built by the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) at a cost of `41 crore is jointly promoted by the Union ministries of culture and science and technology. Presently, NCSM runs 26 SECs and museums in different states.
Kishan Reddy urged the state government to provide land to upgrade the city’s science experience centre into a science city in Hyderabad. It was delayed due to the delay by the state government, he said. He pointed out that eventually, it was the ministry of science and Technology that had come forward to provide the land in its research institute inside IICT premises.
Stating that no country can get the desired results without a clear target and focus, Reddy said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a mission for the research community and institutes of higher learning to chalk out a clear action plan to realize the dream of Viksit Bharat by 2047.
“When the entire country is in election mode, the Prime Minister was recently engaged in an eight-hour marathon discussion with top bureaucrats and experts to develop an action plan to achieve `Viksit Bharat’,” he said.
Hyderabad, which has a number of research institutes across sectors, has emerged as a hub for science and technology activity. Setting up a science experience centre and science city will propel the city as the country’s ‘science capital’, Reddy said.
Dr S. Satheesh Reddy, former chairman of DRDO, said that startups were picking up rapidly in the country. Presently 1.14 lakh startups are operating in the country as against 450 in 2016. The country ranked third in publishing research papers.
CSIR director general Dr. N. Kalaiselvi, IICT director Srinivas Reddy and Union culture ministry joint secretary Mugdha Sinha also addressed the meeting.
