This refers to ‘Frugal innovation’, June 13. GE has filed 850 patents out its Bangalore technology centre, and every sixth GE technologist is in Bangalore today, by next year it will be every fourth. The innovations are very useful ones and include ECG machines which could revolutionise healthcare in the country — the machine requires just an hour’s training to operate.
The question the government must ask itself is why such innovations do not happen in our IITs and science institutes. Is it because our scientists are not paid enough or is it because there is no reward for innovation? The government must allow for profit-sharing for scientists. We have a very big network of CSIR labs where this is already happening and under Dr Mashelkar, the results were very encouraging. This scheme now needs to be formalised and spread to every government-funded institution.
Dr S Shetty, New Delhi