This refers to “Takes more than jugaad” (March 5). India ranks 56 out of 130 on the global innovation index. Though Article 51A of our Constitution mentions development of scientific temper as one of the fundamental duties, no serious efforts have been made to inculcate the spirit of creative thinking. The R&D activities in educational institutes, including the IIMs and IITs, which can be the crucible for development of analytical approach, are quite poor by international standards.
Government organisations devoted to research, like the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), suffer from a lack of opportunity and freedom to experiment, being victims of bureaucratic control, which drives promising Indian minds to settle abroad in order to get global recognition Indian companies not only budget small amounts for R&D, many do not create, sustain and reward a culture of innovation. Even low-cost initiatives like “quality circles” have been a failure. Though promotion of innovation has been recognised as a quality of effective leaders, in practice what matters is continuity and stability.
Paradoxically, it is not the lack of creative talent, but the lack of channelling that has pushed India to a lower ranking.
Y G Chouksey, Pune
Readers should write to:
The Editor, Business Standard, Nehru House,
4, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg,
New Delhi 110 002, Fax: (011) 23720201;
letters@bsmail.in
