Govt likely to formulate a new science & technology policy: PM

"Over the course of the year, we hope to formulate a new Science and Technology Policy that will update the existing policy document of 2003 in the light of a rapidly changing scientific environment in the country and the world," the Prime Minister said here.

Speaking at the inception ceremony as the general president of the Indian Science Congress Association (ISCA) on its centenary, he said ,"I am happy that we have chosen this centenary year to declare the Year of Science in India."

The Prime Minister said, "Our government has invested as never before in Indian science. For many years the capacities in our higher scientific and technical infrastructure were stagnant."

"We built world class institutions that created islands of excellence that created new knowledge. But we did not use science and technology in our development processes as much as we should have," Singh said.

"We did not build local capacities that could meaningfully address problems of development in a decentralised manner using this knowledge," he said.

"I believe that the huge expansion in educational infrastructure that this government has overseen will create the building blocks of a modern knowledge economy and, more importantly, society", he said.

"Of course we have to overcome many challenges such as producing qualified teachers in adequate numbers, devising a modern curriculum and teaching methods and building proper physical infrastructure. But it is certainly true that we have taken a quantum leap in our ambitions for Indian science," the Prime Minister said. (More)