New science policy next year: Vayalar Ravi

"The government plans to bring in a new science, technology and innovation policy in 2013," Science and Technology Minister Vayalar Ravi said addressing participants of the Second National Level Exhibition and Project Competition (NLEPC) here.

The new Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Policy is expected to help in achieving faster, sustainable and inclusive growth and proposes to introduce sound measurement systems based on global experience.

The emphasis of Policy will be to provide a renewed impetus for the science and technology sector while creating a vibrant innovation ecosystem that is intertwined with the overall S&T strategy.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to unveil the Science, Technology and Innovation Policy on January 3 next year at the Centenary session of the Indian Science Congress in Kolkata.

Ravi also gave awards to students from across the country who participated in the second NLEPC.

As many as 1,138 students from 35 states and union territories took part in the NLEPC under the 'Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE)' programme of the Department of Science and Technology.

Over three lakh students from Class VI to X had participated in district level exhibitions of which 35,000 were selected for the state level exhibitions. 1,138 students were chosen for the NLEPC from the 35,000 who participated in the state level exhibitions.

Last year, 688 students had displayed their science projects in the NLEPC of which 85 were selected for filing provisional patents, Thirumalachari Ramasami, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, said.

He said this year 140 projects have been shortlisted for filing provisional patents.

The INSPIRE programme was launched by the DST for attracting students to take up basic sciences as a career option.

Under the Scholarship for Higher Education component of INSPIRE, the top one per cent of students in Class XII exams opting for a basic science course will be awarded Rs 80,000 per year during the degree programme.

While Rs 60,000 will be provided to cover educational expenses, Rs 20,000 is earmarked for summer projects in reputed national laboratories.

Similar scholarship is extended in the Masters course as third component.