Odisha unveils plan to encourage full-time research

To encourage full-time research, the state government Wednesday unveiled Odisha University Research and Innovation Incentivization Plan (OURIIP).

The plan was rolled out at a seminar in the Make in Odisha Conclave here by Odisha Higher Education minister Ananta Das.

Odisha is the first state in India to conceptualise and materialise the concept of providing scholarships to talented youngsters to devote them to full time research in the state, Higher Education secretary, B P Sethi told reporters adding that the plan is proposed for implementation from Academic Year 2018-19.

This policy framework will facilitate young faculty to start a research programme in Odisha and particularly emphasising to facilitate woman researchers of the state, he said.

The persons conducting research will be provided with financial assistance to strengthen the research, development and innovation ecosystem in state universities and higher education institutions of Odisha.

Sethi said that it is proposed to provide a research fellowship to the top ranking NET qualifiers (leaving aside the JRF) in each subject who has not been found eligible for National Junior Research Fellowships for doing research in state universities.

The applicant for the scholarship must be a permanent resident of Odisha and the period of fellowship will be limited to four years, expendable to another one year with the prior approval of the Odisha State Higher Education Council (OSHEC), Sethi said.

He said the candidate will be eligible to get fellowship Rs 15000 per month with a contingency of Rs 25,000 per year for subjects having laboratory work and Rs 15,000 for subjects without laboratory work.

The fellowship in each subject would be limited to five with two of the fellowships reserved for girl students exclusively and it will be given in 35 subjects, Sethi said.

The candidate must be below 30 years of age as on January first of the year in which the fellowship award to be made.