PM URGES SCIENTISTS
TO FIND COST-EFFECTIVE SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS FACING ECONOMY AND
ENVIRONMENT
SHRI
VAJPAYEE INAUGURATES DIAMOND JUBILEE OF CSIR
DR.
JOSHI ANNOUNCES A TEN-LAKH RUPEE CSIR AWARD FOR GLOBALLY COMPETENT
TECHNOLOGY
The Prime Minister
Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee has urged Indian scientists and technologists
to find innovative and cost-effective solutions to problems in
energy saving, material saving, constant quality enhancement,
customer care and introduction of new products and services on
a regular basis. Our industry and services have by now realised
that to win the battle of competition, knowledge is essential.
They are looking to our scientific community for this. Shri Vajpayee
was inaugurating the Diamond Jubilee of the Council of Scientific
and Industrial Research (CSIR), here today. He also laid the foundation
stone of the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology by
pressing the computer button, from the Vigyan Bhawan itself. He
also presented awards to scientists and a momento to the DG, CSIR
Dr. R.A. Mashelkar for his 25 years of devoted service to the
institution.
Shri Vajpayee laid
particular emphasis on finding practical solutions to the problems
in environmental protection. He said we are paying a heavy price
for neglecting this vital area in the past. He said it is possible
to balance development and environmental protection, citing Maldives
as an example. The problems in India are no doubt more complex
and varied but we can tackle them with the scientific and technological
knowledge gained through focussed research and development. Lauding
the achievements of the CSIR in the past 60 years, the Prime Minister
asked the Council not to rest on past laurels and do a self-evaluation
and take corrective measures wherever necessary. Government’s
assistance will certainly be forthcoming for this, Shri Vajpayee
said. He urged the CSIR and other scientific institutions to reach
out to the common man and tell them how we in India are progressing
with our own efforts.
The Minister for
Science and Technology and Vice-President of the CSIR, Dr. Murli
Manohar Joshi announced on the occasion a ten-lakh rupee CSIR
annual award for the development of globally competent technology
by Indian innovators. It will be called ‘Diamond Jubilee Technology
Award’. Commending the contribution of CSIR during the last six
decades, he asked the institution to live up to the ‘Bangalore
Declaration’ on 11 May, 1998 which said ‘India matters to us,
It is our endeavour that, We shall matter to India, more’. He
said the CSIR must become a world-class S&T institution of
the 21st century which will create a niche in emerging
areas as well as those in which India has a special niche or urgent
demands. By developing innovative technologies and increasing
our share of high-tech products, we can change the image of India
to that of a country with highest benchmarks of competitiveness
and excellence, he said.
Also announcing the
launch of CSIR Diamond Jubilee Research Awards for interns, Dr.
Joshi disclosed the setting up of a high-power committee to workout
a grand plan to integrate CSIR organically with IITs and universities
to spur research. Later, Dr. Joshi inaugurated an exhibition put
up to mark the occasion. The exhibition will go around India during
the Diamond Jubilee year to reveal to the common man the contributions
of CSIR.
The Technology Team
Awards 2002 went to Institute of Microbial Technology, Chandigarh;
Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, Kolkata; Central Salt and
Marine Chemical Institute, Bhavnagar, NALCO, Bhuvaneshwar, Central
Scientific Instruments Organisation, Chandigarh and National Aerospace
Laboratories, Bangalore.
The CSIR’s Young
Scientists Award 2002 were bagged by Shri V. Chakravarthi, National
Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, Dr. S. Doraiswamy,
National Institute of Oceanography, Goa, Dr. Manoj T. Nair, National
Aerospace Laboratories, Bangalore, Dr. K.K. Sahu, National Metallurgical
Laboratory, Jamshedpur.
The recently launched
CSIR Diamond Jubilee Award for Inventions by School Children went
to 14 of them, with the first prize being bagged by Madhav Pathak
of Jabalpur for his invention of ‘A Front face Braille Writer’.
