Kolkata, Jan 1 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday urged the country’s scientists and researchers to come out of “confinement” and share their experiences with fellow scientists of other institutions and national laboratories.

“For one reason or another, we have confined ourselves into isolation. We hardly cooperate, collaborate and share our experiences with fellow scientists of other institutions and national laboratories,” he said in his address, delivered through video conferencing, at the inauguration of the Curtain Raiser Ceremony on famed scientist Professor S.N. Bose’s 125th birth anniversary.

“To reach our true potential and to take Indian science to its rightful glory, we should be like a quantum particle that escapes its confinement. This is even more important today, as science becomes hugely multi-disciplinary and requires concerted efforts.

“I am told that our science departments are now working on a multipronged approach. I understand that a portal is being developed for sharing of scientific infrastructure that would allow transparent and efficient tagging and sharing of resources,” he said.

Modi said a mechanism is being put up for strong collaborations between academic and R&D institutions, with city-based R&D Clusters are being created to bring together all science and technology partners from academia to institutes to industries to start-ups.

It is necessary that country’s innovations and “final outcome” of researches should be judged whether the life of a poor is getting easier or difficulties of a person belonging to middle class are reducing, he said, adding that preparing of the objective would be easier when the applications of innovations provide solutions to country’s socio-economic problems.

Modi said he is sure that scientists and researchers of India with their “out of box thinking” would continue to provide “creative technological solutions” which will immensely benefit common people.

He said the country has a lot to learn from the life and work of ose who had “succeeded despite many constraints” including the lack of research education and little connectivity with global scientific community.

Describing Bose as a crusader for teaching of science in vernacular languages and referring to Bose’s efforts to start a Bengali science magazine, he said: “To promote understanding and love of science in our youth, it is vital that we promote science communication in a big way. Language should not be a barrier but a facilitator in this task.”

“His path-breaking work in 1924 was due to acehis single-minded devotion to uncharted science.

“It laid the foundations of Quantum Statistics and a basis for modern Atomic Theory. Einstein’s biographer Abraham Pace regarded his work as one of the last four revolutionary papers on old Quantum Theory,” Modi said.

Reiterating on the need for strong collaboration among scientific institutions and laboratories, he said the central government is setting up 20 institutes of eminence in the country and invited both private and public institutions in higher education sector to take part in the mission.

“.. for various reasons, we missed the first Industrial revolution. We cannot miss similar opportunities today. Upcoming sectors such as artificial intelligence, big data analytics, machine learning, cyber-physical systems, genomics, and electric vehicles are new challenges that require your attention. Please ensure, that as a country, we keep pace with these emerging technologies and innovations,” Modi added.

–IANS
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