INNOVATING INDIA WORKSHOP@NITS
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Monday, April 14, 2014
Workshop Report on INNOVATING INDIA
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Report on
INNOVATING INDIA
A National Workshop
25-26 Nov 2013
Jointly
organised by
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY (NIT), SILCHAR
and
CSIR - NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY AND
DEVELOPMENT STUDIES (CSIR-NISTADS), NEW DELHI
Under TEQIP
II
Knowledge Partner
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WORKSHOP COORDINATORS
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Dr. Kishor Chandra Satpathy
Coordinator, ETH & BARC-Akruti
Project
& Librarian
National Institute of Technology
(Institute of National Importance)
Silchar-788010, Assam, India
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Dr. Sujit Bhattacharya
Professor AcSIR| Academy of
Scientific Research & Innovation
Senior Principal Scientist (NISTADS)
C.S.I.R. National Institute of
Science, Technology and Development Studies
Pusa Gate, New Delhi-110012
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The
two-day workshop on the theme “Innovating India” was held at NIT Silchar during
25-26 November,2013.The workshop saw active participation of subject experts, academicians,
distinguished speakers, researchers and students from various institutes, universities,
colleges in India besides the NIT fraternity. The web-site of the workshop was
a reflection of the interest this wokshop generated among scholars and students
from India and Abroad. The workshop programme covered 5 technical sessions
which included eleven key note lectures, twelve paper presentations, exhibition
of innovative models/design by school students, besides a cultural evening. A total
of 175 persons attended the workshop.
The workshop delibeated upon the
determinants that creates capacity for innovation, barriers that impede the
innovation process ,and how the inclusiveness/inclusion in the innovation can
be approached. The presentations and discussions in the workshop had a major
slant toewards the innovative activity in North-East and how many of the
informal activities can be institutionalsied.
INAUGURAL SESSION
The workshop started with a Inaugural session
presided over by Prof N V Deshpande, Director, NIT Silchar. Prof P Banerjee, Director,
CSIR-NISTADS, New Delhi and Prof. Gautam Sinha, Director, IIM Kashipur, graced
the occasion as Chief Guest and
Guest of Honour respectively. Prof
Deshpande welcomed the participants, and
distinguished speakers and students to the institute and workshop. In his
brief welcome address he highlighted the various activites NIT-Silchar has
taken to bring about a change in the intsutute academic environment and has
developed linkages with major institutes in India and abroad. He said that NIT-Silchar is striving to
become one of the leading engineering institute in the country and is already
emerging as a focal institute in the North-East. He highlighted how different
initiatives have been taken to motivate and provide oportunities to the
students to explore and experiment challanging problems and create innovative
solutions. He felt that this joint workshop with CSIR-NISTADS will provide
further opportunities to the Institute to participate in the country’s
innovation efforts.
The
welcome address was delivered by Prof F A Talukdar who particularly highlighted
how this institute has taken up important national projects, linked up with
major institutes and have been continuiously engaging with the various
stakeholders (MSME, artisens, etc) in the North-East. Dr Banerjee, Director
CSIR-NISTADS expressed his happiness
that this joint workshop in this important theme is being held with one
of the leading institute in North-East. He highlighted how the new approach of
the Indian government is on Inclusive Innovation and thus in this context
North-East is an ideal setting as it has rich potentiality and many of the
innovative practices in this region requires to be instituionalised. He felt that this workshop would be the
starting point to forge patnership with NIT-Silchar. He also welcomed the
participation of IIM-Kashipur. Prof
Sinha, Director IIM-Kashipur expressed his happiness that his institute is
knowledge partner of this workshop. He felt that the three instiutes together
can share their expertise and translate many of the issues raised in this
workshop into more actionable goals. Dr Sujit Bhattacharya, Joint Coordinator
from CSIR-NISTADS, spoke about the workshop and its objective. Prof. M Ali Ahmed, Coordinator
TEQIPII highlighted the role of TEQIP II. Dr Kishore Sathpathy, Joint Coorinator from NIT-Silchar welcomed
the participants to the institute.
The workshop was inaugurated by
lighting of the lamps by the dignitaries present. To mark the occasion, the
Souvenir of the workshop was released by the dignitaries. The Inaugural session
included a key note address delivered by Prof Sinha, reproduced herebelow
KEY NOTE ADDRESS
Innovation and
Sustainable Development – By Prof. Gautam Sinha, Director, IIM Kashipur
Ladies & Gentlemen,
While we are eagerly
looking forward to capitalize on our demographic dividend, we have to remember
the sufferings of our people who fall on the wrong side of the steep economic
equality. We must express our gratitude to members of our academia, young
scholars, farmers, teachers, scientists, workers and the millions of our
countrymen who are toiling tirelessly for making their value addition to our
progress and bridge that widening economic gap through various innovative
processes, approaches and initiatives in all spheres of life.
In the early hours of the 15th of
August, 1947, when our nation had just become Independent, our first Prime
Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru spoke to the nation and asked us all one important
question on the very first day we became a free country: "Are we brave enough and wise enough to
grasp this opportunity and accept the challenge of the future?"
Today,
we must ask ourselves that same question. Are we ready to face the
challenge of the future? Are we brave enough, to do so, and wise enough, in
doing so? Can we rediscover the ideas and ideals that shaped our freedom
struggle, and use them to take our country forward into the future? Are we
willing to show the courage and the wisdom that our freedom fighters wanted us
to show in building a new India in a new world?
The going has never been as tough for
India in the past as it is now. Our economy has been growing at an unimpressive
pace of over the last few years. Such slow growth over three successive years
is a matter of concern for all of us, especially those closely associated with
the industry. We need to re-strategize our goals, activities and plans to
bringing that re-assuring confidence in our industry in being able to take on
the challenge of the rest of the world.
Against this otherwise anxious
environment, I still see India is certainly on the march. Yet, we have miles to
go before we can truly say that we have made our tryst with destiny. Sixty
years ago, Panditji told us that the two challenges before a free India was to
end the ancient scourge of poverty, ignorance and disease and end the
inequality of opportunity. India has marched a great distance forward in these
sixty years, but the challenge of banishing poverty remains with us. We have
yet to banish hunger from our land. We have yet to eradicate illiteracy. We
have yet to ensure that every Indian enjoys good health.
Even as we move forward rapidly, to
claim our rightful place in the comity of nations, I see that there are vast
segments of our people who are untouched by modernization; who continue to do
back-breaking labour; who continue to suffer from iniquitous social orders. I
see that our farmers in many parts are in a crisis, not managing to eke out a
decent living from their land. The agricultural crisis that is forcing them to
take the desperate step of committing suicide needs to be resolved. At premier
institutes like IIMs and NITs funded by the citizens of this country, perhaps
we have a larger responsibility to think about how we can provide a decent
livelihood to our farmers?
When we see large
development projects coming up, while one rejoices at the progress that is being
made, one worries for those who are displaced, for those who have lost their
land and livelihood. When one sees our cities growing rapidly, one sees visible
progress but at the same time, one worries for the large number of people who
live in their slums. When our industry and services compete successfully across
the globe, we celebrate our success in global markets; but at the same time, we
are buffeted by the same global forces when oil prices go up because of factors
beyond our control. Globalization certainly has its benefits; but it can also
hurt the common man. We have to resolve once again that “sustainable
development” will be the cornerstone of our academic career as well as
professional life wherever we are.
The challenge for us as a nation is to
address this duality - to ensure that while we keep the wheels of progress
moving rapidly forward, no section of society and no part of the country is
left behind; to ensure that growth generates the necessary wealth which can
then finance the welfare of marginalized groups; to ensure that growth
generates employment and a bright future for our youth.
In the past two years, at IIM
Kashipur, it has been our endeavor to address these concerns. We have taken
many steps to chart a way to encourage ‘innovation’ among our students and
research plans, and create a visible distinction in our curriculum. Starting
with a new Core Course this year on Society,
Business & Management, to train our graduates to leverage ‘innovative
ideas’ to tackle country’s widespread poverty and degradation – a situation
that cannot be addressed by the government alone. In coming years IIM Kashipur
is planning to lead new programmes on sustainable development that are built on
power of innovation and to also get involved in more effective management of
developmental in the country.
With these words, I wish you all
fruiteful deliberations in the coming sessions of the workshop. Thank you very
much.
Titles of Key Note
Lectures delivered by Eminent Subject Experts
1. Grassroot
Innovations in Rural India - Prof Gautam Sinha, Director, IIM-Kashipur.
2. Thinking About Innovation for
the North-East India - Prof P Banerjee, Director, CSIR-NISTADS.
3. Innovation Chain &
Educational Institutions: Policy & Strategy Dimensions - Prof. Ashok Jain,
Vice President (Academic & Research), EMPI
Business School, New Delhi.
4. Crucial Factors In Technology
Transfer From Government Research Institutions To Private Sector Industry:
Findings From Questionnaire Survey - Yogesh, Asscoiate Professor AcSIR &
Principal Scientist NISTADS.
5. Commercialization of Public
R&D - Dr. Kavita Mehra, Chief Scientist, NISTADS.
6. Innovating - The How Of It! - Dr
S P Parashar, Managing Partner and Principal Consultant, TACM Management
Education Consulting, LLP & Former Director, IIM indore.
7. Innovation From The Grassroots
And Intellectual Property Rights: Leveraging Traditional Knowledge From India -
Dr K M Baharul Islam, Chair, Planning & Development, IIM Kashipur.
8. Innovations In Health Care
Services And Health Education In NE India - Dr. Mir Alam Siddique, SMC,
Guwahati.
9. Global Initiatives In Science,
Technology And Innovation Towards Economic Prosperity Of Nations: An Analysis -
Dr. Prabir G. Dastidar, Scientist and Director, Ministry of Earth Sciences, New
Delhi.
10. Emerging Technologies And New Players: A Case
Study Of Emergence Of India In The Nanotechnology Race - Prof. Sujit
Bhattacharya, Prof AcSIR & Senior
Principal Scientist CSIR-NISTADS, New Delhi.
HIGHLIGHTS OF TECHNICAL SESSIONS
DAY-1 (TECHNICAL SESSION-I)
Moderator: Prof Sujit Bhattacharyya, Sr Principal Scientist, CSIR-NISTADS
Rapporteur: Dr M K Sinha and Miss I. Ilika Zhimo
The session had 4 key
note lectures. The
session started with the brief introduction of the speakers, by Prof. Sujit
Bhattacharya.
1st
Key Note Lecture by Prof P Banerjee, Director, CSIR-NISTADS, New Delhi
Title:
Thinking about Innovation for the North
East India.
Dr
Banerjee started his keyonote address by highlighting how innovation can be
viewed from different perspectives. This analytical understanding of innovation
provides the framework within which the discussion on innovation can be
contextualised. His presentation then focussed on the innovation potentiality
of the North-East. He also highlighted some of the innovative applications that
have come from exploting the rich natural
resources of this region. He mentioned the example of bamboo and cane which are
abundantly available in this region and from which we find many novel manufactured items created by artisans of
this region.
As these resources are available in
plenty, he emphasized the value of bamboo and cane which are extensively used
for local needs of the society. While speaking about the process of creating
Innovations for North-Easst India, he explained the subject within two broad domains.
Prof. Banerjee discussed about creating innovation by identifying something
unique and doing unique things in unique ways. In this regard he mentioned the
process of innovating and said that one should innovate keeping in mind the
available local resources which are unique for the North-East region. So
innovation for North East should be for the unique products and services
suitable for the local needs of the society, he opined.
The other aspect he mentioned was on
improving trade related issues in which he emphasized for creating new branding
strategies for the products and services created in the system. He further
stressed for changing the inter-relationships in the innovation system by
facing challenges to compete with an existing supremacy. In this regard, he
sought to encourage a challenge against the global products and services and
thereby gain competency in the relevant sector.
Chairman’s
Remarks: Prof
Bhattacharya highly commended on the issues raised by the speaker. He felt that
this presentation has set the stage for the workshop. It has drawn attention to
many important issues that the workshop
needs to deliberate.
2nd Key
Note Lecture by Prof Ashok Jain, Former Director, CSIR-NISTADS, New Delhi
Title: Innovation
Chain & Educational Institutions: Policy & Strategy Dimensions
Prof
Ashok Jain discussed Innovation as something which should bring change in the country/region ecosystem and is,
thus, the crux of the whole subject matter. Prof Jain presented progression of
the technological development and innovation since 1960s around the world
wherein he emphasized that Innovation needs to have technical change,
scientific research and the ability to diffuse in the market.
He stressed that Innovation has no
benefit if its not put into practice. Prof Jain also gave much stress on
emergent innovations and said that innovations need to be developed at a low
cost and should work its way into the global market at low costs. Speaking
about innovations for educational institutions, Prof Jain discussed local,
sponsored and grass-root innovations. He highlighted the importance of getting
local and sponsored innovative projects by such institutes and working with
combined efforts of both.
Prof Jain encouraged the students to
focus on possible emergent innovations. For the benefit of students, Prof Jain
mentioned some inspiring books for reading such as ‘I have a dream’ by Rashmi
Bansal and ‘Democratizing Innovation’ by Eric Von Hippel.
Chairman’s Remarks: Prof Bhattacharyya said that
the presentation has enhanced one’s perspective about the whole idea of
innovation. He said that the exposition provided by Prof Jain on emergent
innovations will be very useful to the community particularly to the students
in this worksjhop.
3rd
Key Note Lecture by Dr Kavita Mehra, Chief Scientist, CSIR-NISTADS, New Delhi
Title: Commercialization
of R&D
Delivering
her talk, Dr Kavita Mehra said that in R&D organisations/Institutes,
commercialization of the technologies or processes should be considered as
important as its development otherwise it does not serve the needs of the
society/industry. Dr Kavita briefed the S&T scenario in India wherein she
informed that at present there are 12 major departments under different
ministries which are involved in funding R&D activities, such as DST, DBT,
DAE, etc.
Dr
Kavita further informed that over the years, there has been a significant
increase in fund allocation to R&D and the government aims to contribute to
GDP with at least 2%.
Dr
Kavita emphasized on creating interface between R&D organisations and
Industries for facilitating commercialization and cited some departments such
as NRDC, BCIL, etc., which are actively involved in commercializing
technologies, processes, etc., developed by R&D organisations. She
presented a case study undertaken by CSIR-NISTADS on NRDC which has been a long
standing agency of CSIR for commercializing its technologies. The mechanism she
informed is that, CSIR assigns technologies to NRDC which in turn licenses them
to the entrepreneurs, industries, firms, etc. She informed that during
1985-2012, CSIR assigned 743 processes/technologies to NRDC out of which 600
licenses have been issued to various parties spread across the country with
period of licensing from 5 to 20 years on exclusive/non-exclusive basis and
royalties earned from the licensing has been nil to 85 lakhs (max)/year. Dr
Kavita also presented a case of the development of drug delivery system,
Liposomal Amphotericin-B-FUNGISOME for treating system mycosis and Kala-azar by
CSIR. Concluding her talk, Dr Kavita said that the entire process of R&D
and its commercialization requires involvement of different individuals.
Chairman’s
Remarks: Prof
Bhattacharya said that the talk was truly informative and important in the
present discussion on commercialization
of R&D. The role of various
mediating institutions in the country that help in the translation of R&D
efforts was highlighted. The knowledege
of these institutions will be very important to the participants as they will
be better informed now about how they can translate their R&D efforts.
4th
Key Note Lecture by Mr Yogesh, Principal Scientist, CSIR-NISTADS, New Delhi
Title: Crucial
factors in Technology Transfer from Government Research Institutions to Private
Sector Industry: Findings from Questionnaire survey.
Dr
Yogesh, in his lecture, highlighted the vast S&T infrastructure facility existing
in the country. He stressed that it is important to develop networking among
the research institutions. He mentioned
that any research activity leads to knowledge creation in the form of papers,
patents, technology, etc., which ultimately should benefit the society.
He further highlighted various
stages/phases of technology development to technology transfer and touched on
important aspects which involve creation of concept/idea, research,
testing/trials, etc. Dr Yogesh also discussed some pressing issues in
technology transfer, especially those which act as barriers to technology
transfer from Govt. R&D institutions to industries. He pointed out that
issues such as lack of understanding in the needs of industry, lack of
communication between R&D institutions and industry, difficulties in
obtaining raw material, difficulties in performance evaluation mechanisms
between the institutions and industry are some which needs to be seriously
addressed to so as to be able to increase the technology transfer activities
between the two sectors.
Dr yogesh further presented a survey
undertaken in his analysis in which 2000 (approx) questionnaires were
distributed to scientists and based on that he said that there should be
strengthening of communication and networking among the R&D institutions
and the industries.
Chairman’s Remarks: Prof Bhattacharyya said that
the speaker touched on the crucial issues which, once again find relevance to
the development of technologies which should be based on the needs of the
industry and the society. Prof Bhattacharyya commended on the survey undertaken
and streesed that such evidence based analysis provides a more informed input
to decision making.
DAY-1
(TECHNICAL SESSION-II)
Chairperson: Dr K M Baharul Islam, Chair, Planning & Development, IIM-Kashipur
Rapporteur: Mridul
Dutta/Saumen Datta
The session had 4 paper presentations.
Paper 1: Innovations in the
teachings & learning in Higher Educational institutions in India by Dr.
Pranay Jyoti Goswami, Associate Professor, Department of Commerce, Assam
University
Presenting
his paper, Dr. Pranay Jyoti Goswami shared his experiences of audit process in teaching. He discussed the plight of the teachers
working in rural areas. To overcome this he stressed on inclusive growth and
challenges of development. He shared the information about India’s position in
global development index, stressed on going global, bringing innovation and
uniqueness.
He said that the Government of
India is providing technology and ICT aids for Higher Education, but it is not
enough. He said that the quality of the teachers need to be improved through
innovation. Innovation in pedagogy can help deliver quality education. His
paper stressed on proposing Government of India to bring radicalization of
education through innovation.
Paper 2: Gender Analysis of Internet use pattern
among the rural Muslim students in Higher Educational Institutions of Silchar
Town of Cachar District, by Ayesha Afsana, Ph.D. Research Scholar, Department
of Sociology, Assam University, Silchar.
Ms. Afsana cited and discussed some important
aspects of similar studies made elsewhere which had given rich insight to
contextualise this study. Her research finds that the majority of the sampled
students are from degree programs of the colleges of Silchar are from higher
caste with majority of them Bengali speaking. Further, majority of them are Bengali
male students, are familiar
with internet which helps them to download teaching and learning materials from
internet. On an average she fould that internet usage is about 2 hours. Among
girls, the usage of internet is encouraged by sibling behaviour. Her paper
concluded with recommendation to the policy makers for bringing programs to
help learn internet as a teaching tool among students. This she felt would
augment the resources of students. Particular attention in this regard should
be paid to female students. Further, she argued for greater attention for
Muslim students and especially among them female students as their problem is
most actute.
Paper 3: Recent
Developments in Traditional Knowledge Protection vis-Ã -vis the case study of
Turmeric Patent by Miss I. Ilika Zhimo, Jr Scientist, CSIR-NEIST, Jorhat
Ms. Zhimo
highlighted the importance of traditional knowledge (TK) and its protection in
the wake of growing incidents of biopiracy cases. She said that TK is the
wealth of those indigenous/local communities who developed and preserved the
knowledge since time immemorial and which represents their cultural,
traditional and ethnical identities.
Ms Zhimo said that besides the fact
that Turmeric Patent being a landmark case in the history of IPR, it was
important to understand why the conflict occurred, the factors responsible for
it and also the developments that have taken place post the landmark case. She
further briefed the case study of the Turmeric patent and said that issues such
as lack of awareness of USPTO patent examiners about TK of India,
unavailability of documented TK as prior art, non-recognition of TK in patent
system, etc., were some reasons which were crucial in the patent dispute.
She
further detailed various developments undertaken at international and national
level for recognition and protection of TK of the developing countries. Some of
the initiatives explained by the speaker were Intergovernmental Committee on
Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore
(IGC) of WIPO, UN Declaration for the rights of Indigenous peoples, Doha
Declaration by World Trade Organisation, Convention on Biological Diversity
(CBD), etc., whereas at the national level, the TKDL project of CSIR, TK
protection draft bill, Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act
and National Biodiversity Act were discussed in the presentation. Concluding
her lecture, the speaker suggested some possible measures which can be taken up
at various levels to protect and recognize TK such as increased awareness, more
manpower, increased accessibility of TKDL to patent offices, to understand and
protect TK by all individuals, etc.
Paper 4: A simple, mild and efficient solid phase
Henry Reaction under solvent free condition by Dr. Lalthazuala Rokhum, Dept of
Chemistry, NIT, Silchar
Dr. Rokhum gave a technical overview of solid phase
synthesis and problems with traditional phase synthesis, the purification
process and wastage of solvents. Dr. Rokhum discussed the attractive features
of solid phase synthesis such as suitable for environmental issues for
disposal, takes less time and is among the least wastage process.
He discussed its limitation which is hydrophobic
and that itself cam be its strength for its water repellent properties. His
paper emphasized that in present day requirement, it is more important as to how
a compound is formed rather that what compound is formed. Dr. Rokhum said that
with solid phase synthesis, a catalyst can be used upto 5 times with 64%
efficiency.
Chairpeson Remarks:
Dr K M Baharul Islam drawing from his own
expericnes highlighted the importance of the various presentations. Dr Islam appreciated
Dr
Goswami for his insightful thoughts on the partinant issue of enhancing teachers capacity through
innovative methods. Commenting on Ms. Afsana’s talk he said that it becomes
very difficult for students to get proper guidence and resource materials in
major parts of North-East. Her study is thus very important as it points out to
a very viable and rich option for augmeenting the students academic resource
thorugh internet. Traditional knowledge in
which India has a rich repository has been facing intellectual infringement by
western economies. Dr Islam highlighted
how this has been a matter of great concern in the North-east. Keeping this in perspective, he appreciateed
the excellent presentation made by Ms. Ilika highlighting the recent
developments in the protection of traditional knowledge by India. Dr Islam
appreciated Dr Rokhum for changing the
contours of the present debate by giving a scieentific exposition of the
dynamics of water filteration and waste disposal.
DAY-1
(TECHNICAL SESSION-III
Chairperson: Prof Sujit Bhattacharya, CSIR-NISTADS, New Delhi.
Rapporteur: Miss.I.
Ilika Zhimo
The session had 3 Key Note Lectures by eminent
experts.
1st Key
Note Lecture by Dr S P Parashar, Managing Partner and Principal Consultant,
TACM Management Education Consulting, LLP (Former Director, IIM Indore)
Title:
Innovating – The How of it!
Speaking
about innovation and how innovation can be understood and made, Dr Parashar
defined the subject as something which is different from discovery and
invention. Dr Parashar discussed on innovating which is socially useful and
involves implementation of new ideas. Innovating, which will be valued by the
society, strengthening networking and incentivising the young people, are some
effective strategies as mentioned by Dr Parashar.
He
further cited some examples which changed the lives of people such as the
Silicon valley and stressed on keeping oneself updated about the developments
taking place in the world. Encouraging the young innovators he further
emphasized on believing in what they do and being honest to all their actions.
Chairman’s Remarks: Prof Bhattacharya said that
innovation is important but knowing the method of doing it is equally important,
considering the ethical and unethical means which one should understand and the
same has been very lucidly explained by the speaker.
2nd
Key Note Lecture by Dr K M Baharul Islam, Chair, P&D, IIM Kashipur
Title: Innovation
from the Grassroots and Intellectual Property Rights: Leveraging Traditional
Knowledge from India.
Dr.
Islam Highlighted that Knowledge is power in today’s information society and
intellectual property rights (IPR) attain a significant role in the economics
of this society. It is usually presumed that the prevailing international
concepts of IPR laws do not help indigenous communities in safeguarding their
traditional knowledge. The basic research questions are: a. Can companies
obtain patents based on indigenous knowledge? If they do, how does the
indigenous community seek protection of its traditional knowledge under
contemporary intellectual property rights laws?, and b. Are patents useful to
local communities? Can indigenous knowledge be protected through patents and
other IPR provisions?
Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)
values the innovative mind and individual proprietary right over a new product.
Traditional Knowledge (TK), on the other hand, values social ownership of that
knowledge resource. Plants and genetic resources are considered as “a common
heritage” of mankind that is to be preserved, freely available for use, and
ultimately benefit the present and future generations.
The IPR laws across the world have
been criticised as too close to the American patent system that emphasises
protection of innovation whereby companies can show some ‘inventive steps’ in a
product or process to get patent protection on items that originates from TK.
In showing this innovation, the companies often ignore ‘prior art’ that exists
elsewhere. Even documented TK is not recognised if not available in a tangible
form of a publication. Indian victory in the Turmeric and Basmati patent
re-examination cases in USPTO and the Neem case at the EPO encourages others to
challenge unfair patents on TK-based products. Patents, however, if
successfully obtained for the TK, might prove useful and financially beneficial
to the communities.
The conflict between IPR and TK is
thus inherent in the nature of TK as a collective wealth of the communities as
against the individual ownership of a product or a process based on such common
knowledge. Another major inherent conflict between IPR regimes and TK lies in
the monetary constraints as IPR protection that comes at a premium and too
recurring every year. The conflict between IPR and TK has also brought to light
the ways that are being adopted by countries like India not only to protect its
own TK through national IPR systems, but also to put in place vigilance
mechanisms against misappropriation of its TK by unscrupulous patentees.
Moreover, other IPR mechanisms like trade secrets, geographical indications, trade
marks, or sui generis rights of indigenous people can also come to the rescue
of TK. Time has come to tread a collaborative middle ground whereby
technological advances of the north and centuries of TK of the south join hand
together in the broader interest of the human race on this earth.
Concluding
Remarks: Prof
Bhattacharya appreciated the deep insights given by Dr Islam in a topic of
primary importance in the present debate on incluisve innovation. Traditional knowledge and its relationship
wwith intellectual property is not well understood which leads to ambiguity and
impedes the rational basis for policy intervention. This presentation has given
a grounding for understanding the complexities of this relationship and thus
provides a frameowrk for future deliberations on this topic.
3rd
Key Note Lecture by Dr Mir Alam Siddique, SMC, Guwahati
Title: Innovations in healthcare services and health
education in NE India
Dr
Siddique in his talk deliberated on the contributions of healthcare systems for
the welfare of human beings, the innovations in healthcare services and the
developments taking place in various medical and healthcare services,
particularly in the North East India.
Dr Siddique informed that over the
years, the healthcare system has tremendously improved with various innovations
which not only made it possible in the treatment procedure but also provided
cost-effective remedies, improvement of health, reduce sufferings of the
patients and enhancement of life expectancy. Few of the examples cited by him
are the 108 emergency service, Tele-Radiology service, MRI, Balloon
Angioplasty, Coronary bypass surgery, etc., which are available in the North
East. Dr Siddique further spoke about
education system in Medicine and healthcare and said that a healthcare diploma
in Medical and Rural Healthcare may be another innovative step in the system.
An Eye specialist himself, Dr Siddique also discussed the
developments and advanced eye surgeries available in North East and presented
an audio-visual footage of the advanced cataract operation/cataract removal
being done and further discussed his work in biomedical research and
development particularly in Ophthalmology.
Chairman’s Remarks: Prof Bhattacharyya said that
the presentation was truly informative and useful in the present context of
affordable healthcare. The deliberation was immensely important and the
contributions made by Dr Siddique in the biomedical sector is commendable which
would further encourage the upcoming professionals.
An
important feature of this workshop was the innovative models prepared by
students from different schools. These models were working technology models
based on fundamental principals of science. The models ranged from paddy
cleaning mechines to renewable energy, showcasing the innovative abiliites of
students. Prof Ashok Jain chaired the panel for juding the best working model.
Glimses of the exhibition held (workng model demonstration) is given below.
Another feature of the
workshop was the cultural fundtcion. School students of NIT-Silchar campus had
prepared many interesting items guided by their teachers and parents for
presenting during this workshop. The cultural items highlighteed the ricch
cultural heritage of North-East and the promisng potential of these yound
students. Some senior members also performed during the cultural programme.
DAY-2
(TECHNICAL SESSION-IV)
Chairperson: Yogesh Suman, Associate Professor AcSIR &
Principal Scientist CSIR-NISTADS
Rapporteur: Dr.
Sudhir Kumar Jena, Librarian, IIM Shillong.
The session IV had
8 paper presentations and was chaired by Dr. Yogesh Suman, Associate Professor
AcSIR & Principal Scientist CSIR-NISTADS.
Out of eight papers, five papers exclusively
devoted to Library and Information Science and remaining three papers
exclusively for Management and Engineering.
First
paper presented
by Shri Saumen Datta, Sr. Librarian,
TPSC, Agartala. His paper was a case study of development plan for Public
Libraries of Tripura with special reference to Birchandra State Central
Library. Shri Datta traced the history of public libraries in Tripura and
suggested the State Govt. towards their modernization.
Second
paper ‘Elec-Bee Energy Meter’ presented by Shri Gunjesh Sharma, Dept. of Business
Administration, Assam University, Silchar. In his presentation first of all
he explained the title and about the Energy Meter and history of Innovation. He
highlighted the following advantages of Elec-Bee Energy Meter:
1.
Reduces
Human interference.
2.
Reduces
Human error (caused during Billing)
3.
Reduce
Power theft (by keeping proper track on electricity consumption)
4.
Can
capture maximum/low voltage along with various parameters like, power factor,
frequency, etc.
5.
Improve
customer service.
Third
paper presented
by Shri Abhisekh Mishra, Dept. of
Business Administration, Assam University, Silchar. He explained his title
‘Greed Education’ and suggested: go paperless, use internet for assignment and
project work, use solar panels, avoid notebook and use laptop etc.
Fourth
paper ‘Geographical Indication for Gamosa:
Opportunities and Challenges’ presented by Shri Mridul Dutta, Asst. Prof. Dept.
of Business Administration, Tezpur University, Tezpur. After describing
Gamosa he highlited the ways of life of Gamosa
and its frame work, geographical
indication, agriculture, manufacturing, natural goods, etc.
In a jointly written paper, ‘Social Media for Students: Opportunities for Library and Information
Centers by Ms. Sucheta Bhattacharjee, Research Scholar & Dr. Manoj Kumar
Sinha, Associate Professor and Head, DLIS, Assam University, Silchar, the authors highlighted what makes social
media special, the goals of social networking, characteristics of social media,
information flow in new libraries, role and opportunities for libraries and
challenges.
In a jointly written paper, ‘Application
of Mobile Technology Based Library Services Within Various Library of
Northeast, India’ presented by Mr. Sudip
Bhattacharjee, Guest Faculty, DLIS, Assam University, Silchar, this paper was a case study in which the authors
highlighted the recent trends and application of mobile technology in library
services, with special reference to North-East India, and catalogue search
through mobile.
Mrs. Krishnamati
Singha, NIT Silchar, in her ‘Social Audit with Web 2.0: A Key’ paper on factor
for successful e-Governance highlighted as to what is e-governance and
its various types with an emphasis on the necessity of social audit for good
governance, with an over view of the web
2.0 technologies.
The last of paper of day two session IV presented
by Dr. Kishor Chandra Satpathy,
Librarian, NIT Silchar, on
‘Best/Innovative Practices in Libraries & Information Centers: A case study
of NIT Silchar’, highlighted the
history & present status of the central library of NIT Silchar and
emphasized the services, its mission, vision and best & innovative
practices and future plan of Central Library NIT, Silchar.
Concluding Remarks Dr Yogesh Suman, Charperson of
this session drew attention to the diverse topics presented in this session. He
also underscored the young researchers who presnted their work in this session.
Dr Yogesh felt that the workshop has very rightly given opportunity for yound
scholarss to present their work. Also, it is inportant that inniovation debate
should not be restrictive, partcularly stressing how libaries/information
centers are important stakeholders in the inovation process which has been so well articulateed
by Dr Sathpathy in his presentation.
DAY-2
(TECHNICAL SESSION-V)
Chairperson: Dr. Kavita Mehra, Chief Scientist
CSIR-NISTADS, New Delhi
Rapporteur: Miss I. Ilika Zhimo
The session had 2 Key Note Lectures delivered by
eminent experts.
1st
Key Note Lecture by Dr Prabir G Dastidar, Scientist and Director, Ministry of
Earth Sciences, Govt. of India, New Delhi
Title: Global
Initiatives in Science, Technology and Innovation Towards Economic Prosperity
of Nations: an Analysis
Delivering
his lecture Dr Dastidar said that
Innovation is not proportional to the financial investment in R&D. He also
said that innovation may not be always high technology. Giving an example, he
mentioned the statement of Steve Jobs who said that when Apple came with MAC,
IBM was spending 100 times more money on R&D.
Dr Dastidar further displayed the
compiled data on rich history of knowledge economy in the sub-continent. Healso
spoke in detail about the legend of Nalanda University wherein he stressed that
innovation started from early days of civilization. He said that innovation is
important for India as it is one of the largest markets in the world. He also
informed that in the 12th Five Year Plan of the Ministry, much stress has been
given for faster and sustainable growth of the nation. Dr Dastidar further
discussed the success story of Biocon the leading biotech firm in India. He
also discussed the research & innovation centric growth of few countries
such as Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, etc., in which he highlighted the per
capita expenditure and per capita GDP. He also discussed the scope of higher
education system in the Indian innovation system and urged for improving the
quality of education.
Dr Dastidar also discussed the case
studies of some innovative rich countries in Europe and further informed about
various platforms given by Govt. of India for funding innovative projects such
as Indo-EU S&T Platform.
Chairman’s
Remarks: Dr
Kavita remarked that the deliberation given by Dr Dastidar was truly
informative and diversified wherein many important issues were emphasized in a
single lecture. The deliberation on knowledge and innovation scenario of the
countries and the case studies alongwith its findings were very important, she
pointed out.
2nd
Key Note Lecture by Prof. Sujit Bhattacharya, Sr Principal Scientist,
CSIR-NISTADS
Title: Emerging Technologies and New Initiatives: A Case
Study of Emergence of India in the Nanotechnology Race.
Prof Bhattacharya highlighted the contours of
emerging technologies and their potentiality to create new industries. The complex
inter-relationship between science-technology- innovation comes into play for
developing noval applications in emerging technologies. Emerging technologies
such as Synthetic Biology, Biotechnology, Advanced Materials, ICT,
Nanotechnology are some of the key technologies that are shaping the global
economy. The important fact is that these technologies provide novel solutions
to many problems of pressing developmental concerns.
Keeping techno-economic potential of emerging
technologies in context, Prof Bhattacharya stressed upon the importance of
assessing India’s capacity and progression in emerging technologies. The
presentation drew attention to nanotechnology; highlighling some interesting
characteristics and promises of this field.
Keeping in view many young participants, the presentation highlighted
some novel applications of this technology, Indian researchers contributions in
this field, and new opportunties that are coming up in India for research in
this field.
Chairman’s
Remarks: Dr
Kavita remarked that the deliberation has touched on the important subject
matter on Nanotechnology which has been very lucidly delivered by the speaker.
Dr Kavita also commended on the notable examples given by the speaker.
VALEDICTORY
SESSION
The two-day workshop concluded with a valedictory
session presided over by Prof N V Deshpande, Director, NIT Silchar, in which
Prof Ashok Jain, Former Director, CSIR-NISTADS, New Delhi, graced the occasion as Chief
Guest. Dr Kishore Sathpathy, joint coordinator of this workhop gave a broad
overview of the lessons that has been learnt from the workshop. He placed this
in the context of various initiatives undertaken by NIT-Silchar. Dr Sujit
Bhattacharya, Joint Coordinator from CSIR-NISTADS thanked the excellent
arrangements made by NIT-Silchar, with special thanks to Director NIT-Silchar
and Dr Kishore Sathpathy and his team. Dr Prabir Dastidar, Scientist
and Director, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India, New Delhi, gave his remarks on the occasion
while Dr N V Deshpande, Director, NIT-Silchar,
and Prof P Banerjee, Director, CSIR-NISTADS, gave their concluding
remarks. The participants gave their feedback about the programme. Also, on the
occasion, results were declared and the winners were awarded for best model
exhibition on the occasion, which included first, second and third prizes for
the models displayed. All together, 20 Students participated in the exhibition.
The programme concluded with
Vote of thanks offered by Dr. Kishor Satpathy.
Thursday, April 10, 2014
INDEST Meet@NIT Silchar
Sub: 10th Annual Meet &
Workshop of INDEST-AICTE Consortium of MHRD on 5-6 May 2014 at NIT Silchar
Dear Sir/ Madam,
Greetings from NIT
Silchar!
You will be pleased to know that National Institute of
Technology Silchar – an Institute of National Importance under Ministry of
Human Resource Development, Government of India - is organizing the 10th Annual Meet
& Workshop of INDEST-AICTE Consortium on 5-6 May 2014 in collaboration with IIT Delhi at NIT Silchar. This is for first time the Annual meet
is being organized in the North Eastern Region.
The workshop and
annual meet is the regular event of the INDEST-AICTE Consortium. The main
objectives of the Annual meet are:
· To provide a platform to all INDEST members to
interact and share their experience.
· To update members on activities, development
and future plans of INDEST-AICTE Consortium.
· To provide an opportunity to INDEST-AICTE
Consortium members to discuss and deliberate on emerging trends and technology
in libraries.
· To promote use of e-resources, resource
sharing & inter library networking.
I invite all INDEST members
(Core, Active and others) to register at the earliest to avail campus
accommodation as we have limited number of rooms available. Other interested library
professionals can also register for the meet.
For more details please visit
to the website: http://www.nits.ac.in/ & http://indest2014.blogspot.in/.
Looking forward to
seeing you at NIT Silchar.
With warm regards,
Yours sincerely,
Kishor Satpathy
……………………………………………………………………………………
Kishor Chandra Satpathy,
PhD
Librarian & Organising Secretary,
INDEST 2014
(Institute of National Importance under Ministry of HRD, GOI)
Silchar-788010, Assam, India
Tele : +91-3842-240055
(Off) +91-9435175531 (M)
http://indest2014.blogspot.in/
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