Prime Minister Narendra Modi adds Jai Anusandhan to Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan and Jai Vigyan

Jalandhar, Jan 3 Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday included 'Jai Anusandhan' to former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri's slogan 'Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan' and Atal Bihari Vajpayee's 'Jai Vigyan' as he called for formulating an action plan to boost research in colleges and state varsities.

Addressing the 106th Indian Science Congress here, Modi said the nation's strengths in research and development are built on the backbone of its national labs, central universities, IIT, Indian Institute of Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and Indian Institute of Science Education and Research.

In any case, more than 95 percent of the nation's students go to state universities and colleges, he said.

A strong research ecosystem must be developed in these universities and colleges, he asserted.

"I call upon the Prime Minister's Science, Technology and Innovation Council to discuss these issues in detail and figure an activity plan in interview with the Ministry of Human Resource Development to help look into in our colleges and state universities," he said.

Modi included that his science and technology council will also help formulate appropriate interventions, catalyse collaborations across stakeholder ministries and implement multi-stakeholder policy initiatives.

He said it was important to focus on innovation and start-ups. More technology business incubators have been established in the last four years than in the forty years before that, he added.

"The present new slogan is Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan, Jai Vigyan and Jai Anusandhan. I might want to add Jai Anusandhan to it," he said.

Modi said India's ancient knowledge has been founded just on research and Indians have edified the world through their contribution in mathematics, science, culture, arts.

"Time has wanted India to regain a similar place on the world. This is conceivable when three biggest economies function as one and provide guidance to the world through our research and innovation," he said.

The prime minister said big data analysis, artificial intelligence, block-chain technology should be used in the agricultural sector, especially to help the farmers with relatively small farm-holdings.

He also encouraged the researchers to progress in the direction of simplicity of living for the people.

The prime minister also emphasised on the requirement for research, which is a fusion of arts and humanities, social science, science and technology.

Noting that the future is about convergence and connected technologies, Modi emphasised on the requirement for strong pathways to commercialisation that can use on nation's research and development achievements, through industrial products.

The prime minister said 2018 was a decent year for Indian science as he featured its accomplishments which included creation of aeronautics review biofuel, Divya Nayan - a machine for outwardly impaired, inexpensive devices for diagnosis of cervical cancer, TB, dengue and a real-time landslide warning system.

He said the life and works of Indian researchers are a compelling testament of integration of deep fundamental insights with technology development and nation building.