What ails science in India?

Most universities have poor-quality teaching labs let alone research labs.

Unlike other countries, India successfully sent a spacecraft (Mangalyaan) to Mars in its first attempt. But the country has failed to produce any path-breaking research or Nobel Laureates for the last several decades. And in all likelihood, India may not produce one in the near future unless some dramatic changes are brought about.

What stares Indian science in the face is the government’s shocking decision to dissolve the scientific advisory council to the Prime Minister, thereby cutting a crucial link that has served science and the scientific community well. Another jolt has been the cut in research budget, which has been static for about a decade at a paltry 0.9 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP). Compare this with that of China’s — almost 2 per cent; it was about 0.8 per cent in 2000.

Science is the engine of growth of a country and is crucial to revitalise the economy. So any squeeze on research and development funding will be at the country’s own peril.

Nodal agencies like the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have been headless for over a year. The same is the case in several national laboratories and central universities. The Department of Science and Technology (DST) got its secretary only in January this year, eight long months after the earlier incumbent retired.

“Indian science suffers, today more than ever, from government apathy,” writes Raghavendra Gadagkar, Professor of ecology at IISc, Bengaluru in Nature’s special issue published today (May 14). The special issue paints a sorry picture of the state of science in India.

India has only 200,000 full time researchers — four researchers per 10,000 labour force. That is way too low compared with China (18 researchers per 10,000 labour force) and Brazil (seven researchers per 10,000 labour force). With six researchers per 10,000 labour force, even Kenya has a higher proportion than India.

The number of research papers published by researchers based in the country has nearly quadrupled since 2000 but it is way too low compared with China. If there were around 25,000 papers published from India in 2000, it was nearly 90,000 in 2013. In the case of China, the numbers have risen phenomenally from about 50,000 in 2000 to over 310,000 papers in 2013.

Besides the 40 CSIR laboratories, a few premier research institutions like the IISc, Bengaluru, TIFR, Mumbai, 16 IITs and five Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), there are over 600 universities in the country. But hardly any of the international-level research is done in the universities.

“Facilities and teaching at the universities that serve more than 29 million students are alarming. Most are ‘chalk and talk’ classrooms with poor-quality teaching laboratories, let alone research laboratories,” writes Hiriyakkanavar Ila, Professor of chemistry at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru in a Comment piece.

There are several critical issues that need to be immediately addressed for universities to become centres of excellence. The first and foremost change that necessarily has to be undertaken is a complete “overhauling” of the University Grants Commission (UGC). “Archaic ordinances and rules set by the University Grants Commission have stifled the spirit of academic excellence and hampered institutions’ flexibility,” writes Prof. Vinod Singh, Director of IISER, Bhopal.

Though India produces 9,000 PhD graduates a year in science and technology, the number pales in comparison with the country’s population. The U.S. produces four times more number of PhDs despite having one-fourth of India’s population. Number is just one of the indicators. “The variation in quality of Indian PhD graduates and faculty members is a prime concern,” says Prof. Singh. “Quality-control mechanisms must be established for the national accreditation and assessment of Indian PhDs and to improve research and educational training.”

“I have noticed a fundamental difference in the attitude of young U.S. scientists from that of their Indian counterparts: their appetite for big problems. ‘Going for great’ is a skill acquired very early on in the West,” writes Yamuna Krishnan, professor of chemistry at the University of Chicago, Illinois. She was earlier with the Bengaluru-based National Centre for Biological Sciences before moving over to the U.S.

Unlike in the West where talent is spotted at the graduate level and nurtured, researchers in India are mentored way too late.

“Is there a dearth of talent in India? Certainly not. Is there a dearth of unstoppable achievers and innovators? Yes: because making talent shine takes a culture that is proud of its scientists and a charged intellectual environment that nurtures, mentors and drives them.,” writes Prof. Umesh Varshney of the Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology, IISc.

Keywords: Indian Council of Medical Research, Department of Science and Technology, scientific community

India way behind on WHO health targets

India has met only four of ten health targets under the Millenium Development Goals (MDG), and has made next to no progress on another four, according to new data from the World Health Organisation. The deadline for achieving MDGs runs out this year.The WHO’s annual World Health Statistics for 2015 were released in Geneva on Wednesday.

The report finds that globally, life expectancy at birth has increased by six years for both men and women since 1990. “By the end of this year if current trends continue, the world will have met global targets for turning around the epidemics of HIV, malaria and tuberculosis and increasing access to safe drinking water. It will also have made substantial progress in reducing child undernutrition, maternal and child deaths, and increasing access to basic sanitation,” the report says.

Infant mortality

Progress in child survival worldwide is one of the greatest success stories of international development, the WHO says, and pre-term birth complications have replaced neo-natal complications and disease as the biggest source of mortality for children under the age of five. Since 1990, child deaths have almost halved — falling from an estimated 90 deaths per 1000 live births to 46 deaths per 1000 live births in 2013. Yet the world will not achieve the MDG target of reducing the death rate by two-thirds. “Less than one-third of all countries have achieved or are on track to meet this target by the end of this year. The top killers of children aged less than 5 years are now: pre-term birth complications, pneumonia, birth asphyxia and diarrhoea,” the report says.

In India, life expectancy grew by eight years between 1990 and 2013. While India has sharply reduced its infant mortality between 2000 and 2013, it still contributes for the most infant deaths globally. Non-communicable diseases are the top killers, followed by communicable diseases and injuries.

In September, countries will decide on new goals for 2030. “In addition to finishing the MDG agenda, the post-2015 agenda needs to tackle emerging challenges, including the growing impact of non-communicable diseases, like diabetes and heart disease, and the changing social and environmental determinants that affect health,” it says.

Keywords: Millenium Development Goals, India's health target, World Health Organisation, child survival rate

Hindus’ population share in U.S. doubles in 7 years

Proportion of Christians in U.S. drops from 78.4 per cent to 70.6 per cent.

The proportion of Christians in the U.S. population dropped by ten per cent over the last seven years, even as Hindus and Muslims nearly doubled their share, according to a recent study.

In its report on “America’s Changing Religious Landscape” released this week, the Pew Research Center said that while the U.S. remained home to more Christians than any other country in the world, and roughly seven out of ten Americans continued to identify with some branch of the Christian faith, “growth has been especially great among Muslims and Hindus, albeit from a very low base.”

The Pew study found that while the proportion of Christians across sub-denominations dropped from 78.4 per cent in 2007 to 70.6 per cent in 2014, the figure for Hindus rose from 0.4 to 0.7 per cent during that period, and similarly for Muslims it rose from 0.4 to 0.9 per cent.

Well educated

The report also shed light on attributes of specific religious communities within the U.S., noting for example that more than one in ten immigrants identified with a non-Christian faith, such as Islam or Hinduism, and that Hindus and Jews continued to be the most highly educated religious traditions.

Thirty-six per cent of Hindus said their annual family income exceeded $100,000, compared with 19 per cent of the public overall, and 34 per cent of the community made between $50,000 and $99,999.

The population of U.S. Hindus also appeared skewed towards younger cohorts, with 56 per cent of them falling within the age range of 30-49 years and 34 per cent within the 18-29 category.

Unsurprisingly an overwhelming majority, 91 per cent, of U.S. Hindus were of Asian origin, with only four per cent or lower percentage each being white, black, Latino or mixed.

Keywords: U.S. population, Hindus population in U.S. America’s Changing Religious Landscape, U.S. Hindus

Partners in conservation

That wildlife conservation efforts cannot succeed in the long term without the proactive involvement of local communities living in and around forest areas has been a well-established fact. The latest lion census conducted in Gujarat reaffirms this. The exercise has shown a 27 per cent rise in the feline’s numbers, which now stand at 523, compared to 411 in 2010. Forest officials acknowledge that this conservation success story would not have come about without support from the Maldharis, a nomadic tribe of cattle-rearers, and also farmers living in the vicinity of the Gir National Park. Lion territory in Gujarat spans some 22,000 sq km across four districts — Junagadh, Bhavnagar, Amreli and Gir-Somnath. This covers 2,600 villages with an approximate population of 7,00,000. Lions now frequent more villages than in the past, with about 167 of them found roaming outside the protected forest area, creating hardly any conflict situations. The lions have actually helped control the population not only of nilgai, its principal source of food, but also of wild boars, which frequently destroy standing crops. Thus, they have benefited the local communities. These communities have reciprocated by protecting the animals from poachers, resisting retaliation when lions prey on cattle, and even building parapet walls around farm-wells to minimise the accidental death of lions that may fall into them.

Although humans and animals have coexisted for ages, the story has not always had a happy ending. Challenges posed by human casualties, and damage to crops, buildings and so on from wildlife intrusions have led one group of conservationists to argue that villagers residing in forest areas ought to be sent out. But another group insists that such a move will result in the loss of goodwill of local communities, impeding conservation efforts. The question is how goodwill could be generated when fear of the animal itself looms large. In Gir, it has become possible to inculcate a sense of pride and ownership among local communities regarding the animal. They share a virtual spiritual bond with the lion. Down south in Valparai, Tamil Nadu, meanwhile, there has been a gradual decline in human fatalities caused by wild elephants after early-warning systems that use text messages and flash light alerts were deployed with help from forest-dwellers within a 2-km radius of herd locations. The Nature Conservation Foundation that has been working on this has found that often it is lack of awareness about the animal’s presence that results in casualties. When the 2006 Forest Rights Act upheld the forest-dwellers’ traditional right to land, conservationists resisted it over concerns of habitat fragmentation. But as testimonies from Gir and elsewhere demonstrate, making local communities active partners can create a win-win situation on the conservation front.

Keywords: wildlife conservation, Gir National Park, Lion territory in Gujarat, Human-animal conflict, Nature Conservation Foundation

Cabinet approves ban on child employment

NEW DELHI





Children below 14 years of age can work only in family enterprises or entertainment industry. Punishment for violations up to three years in jail

The government on Wednesday okayed a proposal allowing children below 14 years of age to work only in family enterprises or entertainment industry with certain conditions while completely banning their employment elsewhere. It has also raised the punishment for violations to up to three years of jail.The new provisions are part of the official amendments to the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2012.
Making child labour a cognizable offence, the fine has also been increased to up to Rs 50,000 for the employers. The children can be employed only in non-hazardous family enterprises, TV serials, films, advertisements and sporting activities (except circus) with a condition that they would be made to do these jobs after school hours.
A new definition of adolescent has also been introduced to further prohibit employment of those aged 14-18 years in hazardous jobs, a government statement said.
The amendments to the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act has relaxed the penal provisions for guardians, who were earlier subjected to same punishments as applicable to the employer of the child.
The amendment bill, approved by the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, provides that there would be no punishment for parents or guardians in case of first offence, while a maximum penalty of Rs 10,000 can be levied in case of the second and subsequent offences.
Under the existing law, any violation attracts imprisonment of a minimum 3 months to a maximum of one year for the first offence, while the fine is Rs 10,000-20,000. This has been enhanced to imprisonment of 6 months to two years and fine of Rs 20,000-50,000 for the first offence.For the second offence, the jail provision has been increased from 6-24 months to 12-36 months.
PARLIAMENT PASSES BLACK MONEY BILL
Parliament on Wednesday passed the black money bill. The Rajya Sabha passed the bill after it was earlier passed by the Lok Sabha. The bill will now go to the President.
GOVT RETAINS 51% FDI IN MULTI-BRAND RETAIL
The government has retained the previous UPA regime's decision allowing foreign retailers to open multi-brand stores with 51 per cent ownership, in its consolidated FDI policy released today, notwithstanding the political slugfest over the issue.

Vedanta - Temporary Touchdown

SHAH RUKH KIRMANI





Nothing in life is as certain as death. Everything living is bound to die one day . We appear on the world scene only to disappear after a short span of time. This is the cycle of terrestrial life. Finally , a time will come when even the earth would cease to exist.Indeed, nothing physical can escape the march of time and remain fixed in its place without decay , death or transformation. The transient and ephemeral nature of life is a universally-known existential reality . Yet, we are hardly bothered about it, and we continue to live as though we are here forever. A life without a vision of mortality is incom plete and flawed.
The way we hanker after life is the cen tral weakness of our life. It is because of this that we are so afraid of death, of what is predestined and so inevitable. It keeps us always restless.It prevents us not only from acting decisively during critical moments but also from enjoying the pleasure and excitement of undertaking bold adventures in life.
If we believe in the universal truths advocated by most religions, a belief that starts with Self-realisation, death is not an end but the beginning of a new life, a point of transformation. The world we enter upon death is eternal and exists in both space and time. It is not discernible to us as the world we now live in was nowhere in sight when we were in our mother's womb, protected and secure.

Abortions by U-15 Mum girls up 67%

Sumitra DebRoy

Mumbai





`Rise Indicates Need To Talk About Teen Sex'

Abortions among teenage girls below the age of 15 in Mumbai have recorded an alarming 67% spike in 2014-15. Civic data accessed through an RTI further shows that out of nearly 31,000 women who opted for medical termination of pregnancy , 1,600 were below the age of 19.Health experts have called the trend of unwanted pregnancies alarming, while harping on the need for better sex education in schools and junior colleges. The BMC data, collated from all licenced Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) centres in the city, shows that in 2013-14 around 111 girls below the age of 15 had undergone an abor tion. The number has risen to 185 in 2014-15. Even for the agebracket of 15-19, there has been a 47% jump when compared with the previous year.
Interestingly, Andheri east and west emerged as the abortion centres, reporting nearly 6,000 cases. Civic officials have attributed the increase to better and more accurate reporting.
Social and health pundits, however, also hinted at the possibility of young girls being exploited as well as the prevalence of under-age marriages in Indian society . A senior doctor from a civic hospital said, “Teenage pregnancies are becoming common, though most prefer to get it done in private set-ups for privacy issues.“
“The numbers are shock ing,“ said gynaecologist and former president of Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India Dr Suchitra Pandit. “What is worrisome is these girls are just out of school.On one hand, we have more and more young girls walking up to doctors and asking for contraceptives, and on the other we have these statistics,“ she added. Pandit believes the reasons vary from curiousity to exploitation to plain ignorance about safe sex. An analysis of reasons why women needed MTPs (carried out in 2013-14) showed that failure of contraceptives topped the chart, with nearly 23,000 out of 30,000 stating it. The other reasons shown were danger to mother's life or that the child may suffer from abnormalities.In only 10 cases, rape was shown as the reason for pregnancy .
However, others feel it is time for planners to device smarter ways to reach out to the young rather than brushing the issue under the carpet. “There is increased sexual activity among teenagers. Sex is happening everywhere but nobody wants to talk about it,“ said Nayreen Daruwalla, who heads the NGO SNEHA 's centre for vulnerable women and children.