New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said the government will operationalise Anusandhan National Research Fund for basic research and prototype development. Presenting the Union Budget, she announced that the government will set up a mechanism for spurring private sector-driven research and innovation at commercial scale with a financing pool of Rs 1 lakh crore in line with the announcement in the interim budget.
Sitharaman also allocated Rs 600 crore for the Deep Ocean Mission, under which the government plans to launch Samudrayaan, a manned submersible up to 6,000 metres depth of the ocean to explore deep-oceanic resources and develop technologies for their sustainable use.
The Minister allocated Rs 3064.80 crore to the Earth Sciences Ministry, which includes Rs 600 crore for the Deep Ocean Mission.
The Department of Scientific and Industrial Research received an allocation of Rs 6323.41 crore, an increase of 10 per cent over the budget for the previous fiscal. Of the Rs 6323.41 crore allocated for DSIR, an amount of Rs 6265.80 crore has been earmarked for the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research.
The Department of Science and Technology has received an allocation of Rs 8029.01 crore as against the Rs 4891.78 crore in the revised estimates of the 2023-24 budget.
A significant hike in the allocation is for the National Quantum Mission, which has been earmarked a budget of Rs 427 crore as against a token allocation of Rs 5 crore in the revised estimates of 2023-24.
The Department of Biotechnology has got Rs 2275.70 crore as against the Rs 1607.32 crore it had received in the revised estimates for the previous fiscal.
The ANRF seeks to address the pressing need for a professional and comprehensive research framework that directs human and material resources towards carrying out well coordinated research across disciplines and across all types of institutions.
The overarching goal of the ANRF will be to seed, grow and promote research and development and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout Indian universities, colleges, research institutions.
