Dr Harsh Vardhan releases Action Agenda for Atma Nirbhar Bharat (AAAN)

Union Minister of Science and Technology, Earth Sciences Health & Family Welfare Dr. Harsh Vardhan, released the Action Agenda for Atma Nirbhar Bharat (AAAN) that defines overarching policy recommendations with reference to technological inputs, focusing towards local to global thereby reviving Indian economy, on 29th December 2020.  

The document prepared by Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC), provides such recommendations in identified domains of innovation and technology development, technology adoption/diffusion, boosting up manufacturing and productivity, trade and globalization, internet policy and data management & education and training.

“Suggestions given by TIFAC are very comprehensive and come from all the stakeholders. It adds value to the quality of life in all sectors,” said Dr Harsh Vardhan while releasing the document. He highlighted the efforts and role of science and technology in fighting COVID-19.

“COVID-19 has proved many things. The year 2020 will be remembered for COVID-19 as well as India beating the whole world in all parameters. When we started the year 2020, we had a lot of things that we wanted to achieve. But at the end of this year, we have overcome most of the problems, and science, technology, and innovation has played a great role in it,” he added.   

“TIFAC which has a very rich and long history with deep thinkers associated with it since the beginning, works with a wide range of sectors -- industry, academia and the scientific community thereby connecting to the outside world,” Secretary, Department of Science and Technology (DST), Prof Ashutosh Sharma pointed out.    

Pradeep Srivastava, Executive Director, TIFAC, said that a lot of effort has gone into preparing this document and TIFAC was determined to play its part in achieving Aatma Nirbhar Bharat’ as it understands its responsibility to the nation.

The document has been prepared following a pan-India consultative approach involving industry, academia, R&D institutes and policy makers. Earlier, after the effects of COVID-19 pandemic on global and Indian economy, TIFAC, an autonomous institution of DST, prepared a foresight report namely “Focused Interventions for ‘Make in India’: post COVID -19’ - a foresight exercise towards understanding the technology interventions in key sectors (Healthcare, Machinery, ICT, Agriculture, Manufacturing, and Electronics) for boosting the economy.

The AAAN document has been structured with reference to timeline, highlighting short, medium and long-term interventions in various identified sectors. The various sectors as identified and referred to in the document need diligent and strong financial and policy support. The AAAN document says that the time-bound action plan in the short, medium and long-term needs to be pursued vigorously to revive the economy. The recommendations are focused to sustain the Make In India momentum bringing transformational changes in the working methodology and translate new technologies and products for “Atma Nirbhar Bharat”. 

TIFAC’s White Paper - Focused Interventions for “Make In India”: Post COVID -19 -  dwelled  on the country’s response to post COVID-19 pandemic in five specific sectors of healthcare, machinery, ICT, Agriculture, manufacturing, and electronics. After the release of the white paper, several brainstorming workshops were conducted and specific action plans were identified, which have been consolidated in AAAN. The key recommendations have been delineated as per time line-- immediate action and medium-term and long-term. 

 Anneure: Salient Recommendations: 

Innovation and Technology development 

  • Development of Phase Zero Programme for supporting proof of concept to cross the value of death from early stage research to commercialization by providing necessary infrastructure expertise and personnel, incubation and accelerator facilities 
  • Innovation Vouchers is created and provided to micro small enterprises to but expertise from Universities and National Lab Research Institutions to conduct studies, analyze the innovation potential of new technologies. 
  • Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Programme to provide entrepreneurship access to the advanced technology equipment and know-how that the labs possess for eco-development in job creation 
  • India should make policies around the collection of big data (anonymized) coming in from the usage of varying consumer electronics and industrial electronic products. 

 

Technology adoption/ diffusion 

  • Wide adoption of telemedicine (plug and play model) to make medicare reach out to inaccessible terrains, and to the poorest of poor.  
  • Promotion of high yielding cell line platform for biopharmaceuticals 
  • Development of industrial parks for manufacturing of monoclonal antibodies (mAb ) /peptides  

 

Manufacturing and Productivity, 

  • Support for indigenous development medical equipment like: Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure (BiPAP), C Arm, X-ray IOT sensors Cath lab MRI etc.  
  • Enhanced support for target technologies like MEMS, 5G, etc. 
  • Create an ecosystem for the propagation of Industry 4.0 by every Indian manufacturer by 2025 

 

Trade and globalization 

  • Companies (Indian startups) to pay a lower tax rate on income generated. 
  • Adoption of Circular Economy Strategy 
  • The government should ban the import of second-hand machine and manufacturing tools.  

 

Education and Training & Internet Policy

  • To create Centers of Product Development (CPDs) and equipped with design, manufacture, assembly and testing infrastructure along with requisite laboratory infrastructure.  
  • Academic / Researchers should be allowed and permitted to work in Industries for fix duration of time. 

 

AI & Data management

  • High-speed seamless affordable broadband connectivity with incremental frequency upto 26 Ghz and extended network of optical cable fibre. India needs to set up operational standards for 5- G. Need to create standard-setting groups.  
  • Designing of Indian cloud & security standards and protocol.  

 

Information and Communication Technology 

Linking of Mandis to Electronic National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) by networking with existing Agricultural Produce & Livestock Market Committee (APMCs).