President Pranab Mukherjee today launched ‘IMPRINT India’, a joint
initiative of country’s top educational institutes, aimed at developing a
roadmap for research to solve major engineering and technology
challenges relevant to India today.
The initiative is based on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s suggestion
that research done by institutions of national importance must be linked
with immediate requirements of the society at large.
The President said it is necessary to develop in our students a
scientific temper, which allows the flight of imagination beyond the
realm of grades and classrooms.
“Promotion of research at the under-graduate level would assist such an
objective. The link between progress and innovation is direct. History
is witness to many nations low on resources emerging as advanced
economies only on the strength of rapid technological development,”
Mukherjee said while launching the project during Visitors’ Conference
at Rashtrapati Bhavan here.
The objectives of this initiative are to identify areas of immediate
relevance to society requiring innovation, direct scientific research
into identified areas, ensure higher funding support for research into
these areas and measure outcomes of the research effort with reference
to impact on the standard of living in the rural and urban areas, a
press release by the President’s office said.
The idea of launching IMPRINT India, which is now a joint project of
IITs and IISc, originated during the conference of Chairmen, Board of
Governors and Directors of Indian Institutes of Technology convened by
the President in August last year.
IMPRINT India will focus on 10 themes, with each to be coordinated by
one IIT or IISc, including Health Care (IIT Kharagpur), Computer Science
and ICT (IIT Kharagpur), Water Resources and River systems (IIT
Kanpur), Defence and Manufacturing (IIT Madras), among others.
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