The great Indian science scam

It is true that some institutions like the Atomic Energy Commission, Indian Space Research Organisation and Electronics have been successful in exploring new frontiers of research, and have made significant contributions in indigenously developing Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles, conducting successful nuclear tests at Pokharan and producing export-oriented electronic goods. But the overall output of certain institutions, in terms of returns from the infrastructure built up with enormous investment, has been far from satisfactory because the country continues to depend largely on foreign know-how.

Since these institutions enjoy great autonomy, they are impossible to scrutinise, nor are they accountable. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science and Technology had earlier urged for adequate audits of scientific programmes to assess whether they are yielding fruitful results. The audit components include economy, efficiency and effectiveness of result-oriented programmes to cover relevancy of projects towards implementation of national plans, their utilisation, their funding and auditing of accounts. The audit is considered a useful tool.

The audit exercise was entrusted to the Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG). In its annual reports, this auditing agency has brought out lapses and irregularities in the working of certain institutions. There’s wasteful expenditure, excess release of funds, blocking of huge funds in unproductive or unused assets, ineffective monitoring of programmes, lack of proper appraisal of projects, non-achievement of targets, non-utilisation of results, etc. Some of the important findings from recent CAG reports:

• CAG has reported that there has been a decline in the number of patents sealed and the scientific papers published. The country has also been lagging behind in publishing scientific papers in journals of repute. India’s contribution to world publications has been barely 2.2 per cent in the last decade.

• Scientific departments did not utilise 7.64 per cent of the allocated funds, amounting to Rs 1182.99, crore during 2002-03. Its 2002-03 report was critical of some of the institutions under CSIR, ICAR, ICMR etc for wasting money and failing to achieve project objectives. These institutions failed to implement projects in the Taj Mahal protection mission, Ganga Action Plan, fuel reprocessing of DAE’s Fast Breeder Test Reactor, waste management facilities, and others.

• The chief of the Indian Council of Historical Research has been removed for financial irregularities, brought out by CAG. The Government is holding an inquiry into its functioning.

• CAG also complained that the All India Institute of Medical Sciences spends barely Rs 7-12 crore of its annual budget of Rs 600 crore on research. It has observed that 49 per cent of the doctors trained at the institute leave for foreign assignments. Also, there’s been a decline of values and teaching has suffered due to shortage of staff. AIIMS has failed to develop into a centre of excellence.

• The performance of CSIR laboratories is also far from satisfactory. A number of technologies developed by the CSIR during 1996-2002 have not been applied commercially. As a result, the CSIR incurred a loss of Rs 99.31 lakh for not following prescribed norms on technology transfer. Also, sophisticated equipment imported at a cost of Rs 18.57 lakh for the Central Fuel Research Institute has remained unused and fallen into dis-repair since 1994, rendering the entire expenditure wasteful.

• Two CSIR institutes, namely the Indian Institute of Petroleum (Dehra Dun) and the National Institute of Oceanography (Goa), were lambasted for gross misutilisation of the laboratory reserve fund to siphon off Rs 6.37 crore for items totally unrelated to infrastructure upgradation, which were in fact meant for research development.

• The Southern Regional Station of the National Dairy Research Institute (Bangalore) under ICAR was criticised for foreclosing two projects without achieving their objectives, another wasteful expenditure of Rs 55.97 lakh. The NDRI’s (Karnal) progress in its three major areas of R&D activities in terms of practical development of technologies was reported to be dismal. Only one technology was commercialised during 1996-99.

• In its earlier report, CAG had brought out gross irregularities in the four ICAR institutes (the Central Institute of Fisheries Education, Mumbai; Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izzatnagar; Indian Lac Research Institute, Namkum; and National Research Centre for Groundnut).

• During 1996-02, the Department of Biotechnology undertook 32 projects involving an expenditure of Rs 6.10 crore, but the envisaged objectives were not achieved. There were lapses in other 80 projects involving an expenditure of Rs 15.39 crore.

• The Indian Association for Cultivation of Science (Kolkata) procured a liquid nitrogen plant from a foreign firm in August 1998 at a cost of Rs 59.05 lakh. The plant ceased functioning in December 2000. The investment was again a waste.

• In its earlier report, CAG had reported that the Department of Atomic Energy suffered a loss of Rs 50.16 crore because of delay in communicating revised nuclear fuel rates to the Nuclear Power Corporation of India.

These disclosures are enough to show the extent of colossal waste, bungling and negligence in our scientific establishments. And it would be hard to find a more authenticated document than those scrutinised by CAG. It’s even more disturbing that there are no corrective steps being taken.

The writer is former principal scientist, IARI, New Delhi