Indian innovation pushes stumbling with researchers who denied financing in time Science and technology

New Delhi, India – Entry to one of the prestigious Indian Institute schools (IIT) was supposed to be the end of the oven’s financial problems* and his family. Instead, things only worsened due to the delay of the long federal government in the distress instead of the monthly fellowship in PARAS of 37,000 rupees ($ 435).

In IIT, PARAS is a research colleague, looking into solutions to the global public health crisis created by the spread of infectious diseases. His fellowship comes from the Inspire scheme, funded by the Indian Ministry of Science and Technology (DST).

But the delay in paying the scheme means that Barras was not able to pay the installments on the laptop that he bought for his research in 2022. His credit degree decreased, and savings plans decreased.

Paras’s parents are farmers in a drought area in western India, and their income depends on a harvest that often fails. Therefore, he resorted to borrowing money from friends, including recently, as is the case between August and December.

Paragraphs are not alone. Al -Jazeera spoke to nearly ten current and former colleagues registered in the top institutes across India under the Innovation Program in Science for Inspiring Research (Inspire). He studied those who had interviews in institutions such as IIT, a network of engineering and technology schools throughout the country, Indian Institutes for Science and Research, another network.

Everyone went from three to nine months without salary.

They said that the delay in financing and procedural phones had marred the fellowship and the weakest of its research ability.

Many researchers recently moved to the social media, and a mark on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Minister of Science and Technology Gitindra Singh.

“For more than a year, many of us who follow the doctorate in the framework of DST fellows have not received our salaries,” Sayali Atkare, an inspiring colleague, books LinkedIn. “This prompted many young researchers to extreme financial and emotional pressure.”

Last year, India ranked 39th in the Global Innovation Index of 133 countries, an increase of one point from the previous year. He leads medium -income countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines in innovation. China is led by the upper -income countries, followed by Malaysia and Turkish.

The federal government described the ranking “a great leap” in a press release. He said that “the growing capabilities of innovation in India are supported by government initiatives that give priority to technological progress and the ease of business and entrepreneurship.”

At a federal government conference in April, Modi boasted about the growing research acumen in India. Under his leadership in the past decade, the government doubled its total spending on research and development from 600 billion rupees (7.05 billion dollars) to more than 1.250 billion rupees (14.7 billion dollars), while the number of patents offered more than 40,000 to more than 80,000.

Moody said that the many steps taken by the government-such as doubling expenditures on research and development (research and development), doubling the patents offered in India, and the establishment of modern research gardens, fellowships and research facilities-included “that talented individuals do not face any obstacles in the progress of their career.”

However, the analysis of government documents, budgets and interviews with researchers reveals that the government focuses more on commercial research, especially the development of products led by startups and major companies. It provides little funding for the research conducted at the leading universities in the country.

For example, in the current fiscal year, 70 percent of the annual budget of the Ministry of Science and Technology has been allocated to a scheme whereby interest -free loans are provided to private companies that are conducting research in the fields of sunrise, such as semiconductors.

Meanwhile, the government has made misleading data on its investments in research institutes in the country, including plans such as Inspire, where money was already cut instead of visiting the government.

Bad salaries, delay in financing

The Inspire scheme provides doctoral fellowships and faculty members “attracting, linking, preserving and feeding young young human resources talented to enhance the basis of research and development.”

Fellowships are presented to students of higher graduate studies and doctoral researchers to conduct research in areas of agriculture, biochemistry, neuroscience, and cancer biology to climate science, renewable energy and nanopolitan technology.

Under this scheme, PhD colleagues will receive 37,000 rupees ($ 435.14) to 42,000 rupees ($ 493.94) per month for living expenses and 20,000 rupees ($ 235.21) annually for research related costs, such as paying the equipment or travel -related travel.

Educational positions are offered by colleagues of faculty with a monthly salary of 125,000 rupees (1470 dollars) and an annual research grant of 700,000 rupees (8,232 dollars).

In 2024-25, 653 colleagues were registered in a doctoral fellowship, and 85 in the college fellowship program.

“I could not attend an important annual meeting in our field because it requires travel, and I was not sure if I would get my custom,” said a faculty of a teaching staff at an institute in eastern India. He has not received his paid since September 2024.

Atkare, a doctorate who wrote about the government’s failure in LinkedIn, Also write“We have made countless phone calls, and an endless email office – most of which were not answered or met with mysterious responses. Even some officials respond to rudeness.”

Another fellow doctorate told us a current joke: “If they pick up the phone, you can buy a lottery ticket on that day. It is your lucky day.”

In May, DST Abhai Karandikar Minister of DST Karandikar accepted that there was a delay in financing and said it would be resolved soon.

Karandikar told Hindu newspaper that he “realized” the exchange crisis but said that as of June 2025, all scientists will receive their money on time. “All problems have been addressed. I don’t expect any problem in the future,” he said.

Al -Jazeera requested a comment from the Minister of Science and Technology, DST Secretary and head of the wing of the department that carries out the inspiration, but he did not receive a response.

Dodging mathematics

In January, the federal government has died three plans related to research and development Start Vigeyan Dhara or “Flow of Science” to ensure “efficiency in the use of the box.” The Inspire scheme is funded by one of these plans.

But instead of efficiency, there was chaos.

Under Vigeyan Dhara, DST requested institutes to create new banking accounts, which led to delay in Inspire’s fellowship payments.

New Delhi also said that it “has increased greatly from funding” for the Vigyan Dhara plan, from 3.30 billion rupees (38.39 million dollars) in the last fiscal year to 14.25 billion rupees (167.58 million dollars) in the current fiscal year.

However, these mathematics were incomplete. 3.30 billion rupees (38.39 million dollars) is what the government allocated to the plan, which was launched only in the last quarter of the fiscal year. The full fiscal year budget for the three plans replaced by Vijian Dara was 18.27 billion rupees (214.93 million dollars). Therefore, in fact, the current budget witnessed a decrease of 22 percent in allocation from 18.27 billion rupees to 14.25 billion rupees (167.58 million dollars).

In general, the budget of the Vigeyan Dhara plans formed 67.5 percent from 43.89 billion rupees ($ 513.2 million) in the 2016-17 fiscal year to 14.25 billion rupees ($ 167.6 million) in the fiscal year 2025-26.

DST officials have not responded to Al -Jazeera, which requests an explanation of VIGYAN DHARA budget allocations.

Research Marketing

On the other hand, the Indian government allocated 200 billion rupees ($ 2.35 billion) to the new research, development and innovation plan (RDI) targeting the private sector.

This funds are part of a group larger than a trillion rupee trillion (11.76 billion dollars) previously announced by the Minister of Finance in India to provide long -term financing at low or non -interest rates.

These changes in the plans aim to make India a “product of a product”, and to obtain more patents in India, and the brake Aswini vaishnaw And dst Officials Explain in different videos.

But the plight of researchers in the state -run organizations is still unimaginable.

“The government is great conditions, but those who suffer from quarrels in laboratories suffer,” said Lal Chandra Fishkarma, head of the Research Association.

“The salaries must be similar to the salaries of the central government employees. Consumer must obtain their money every month without failure,” he said.

In the current scenario, most of Al -Jazeera colleagues said they prefer a fellowship abroad.

“It is not only about money, but the ease of research, which is much better in Europe and (the United States). We get a lot of employees’ support there. In India, you don’t get anything,” said IIT professor, who oversees an inspiring doctoral colleague who faced financing issues.

While the private sector is strongly funded, the researchers told us that they reduce their financing costs because this improves the opportunities for intended government research projects.

“Advanced research is very quickly, if we lose the first few years due to reducing costs, we are behind our colleagues abroad,” said Professor IIT.

“Once the necessary documents are submitted, such as annual progress reports, DST takes at least three months to issue the next batch. It is usual,” said a PhD colleague, a theoretical mathematician.

“For the moment, I would like to say only people who have a privilege (high -income backgrounds) in academic circles. Not because this is what it should be, but because for others, it is very difficult,” said Professor IIT.

*Al -Jazeera changed names to protect the identity of the interviews.