IISc: "Give Rs 300 cr a year for research"

Updated on: Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Bangalore: The Department of Aerospace Engineering at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) began a two-day international conference titled ‘The IISc Centenary International Conference and Exhibition on Aerospace Engineering (ICEAE 2009)’ at the JN Tata auditorium on Monday.

The conference is being organised by the Aerospace department to showcase some of its research in the aerospace division and also to learn from the work of leading researchers from around the world.

Selected alumni from the Department of Aerospace Engineering were honoured with the ‘distinguished alumni award’ at the Aerospace Alumni Function.

Balakrishnan N, Associate Director of IISc, in his presidential address said that around seventy percent of the projects are development driven, which he saw as a threat to pure science.

He urged the state and the central governments to spend generously and at least allocate a budget of Rs 300 crore a year to the institution. While believing firmly that IISc is meant for pure science, the associate director said, in this age of 'publish or perish' culture, the IISc has refrained from publishing many of its achievements, simply in the interest of national security.

Balakrishnan said that the institution needs to have a fair balance between education, research and industrial collaboration. He said that IISc should strike a balance between longterm and short-term goals and turn the institution into an eighty percent unencumbered purely science oriented institution.

Prahlada, Chief Controller R&D, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), said that the organisation’s specific contribution in the field of missiles, radar and torpedoes.

AR Upadhya, Director, National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), highlighted how the aerospace department of the IISc met the requirements of the aerospace industry. T Alex, Director, ISRO Satellite Centre, said the institute needs to take a proactive role in this field.

Educationtimes

IISc: "Give Rs 300 cr a year for research"

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