Lok Sabha Internship Programme 2010

Lok Sabha Internship Programme 2010

Applications are invited by the Bureau of Parliamentary Studies and Training in the prescribed format for five Internship Positions for a one-year Internship Programme in the Lok Sabha. The Internship Programme is aimed to provide an opportunity to young men and women with outstanding academic and extracurricular achievements to acquaint themselves with the working of parliamentary democracy and democratic institutions in general and specifically about the Indian parliamentary system. The Programme also aims at imparting requisite skills and knowledge to enable the Interns to develop a proper perspective about the role of Legislature in the parliamentary system which, in turn, would help them while working in their own chosen fields in future.

Duration: The duration of the Internship Programme will be one year, starting March 2010 and ending February 2011.

Eligibility:

• Age: The Internship shall be open to Indian citizens between 21 and 28 years of age as on 31st December 2009.
• Qualifications: The applicant should have completed a two-year Post-Graduate Degree from a recognised Indian or Foreign University with 55% marks in any of the areas/disciplines such as Social Sciences, Law, Journalism, Finance, Management, etc.
• Last Date of Application by POST: 20th February 2010

Further Details and Application Form

Science and Engineering Indicators 2010

Science and Engineering Indicators 2010

published by the National Science Foundation/ National Science Board, USA

SEI 2010 provides a broad base of quantitative information on the U.S. and international science and engineering enterprise.

About Science and Engineering Indicators

Science and Engineering Indicators (SEI) is first and foremost a volume of record comprising the major high-quality quantitative data on the U.S. and international science and engineering enterprise. SEI is factual and policy neutral. It does not offer policy options, and it does not make policy recommendations. SEI employs a variety of presentation styles-tables, figures, narrative text, bulleted text, Web-based links, highlights, introductions, conclusions, reference lists—to make the data accessible to readers with different information needs and different information-processing preferences.

The data are "indicators" Indicators are quantitative representations that might reasonably be thought to provide summary information bearing on the scope, quality, and vitality of the science and engineering enterprise. The indicators reported in SEI are intended to contribute to an understanding of the current environment and to inform the development of future policies. SEI does not model the dynamics of the science and engineering enterprise, and it avoids strong claims about the significance of the indicators it reports. SEI is used by readers who hold a variety of views about which indicators are most significant for different purposes.

SEI is prepared by the National Science Foundation's Division of Science Resources Statistics (SRS) under the guidance of the National Science Board (Board). It is subject to extensive review by outside experts, interested federal agencies, Board members, and NSF internal reviewers for accuracy, coverage, and balance.

Chapters
1. Elementary and Secondary Education
2. Higher Education in Science and Engineering
3. Science and Engineering Labor Force
4. Research and Development: National Trends and International Linkages
5. Academic Research and Development
6. Industry, Technology, and the Global Marketplace
7. Science and Technology: Public Attitudes and Understanding
8. State Indicators

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SEI 2010 Presentation Slides

Presentation slides are based on figures in the full-text SEI 2010. Selected figures were modified to fit the presentation slide format.

* Global Expansion of Research and Development Expenditures
* Overseas R&D by Multinational Companies
* Global Higher Education and Workforce Trends
* Expanding Global Researcher Pool
* Research Outputs: Journal Articles and Patents
* Expanding International Research Collaborations
* New Research Patterns Reflected in World's Citations Base
* Inventive Activity Shown by Patents
* Fast-Rising Global Output of Knowledge- and Technology-Intensive Firms
* Booming Global High-Technology Exports Rearranging World Trade Patterns
* Big Shifts in World Trade Positions in High-Technology Products
* Continued Surpluses From U.S. Trade in Knowledge-Intensive Services and Intangible Assets

Download Data in PPT, JPEG and XLS Formats

Call for Papers: 4th Conference on Micro Evidence on Innovation in Developing Economies

Fourth Conference on Micro Evidence on Innovation in Developing Economies

Tartu, Estonia

May 27-28, 2010

Organized by: University of Tartu, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, UNU-MERIT, United Nations University

The University of Tartu, in collaboration with the Maastricht Economic and social Research and training centre on Innovation and Technology (UNU-MERIT), is announcing the Fourth Conference on Micro Evidence on Innovation and Development (MEIDE), to be held in Tartu (Estonia) on May 27-28, 2010. The aim of the conference is to bring together researchers from around the world to discuss the importance of innovation, and its different dimensions, for economic growth and development.

Many countries have conducted micro surveys on innovation for a number of years. It would be interesting to confront what has been learned from these surveys, and from case studies, to guide innovation policy. Empirical contributions based on micro data, from firm or household surveys, are particularly welcome, but also case studies and theoretical papers. Besides the usual emphasis on transition and developing countries, the fourth MEIDE conference will focus on innovation and its impacts in Central and Eastern European economies.

One or two sessions will be reserved for the COST/STRIKE workshop on "development of markets", which will be integrated in the conference. PhD students are also invited to submit papers.

Examples of topics that could be covered:

• Innovation, productivity and firm performance
• Innovation, education, health, human capital, and social capital
• Innovation in universities and public institutions
• Technology adoption and diffusion
• Innovation and employment
• Innovation and internationalization
• Innovation and the role of financial institutions
• Financial innovations
• Innovation and international trade
• International comparisons of innovation performance
• Effectiveness of innovation policies
• Innovation metrics
• Non-Technological Innovation
• Demand-lead innovations and innovation policies

Sponsors:
University of Tartu
UNU-MERIT, United Nations University
Eesti Bank/Bank of Estonia

Venue: Dorpat conference center, Tartu, Estonia

Registration: A conference fee of 120 € will be charged for conference expenses, materials and conference dinner. A limited budget is available for support of hotel accommodation.

Practical information: Tartu can be reached directly by plane from Rigi and Stockholm. Most international flights go to Tallinn, from where there is a shuttle to Tartu.

A visa is required for residents outside of the Schengen zone, except for the list of countries indicated at the homepage of the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Organisors: Jaan Masso, Urmas Varblane, Jacques Mairesse and Pierre Mohnen

Submission of Papers: Researchers are invited to submit a full paper by March 1, 2010. Please submit your paper online. Upon acceptance of your paper, a formal invitation form will be sent to you for application of visas to Estonia, if needed.

Important dates:

• Submission deadline: March 1, 2010
• Notification of acceptance: March 15, 2010
• Sending paper to discussant: May 20, 2010
• MEIDE 4 conference: May 27-28, 2010

Further Details

On the Edge of Sustainability: Perspectives on Peri-urban Dynamics

STEPS Working Paper 35: Peri-urban

On the Edge of Sustainability: Perspectives on Peri-urban Dynamics

by Fiona Marshall, Linda Waldman, Hayley MacGregor, Lyla Mehta and Pritpal Randhawa

This paper examines some of the many ways in which the peri-urban has been theorised, considering, in particular, the implications for a normative research agenda towards improved environmental and social justice. The paper discusses the value of different notions of sustainability in the context of the peri-urban, challenging the view that 'sustainability' is not an appropriate goal in relation to cities which are seen, by some urban theorists, as inherently ‘unsustainable’.

Citation
Marshall, F., Waldman, L., MacGregor, H., Mehta, L. and Randhawa, P. (2009). On the Edge of Sustainability: Perspectives on Peri-urban Dynamics, STEPS Working Paper 35, Brighton: STEPS Centre.

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7th Asialics : Global Recession and Reform of Innovation Systems in Asia

7th Asialics International Conference : Global Recession and Reform of Innovation Systems in Asia

15-17 April 2010

Organized by Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER), Taipei, Taiwan

Conference Objectives

• Assessing various policies, programs and trends related to innovation at the regional, national and firm levels in Asia, especially in times of global recession
• Enabling policy learning to take place across Asian countries
• Extending the frontiers of academic research
• Facilitating cross-border networking and research collaboration
• Promoting the interchange of ideas among S&T policy research communities in Asia
  

Conference theme: Global Recession and Reform of Innovation Systems in Asia

Sub-themes

• Global recession and possibility of emergence of Asian Innovation System
• Assessing various policies, programs, institutions and trends related to innovation at the regional, national, city, and sectoral levels in Asia, especially in times of global recession
• Comparative case studies of innovations at the firm level during global recession
• Emerging Issues on Innovation Systems & Asia
  

Call for papers

One-page abstracts of papers can either be submitted by e-mail or fax to the conference organizer.

Full paper submission guidelines

Only novel research is eligible for presentation. Furthermore, only previously unpublished work will be eligible for possible inclusion either in an edited book or a journal special issue. Please write the text in good English (American or British usage is accepted, but not a mixture of these). On the first page of the paper, you must indicate which of the conference sub-themes the paper falls into (see home page for a list of sub-themes). Additionally, the paper title, author’s name, affiliation, full postal address, as well as email address should appear on the first page. A concise and factual abstract, able to stand alone from the paper, is required (maximum length 150 words). The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results and major conclusions. References in the abstract should be avoided, but if essential, they must be cited in full, without reference to the reference list. All text in the manuscript should be in double-spaced typing. Ample margins should be left on both sides of the page. Each page of the typescript should be numbered. Footnotes should be numbered consecutively and placed together in single-spacing at the bottom of the relevant page. Accepted papers will be included in a conference CD.

Deadlines

• 1 March 2010: Deadline for Abstract Submission
• Notification of Acceptance Within Five Working Days since Abstract Submission
• 5 March 2010: Deadline for Registration at Discount Rate
• 1 April 2010: Deadline for Paper Submission

Further Details

GLOBELICS 2010 - Making Innovation Work for Society: Linking, Leveraging and Learning

GLOBELICS 2010 - 8th International Conference
Making Innovation Work for Society: Linking, Leveraging and Learning

Dates: 1-3 November 2010

Organised by: GLOBELICS and University of Malaya

Venue: University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, MALAYSIA

About GLOBELICS

The Global Network for Economics of Learning, Innovation, and Competence Building Systems (GLOBELICS) is an international network of scholars who apply the concept of "learning, innovation, and competence building system" (LICS) as their framework and are dedicated to the strengthening of LICS in developing countries, emerging economies and societies in transition. The research aims at locating unique systemic features as well as generic good practices to enlighten policy making relating to innovation, competence building, international competitiveness, regional development, labour market and human capital development. In an increasingly global and knowledge‐based competition, management strategies need to be based upon an understanding of these framework conditions and the public policies which seek to regulate the environment.

GLOBELICS has regional chapters in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Apart from providing training for PhD scholars through the Academy at Lisbon and Tampere, GLOBELICS organises annual conferences. To‐date seven conferences have been organised. The first GLOBELICS conference was held in 2003, at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, it was followed by the second conference at Beijing, China (2004), the third conference at Tshwane (Pretoria), South Africa (2005), the fourth in Trivandrum, India (2006), the fifth in Saratov, Russia (2007), the sixth in Mexico City, Mexico (2008) and the seventh in Dakar, Senegal (2009). All seven conferences were attended by leading scholars in the field from both the developed and developing worlds.

Call for Papers
Theme: Making Innovation Work for Society: Linking, Leveraging and Learning

Sub-themes
- Science and technology for the poor
- Managing innovation and entrepreneurship
- Human capital: domestic build up, brain drain, brain gain, brain exchange and brain circulation
- Measuring innovation, technical change and productivity
- IPR regimes, indigenous knowledge and innovation for development
- Culture, society, ethics and innovation
- Multinationals and knowledge flows
- Macro, meso and micro interactions
- Sectoral innovation systems
- Health and healthcare innovation systems
- Energy, environment and development

The conference will include a variety of sessions including keynote speeches, plenary and paper sessions to address the various themes of the conference. A special workshop for senior policy makers from ASEAN member countries is also included in the programme.

PhD students' paper competition and financial supports

• Ph.D students' paper competition: Ph.D. students currently in programs of developing countries may enter the PhD students' paper competition. Winners will receive free accommodation and travel support, a small grant to support their research and a diploma.
• Financial supports: Ph.D. students with accepted papers (one person per paper and only the person who is registered as the presenter of the paper) will be provided local hospitality during the conference. Ph.D. students from developing countries with accepted papers will also be provided some travel support. Participants should be prepared though to pay for all other expenses in the hotel like internet, telephone, laundry, city tour, and other social events.
  

Important dates

• 30 May 2010: deadline for paper submission by graduate students
• 18 June 2010: deadline for paper submission by others
• 30 September 2010: deadline for registration
  

Paper review and acceptance

We invite original (unpublished) submissions on the themes of the conference to be presented via the conference website or the secretariat's e‐mail. We especially welcome the participation of young researchers. Acceptance of participation will be based on full papers only. The selection of papers will be based on a peer review process by the Conference Scientific Committee. Authors of accepted papers will be notified by 30 July 2010. The length of papers must not exceed 12,000. All presented papers will be placed on the conference website. Selected papers will be considered for publication in the International Journal of Institutions and Economies and African Journal of Science Technology,Innovation and Development.

Further Details

Patenting Public-Funded Research for Technology Transfer

ICRIER Working Paper No. 244

Patenting Public-Funded Research for Technology Transfer: A Conceptual-Empirical Synthesis of US Evidence and Lessons for India

January 2010

by

Amit Shovon Ray

Sabyasachi Saha

The question of protecting intellectual property rights by academic inventors was never seriously contemplated until the introduction of the Bayh-Dole Act in 1980 in the US. The Act allowed universities to retain patent rights over inventions arising out of federally-funded research and to license those patents exclusively or non-exclusively at their discretion. This particular legislation was a response to the growing concern over the fact that federally funded inventions in the US were not reaching the market place. In this paper, we present a critical review of the US experience after the Bayh-Dole Act and argue that the evidence is far from being unambiguous. We discuss the debate surrounding the Act – the extent to which it was successful in achieving its objectives, the unintended consequences, if any, and more generally, the effectiveness of IPR as a vehicle of technology transfer from universities. We also discuss the limited evidence on Bayh-Dole type legislations introduced in other countries. A new legislation, along the lines of the US Bayh-Dole Act – The Protection and Utilisation of Public Funded IP Bill, 2008 – is presently before the Indian parliament. The paper presents an Indian perspective against the backdrop of the US experience in an attempt to draw concrete lessons for India.

Abstract File | Full Text in PDF

Community-based Adaptation to Climate Change

Community-based Adaptation to Climate Change

Special Issue of Participatory Learning and Action

Guest edited by Hannah Reid, Mozaharul Alam, Rachel Berger, Terry Cannon, Angela Milligan

Volume 60, Number 1, December 2009

This special issue focuses on community-based approaches to climate change adaptation, building on the priorities, knowledge, and capacities of local people. It discusses how community-based approaches have emerged, and compares them with other participatory development and disaster risk reduction approaches. It highlights innovative participatory methods to help communities analyse the causes and effects of climate change, integrate scientific and community knowledge, and plan appropriate adaptation measures.

Table of Contents

• Community-based adaptation to climate change: an overview [Authors: Reid, Hannah; Alam, Mozaharul; Berger, Rachel; Cannon, Terry; Huq, Saleemul; Milligan, Angela]
• Combining different knowledges: community-based climate change adaptation in small island developing states [Authors: Kelman, Ilan; Mercer, Jessica; West, Jennifer J.]
• Children's participation in community-based disaster risk reduction and adaptation to climate change [Authors: Tanner, Thomas; Garcia, Mercedes; Lazcano, Jimena; Molina, Fatima; Molina, Grace; Rodriguez, Gonzalo; Tribunalo, Baltz; Seballos, Fran]
• Katalysis: helping Andean farmers adapt to climate change [Authors: Sherwood, Stephen; Bentley, Jeffery]
• Ethics and methods in research for community-based adaptation: reflections from rural Vanuatu [Author: Warrick, Olivia]
• Participatory rice variety selection in Sri Lanka [Authors: Berger, Rachel; Weregoda, Rohana; Rathnabharathie, Varuna]
• Lessons from a participatory transboundary water governance project in West Africa [Author: Wong, Sam]
• Participatory threedimensional mapping for disaster risk reduction [Authors: Gaillard, Jean-Christophe; Maceda, Emmanuel A.]Amplifying children's voices on climate change: the role of participatory video [Author: Plush, Tamara]
• Farmers become filmmakers: climate change adaptation in Malawi [Authors: Baumhardt, Fernanda; Lasage, Ralph; Suarez, Pablo; Chadza, Charles]
• Developing a climate change analysis - extract adapted from CHRISTIAN AID ADAPTATION TOOLKIT
  
• Rain calendars: a tool for understanding changing rainfall patterns and effects on livelihoods [Authors: Awuor, Cynthia; Hammill, Anne]
• Mental models: understanding the causes and consequences of climate change [Authors: Tschakert, Petra; Sagoe, Regina]
• Child-friendly participatory research tools [Authors: Molina, Grace; Molina, Fatima; Tanner, Thomas; Seballos, Fran]
• Participatory scenario development for climate change adaptation [Authors: Bizikova, Livia; Dickinson, Thea; Pintér, László]
• Reflections on practical ethics for participatory community-based adaptation [Authors: Absalom, Elkanah; Rambaldi, Giacomo]
• Communication maps: a participatory tool to understand communication patterns and relationships [Author: Zaveri, Sonal]
• Rivers of life [Author: Moussa, Ziad]
  

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National Forum on Mobile Applications for Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development

National Forum on Mobile Applications for Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development

7-9 April 2010, New Delhi

Organized by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in association with World Bank

Theme of the Forum: "Mobile Applications for Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development"

Call for Papers

The purpose of the initiative is to consult and appraise the stakeholders regarding global developments in mobile applications, next generation telecom reforms and citizen centric applications of mobile and new media technologies as well as enhance the capacity of various government agencies in conceptualizing and deploying inclusive e-Governance projects. In addition to government agencies, experts from various parts of the globe are invited to share their experiences and learning practices with the participants during three day deliberations.
The proposed forum offers an opportunity for the m-governance professionals, government practitioners, industry, civil society organizations and academia to present innovative project ideas on mobile applications, learning from existing initiatives and research papers as per the themes of the forum. The World Bank is the knowledge partner for the proposed forum.

Call for papers for the forum is now open. The deadline for submitting the abstracts for the forum is 10th February 2010. The selected papers, case studies may be published in the Compendium on Mobile Applications that is expected to be one of the outcomes of the proposed forum.

Download Call for Papers

National Research Conference on Climate Change

National Research Conference on Climate Change

Organized jointly by IIT Delhi, IIT Madras, and Centre for Science and Environment

Supported by ClimateWorks Foundation

Venue: Indian Institute of Technology Delhi

Dates: March 5-6, 2010

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IITD), Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), and the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) are organizing a National Research Conference on Climate Change to be held at IITD on March 5 and 6, 2010.
This conference will cover major topics on scientific, technical, economic, and policy aspects of climate change relevant to India. Such a conference is the first in a series of annual conferences on this kind, with the possibility of targeted satellite conferences that are aimed at exploring particular themes in the climate arena (such as energy, disaster mitigation and adaptation, water, agriculture, etc.).
The main goals of this and future related conferences are to enhance capacity for climate research and action in the country by:
a. Identifying existing institutions and activities that are engaged in climate-related work in India;
b. Developing a common understanding of key issues;
c. Identifying lacunae in science, policy, and action that need particular attention;
d. Deepening and broadening institutional engagement, especially engaging smaller academic institutions and NGOs in local climate-related activities across all parts of the country;
e. Strengthening a sense of "community" among researchers;
f. Initiating the development of an Indian Climate Research Network and an Indian Climate Action Network;
g. Initiate a platform for a dialogue between researchers, NGOs, and policy-makers

We invite abstracts from faculty and other researchers, students, and practitioners in the areas relevant to the conference (see attached agenda). Selected abstracts will receive a slot for presentation or for the poster session. There will also be panel discussions involving invited speakers from a range of backgrounds.

Abstracts should be no more than 250 words and should also contain author affiliation(s) and contact details. Please send the abstract to NCCC2010[at]gmail.com, indicating which session/ topic for which it should be considered. Please also indicate if financial support will be needed for attending the conference (limited funding is available for travel and local expenses).

• Abstract submission deadline: February 5, 2010
• Acceptance notification: February 10, 2010

Further Details

Workshop on IPRs in Nanotechnology: Issues, Trends and Challenges for India

Workshop on IPRs in Nanotechnology: Issues, Trends and Challenges for India

Date: 28 January 2010

Venue: Conference Room, TERI, New Delhi

Organized by: Science and Technology Area, Resources and Global Security Division, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI); in association with IDRC

As part of our IDRC supported 3 year project on "Capability, Governanceand Nanotechnology Developments: a focus on India", the Science andTechnology Area, TERI is organizing a one day stakeholder workshop on IPRs in Nanotechnology: Issues, Trends and Challenges for India on 28th January 2010 at The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), India Habitat Centre,New Delhi. The overall aim of the workshop is to discuss the broad issuesand challenges which emerge in the context of IPRs in the emergent field ofnanotechnology for India. The workshop hopes to provide a platform fordiverse stakeholders to deliberate on these issues and arrive atrecommendations for the Indian IPR regime, which helps reconciles the dualobjectives of incentivising invention and ensuring the public good.

The workshop is broadly divided into the following four sessions:

• Session I: Reconciling innovation with the public good: Challenges for the Indian IP Regime in Nanotechnology
• Session II: The Indian Nano Patent Landscape and Key Players
• Session III: IPRs in Public Funded Nano Research: Incentivising public funded research or Privatisation of 'public goods'?
• Session IV: Facilitating Public Access to Nanotechnology Innovations: Beyond IP

RSVP: Ms. Indrani Barpujari

Background Note

Draft Agenda

Further Details

A Financial Times Article "India: A Nation Develops"

India: A Nation Develops

By Joe Leahy

Published: Financial Times, January 10 2010

Walk into the John F. Welch Technology Centre in Bangalore and you could be forgiven for thinking you have strayed into Q division – the laboratory dedicated to inventing new gadgets – from a James Bond film.

In one area of General Electric's 1m-square-foot research and development centre, named for the company's former chief executive, scientists are testing a special "pedestrian-safe" bumper bar for cars, which can hit people at speed without maiming them. Elsewhere, boffins are working on locomotive engines that run on methanol extracted from grass growing alongside India's railway lines, and on super-compact medical equipment that costs a fraction of the price of similar products in the west.

Opened in 2000 with 275 scientists and engineers, today the centre employs 4,300 – or one in six of GE's researcher "technologists" worldwide. This year, this ratio will increase to one in four, according to Guillermo Wille, the centre's managing director.

More...

Location, location

India had 200 research and development centres belonging to multinational corporations as of early 2007 – up from three in 1985, according to a study by the National University of Singapore's Asia Research Institute. About 40 per cent were in Bangalore, India's Silicon Valley, about 20 per cent in Delhi and about 15 per cent in or near Mumbai. The remainder were scattered throughout the country.

Frugal engineering

Measuring innovation is a difficult exercise, particularly when it involves research and development centres that, though located in India, belong to large multinationals.

A study published in September by the National University of Singapore's Asia Research Institute sought to establish whether these centres simply provide support to the R&D capabilities of their parent groups, or whether they are indeed contributing their share of ideas and innovation.

Professors V.V. Krishna and Sujit Bhattacharya, the co-authors of "Internationalisation of R&D and the global nature of innovation: emerging trends in India", found that the number of patents granted in the US for innovations developed in the Indian R&D centres of multinationals rose sharply in the past decade, from fewer than 50 a year before 2000 to more than 300 by 2007. During the same decade, the number of patent applications soared to 500 a year by 2007, the study found.
Indian R&D centres belonging to Texas Instruments, IBM and General Electric were the leading recipients of US patents.
Prof Bhattacharya says this shows a shift taking place. In the past, manufacturing could be moved around the world easily but R&D capabilities were only rarely located outside the rich countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. But now R&D is being conducted by foreign companies in India.
Combined with an Indian mindset, – cost consciousness is innate to the culture – there are hopes among academics and industrialists that these centres could prove formidable in coming up with innovations.
To illustrate this frugal approach, Prof Bhattacharya recalls a recent trip to Calcutta, India's former industrial powerhouse. "[Calcutta] has always prided itself on affordability – you can get whatever you want, you will be able to afford it no matter what your spending power," he says. "There I saw these cups in which you can buy tea – small cups no bigger than a shot glass, priced at one rupee or two rupees or three rupees, like you might use for whisky, but these were for tea."
Paolo Martelli, regional director for South Asia at the International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank, which invests in Indian companies, says this mentality has already changed the telecommunications industry, with mobile phone calls in India today costing less than one US cent per minute.
"A lot of industries are being reshaped based on this different model, which entails a very low cost of production, huge [volumes] and very low margin but, overall, incredible cash flow," he says.
Indeed, while multinationals are only just beginning to tap into India's gift for low-cost innovation, domestic conglomerates are already producing numerous such goods for emerging markets.
Aside from the Tata Nano, the world's cheapest car, the country's engineers have come up with a battery-powered ultra-low cost fridge for districts that suffer from electricity blackouts, and an automatic teller machine for rural areas that costs very little to buy and uses minimal electricity.

More...

India 2009: A Reference Annual

India 2009: A Reference Annual

Compiled by
Research, Reference and Training Division

Published by:
Publications Division
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
Government of India

53rd Edition
ISBN: 978-81-230-1557-6

Description

INDIA 2009 is an updated and comprehensive edition of the Reference Annual containing information on varied subjects related to our country like economy, rural and urban development, industry and infrastructure, art and culture, health, defence, mass communication etc. It incorporates sections on Science & Technology, Education, Information Technology, General Knowledge, Current Affairs, Sports, Events of the past year and latest ones too. A rich source of authoritative and definitive data on all these subjects makes it a compulsory read for students as well as for researchers and academics.

Download Full-text PDF

• English Edition
• Hindi Edition
  

EPW Article by Ravi Shukla, CSSP

Reimagining Citizenship: Debating India's Unique Identification Scheme
by Ravi Shukla, CSSP
Economic & Political Weekly (EPW), 9 January 2010, vol xlv no 2.

The unique identification scheme opens up several possibilities for both governance issues and market logic. Despite enabling the identification of a person and pinpointing that X is X, the UID scheme can nevertheless bring about sharp, though problematic, shifts as well. Notably, the apparatuses of state within the premise of the UID scheme are not expected to be posed as a radical contrast to the market but rather as a node point bearing citizen data and therefore capable of operating as a facilitator and mediator of market information. At the technical level as well, the debate over the UID is far from over.

Full-text PDF

Science Communication through Print Media

Short-Term Training Course on Science Communication through Print Media

3-5 March 2010

Organized by
Training Division
National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources (NISCAIR), New Delhi, India

Broad course contents:

• Science popularization in the Indian context
• Basics of popular science writing for magazines and newspapers
• Research communication versus popular communication
• Science communication through R&D newsletters, reports, etc.
• Creation of information resources, e.g. encyclopaedic publications, etc;
• Use of modern IT tools in science communication;
• Role of graphic arts in popular science communication
• Production of S&T publications
  

COURSE FEE for participants from:

• India Rs. 1200/= (Without Accommodation); Rs. 1600/= (With Accommodation)
• SAARC/ Vietnam US$ 80 (With Accommodation)
• Other Countries US$ 110 (With Accommodation)
  

How to apply:
Application form is available at www.niscair.res.in or can be obtained by sending an email to training@niscair.res.in. Filled in application form along with the appropriate course fee is to be paid by Demand Draft drawn in favour of "Director, NISCAIR" and sent to In-Charge (Training), Education and Training Division, NISCAIR, 14-Satsang Vihar Marg, New Delhi - 110067

CONTACT
Dr. Narendra Kumar,
In-Charge, Training Division,
National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources (NISCAIR)
14, Satsang Vihar Marg
New Delhi-110 067
India
Tel: +91-11-26965094/+91-11-26863617
FAX: +91-11-26862228
E-mail: training[at]niscair.res.in; narendrakumar[at]niscair.res.in

Further Details

Indian Citation Index (ICI) Launched

Launching Beta Version of Indian Citation Index (ICI)

"Indian Citation Index (ICI)" is a long awaited product/tool for the benefit of R&D community including planners, decision makers, funding agencies etc. You are well aware that "Indian Citation Index" is in talks by many people, organizations, and groups etc. for two decade but nothing could be translated. With a view to address this long felt need I started from July 2009 to plan, develop and bring out a multidisciplinary Indian Citation Index (ICI) through a society named "Knowledge Foundation" and in collaboration with M/s Divan Enterprise.

Apparently, India is contributing good amount of knowledge contents but there is no tool for evaluation and measurement of its impact, quality and quantity. At international level few tools/databases like WoS and SCOPUS are available but coverage of Indian knowledge contents in these databases are negligible. Therefore, these tools/databases are not adequate to evaluate/analyze India's knowledge contents. To resolve similar limitation of international databases, few countries, like China, Korea, Japan etc. have already brought out their own citation indexes but we could not do it.

Indian researchers, scholars, policymakers, planners, decision takers, funding agencies and others too are facing it as a big problem to perform objectively and therefore, they essentially need this tool on immediate basis.

Indian Citation Index Database (ICI) is a multidisciplinary research platform primarily intend to perform literature search and multiple angle evaluation using citations similar to international databases like WoS and SCOPUS. Citation databases are specialized Abstracting & Indexing information products used to evaluate, map and measure information contents using citations as the association of R&D ideas. The references that researchers cite in their papers make explicit links between their current research and prior work in the literature archive. Indian Citation Index (ICI) organizes these intellectual links by listing both cited and citing works. Like other indexes, ICI enables users to move back in time to previously published papers, but uniquely one can also look forward in time to determine who has subsequently cited an earlier piece of research.

Indian Citation Index (ICI) is a home grown database, planed to have multidisciplinary information/knowledge contents from about 1000 top Indian scholarly journals. It provides powerful search engine basically to perform search and evaluation for researchers, policy makers, decision makers etc.

At present, it is planned to start with five years back files (depth) which would go over 10 years and beyond in next few month's time. ICI right now is in zero version stage and its alpha version is being issued for users feedback and comments by 15th January 2010 and thereafter shortly its beta version would be launched. It is also planed and working accordingly that in next few months ICI with full search and analytic features would be served to users for using long awaited essentially needed information product. The ICI is owned by M/s Divan Enterprise for all practical purposes.

With above brief introduction, it is requested to use it and give your opinion, comments, observation etc. so that ICI may be corrected/molded accordingly and it can be made user friendly to extent possible . Here I would like to mention that so far the developed stage of ICI is 20% only of the total development and rest 80% development is going on rigorously which would be available to users soon. Currently you may access it by URL: http://indiancitationindex.com

I wish you very happy new year 2010 and look forward for your feedback/ comments etc. on ICI as a product and its utility.

Thanks -----------------------

Prakash Chand

Email: prakash[at]indiancitationindex.com

Indian Citation Index (ICI)

Reinterpreting Colonial Moment

Reinterpreting Colonial Moment
Rohan DSouza
Economic & Political Weekly, December 26, 2009 vol xliv no 52

BOOK REVIEW "Landscapes and the Law: Environmental Politics, Regional Histories and Contests over Nature" by Gunnel Cederlof.

Debates on India’s colonial legacy have understandably been vexatious. For long, historians tended to emphasise ruptures or searched for neat demarcations between the colonial and the colonised. The British, such studies maintained, not only decisively effected dramatic transformations in pursuit of domination and extraction, but unfolded their presence in the continent as a singular, united and internally consistent project. Recent turns in scholarship, however, have sought to unsettle these elegant and avowedly uncomplicated assessments of colonial intentions or their varied impacts. Such revisionist scholarship, in contrast, has overwhelmingly characterised the colonial encounters as resulting in messy, liminal, ambiguous or hybrid outcomes. In effect, the colonial project rather than being assembled as a series of obdurate boundaries with sharp edges is now argued to have functioned osmotically; with strategies for empire made up of fluid calculations and many an outcome realised through intricate political blends. Landscapes and the Law is, undoubtedly, a significant and compelling addition to this revisionist mood.

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International Conference 2010 "Risky entanglements? Contemporary research cultures imagined and practised"

International Conference 2010 "Risky entanglements? Contemporary research cultures imagined and practised"

Dates: 9-11 June 2010

Organisers: Department of Social Studies of Science, University of Vienna, Austria

Venue: Albert Schweitzer Haus, Vienna, Austria

Call for Papers

Recent key macro studies agree that scientific research is increasingly entangled in various societal rationales. On the one hand, these analyses should be understood within the context of the growing importance attributed to scientific and technological innovation for shaping contemporary societies. On the other hand, society‘s readiness to contribute to an innovation-friendly climate is considered a key-asset for materializing this imagined progress. For both issues, the human side of science, thus researchers and their way of doing research, their values and their readiness to engage with both science and society, is perceived as essential.

As this unfolds on a global scale, it is interesting to observe within research policy and science institutions the convergence of various discourses that stress and imagine what seem to be the key values or myths guiding research today: excellence, accountability, mobility, flexibility, ethical conduct, societal relevance or application orientation, to mention but a few. However, far too little analytic attention has been devoted to

(1) how these broad and ostensibly universal notions impinge on different work and knowledge production cultures, (2) how specific local histories and contingencies play out in practice, (3) how these global changes get refracted locally and personally, and (4) how all this re-frames what being a researcher today actually means. This lack seems astonishing given the importance the 'human factor' is attributed in current policy discourses around innovation.

This conference invites contributions that address change and continuity of work and knowledge production cultures in research, and ask in which processes ethical, societal and economic rationales shape these very cultures. Of particular interest are contributions that are combining more refined empirical analyses with broader theoretical frameworks of change. By combining works that address different regional-historical contexts and different scientific fields, the conference’s explicit goal is to open up comparative perspectives, thus contributing to a broader understanding of contemporary research cultures.

Conference Themes

• Research Cultures and Regimes of Innovation
• The Social and Temporal Organisation of Research
• Ethics in (Research) Practice
• Biographies and Careers in Science
• Rituals of Assessing Academic Work
• Socialising Future Researchers for a New Kind of Science?
• Economies of Promise: Imagined Futures as a Resource of Science
• Public Debates and Research Cultures
  

Contact
Joachim Allgaier or Ulrike Felt
E-mail: conference.sciencestudies (at) univie.ac.at
Fax: +43 1 4277-9496

• Abstract Submission Deadline: 29 Jannuary 2010 (maximum length 500 words)
• Online Submission
• Download Flyer
• Further Details

Course on Quantitative Methods in Labour Research

Course on Quantitative Methods in Labour Research

Organized by: V.V. Giri National Labour Institute, NOIDA, India

Dates: 8-19 February 2010

V.V. Giri National Labour Institute, NOIDA invites applications from young researchers, teachers and faculty members in colleges, universities and research institutions to participate in a Course on Quantitative Methods in Labour Research during February 8-19, 2010. The objectives of the programme are to: (a) equip the participants with various quantitative research tools used in labour research; (b) orient the participants on the major sources of data on labour; (c) familiarise the participants with major statistical packages used in labour research. No programme fee will be charged and the selected candidates would be paid second-class sleeper Rail/Bus fare from their place of work to NOIDA. Minimum qualification for the applicants is a Masters Degree in Social Sciences, with some orientation on statistical and quantitative methods. The participants will be provided free boarding and lodging at the Institute’s Campus. Interested candidates may send their application with a brief C.V. to Mr. Anoop Kumar Satpathy, Course Director, V. V. Giri National Labour Institute, Sector-24, NOIDA-201301, (0120-2411533-35; Ext: 205/238 Fax: 0120- 2411469,E-mail: nerc.vvgnli[at]gmail.com.

Last date for receiving application January 25, 2010.

Further Details

ICSSR Academic Writing Workshop 2010

ICSSR Academic Writing Workshop 2010

Organized by: Western Regional Centre, Indian Council of Social Science Research, J P Naik Bhavan, Vidyanagari, Mumbai 400098, India

Dates: March 2010

The Indian Council of Social Science Research, Western Regional Centre in association with eSocialSciences announces the Academic Writing Workshop for MPhil and PhD scholars. The workshop will be held in Mumbai in March 2010. Preference will be given to participants from western India.

This is an intensive hands-on workshop intended to assist scholars on the verge of publishing their research output. Scholars will also have an opportunity of interacting with senior scholars who will mentor them. Scholars are expected to produce a draft paper by the end of the workshop. Participants will also be encouraged to explore new modes for research communication.

Applications must include a brief academic background & biodata and a draft outline/concept note of the research paper they intend to work on in the course of the workshop. Applications not accompanied by an outline will not be considered. The application & proposal (hard copy neatly typed in double space) should reach the Centre by 30th January, 2010.

Future communication in this regard can be made on aww007@gmail.com.

Further details

Internationalisation of R&D and Global Nature of Innovation: Emerging Trends in India

Internationalisation of R&D and Global Nature of Innovation: Emerging Trends in India

By V.V. Krishna and Sujit Bhattacharya

September 2009

ARI Working Paper Series, WPS 123

Published by: Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore

Abstract:

The corporate model of R&D pursued within home country locations of the corporate firm is fast eroding. Important magazines such as The Economist (3 March 2007, p69) has begun to talk about, 'The rise and fall of corporate R&D'. The internet and telecommunication revolutions have dismantled geographical barriers creating a new innovation potential at different levels of value chain which are now dispersed at different locations. The Asian region has come to occupy a significant space in these trends. India and China are becoming major locations for off-shore R&D and innovation affiliations. The last decade witnessed two trends in the pattern of global science and technology systems in the Indian context. The first concerns the internationalisation of R&D and the second the increasingly global nature of innovation.

This paper explores three main issues in the Indian context. Firstly, it explores the significant changes in the macro economic and science and technology policies which have propelled changes during the last decade and a half. Secondly, through various indicators the paper maps the growth of internationalization of R&D and global nature of innovation. Thirdly, the paper explores the context of innovation to see whether these trends signify a 'new international division of labor' between North and South or whether there is a significant transformation underway for global nature of innovation.

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Inviting Comments from Public on the Draft National Consumer Policy

Inviting Comments from Public on the Draft National Consumer Policy

The Department of Consumer Affairs wishes to finalize a National Consumer Policy. The draft of the proposed National Consumer Policy is placed below. Members of the general public are invited to give their comments / suggestions / observations on this policy. The last date for sending comments is 30.01.2010. The comments may be sent either by post or email to

Shri Rajinder Chaudhry

Deputy Secretary

Department of Consumer Affairs

Room No. 365, Krishi Bhavan, New Delhi - 110001

Email: dspub-ca[at]nic.in

Download Document [National Consumer Policy - Draft]

STS Working Papers from the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Trivandrum, Kerala, India

STS Working Papers from the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Trivandrum, Kerala, India

Sunil Mani

• High Skilled Migration From India, An Analysis of its Economic Implications. November 2009: WP 416. Download
• Has India Become More Innovative Since 1991? Analysis of the Evidence and Some Disquieting Features. September 2009: WP 415. Download
• [EPW Article] Is India Becoming More Innovative since 1991? Some Disquieting Features. India is variously described as a knowledge-based economy in the making, thanks essentially due to her high economic growth and the role played by knowledge-intensive sectors such as information technology in spurring and maintaining this growth performance. This paper looks at the empirical evidence on whether this is indeed the case since the reform process began in 1991. A variety of conventional indicators are analysed and their movements over the last two decades or so are charted to draw some firm conclusions. The results show that instances of innovation are restricted to a few areas such as the pharmaceutical industry. Further, increasingly most of the innovations in industry are contributed by foreign firms operating in the country. EPW, Vol. 44 No. 46 November 14 - November 20, 2009. More ...
• The Growth of Knowledge-Intensive Entrepreneurship in India, 1991-2007: Analysis of its Evidence and the Facilitating Factors. February 2009: WP 409. Download
• Financing of Industrial Innovations in India, How Effective are Tax Incentives for R&D? August 2008: WP405. Download
• The Growth Performance of India's Telecommunications Services Industry, 1991-2006, Can it Lead to the Emergence of a Domestic Manufacturing Hub? September 2007: WP390. Download
• Sectoral System of Innovation of Indian Pharmaceutical Industry. September 2006: WP382. Download

K.J. Joseph and Vinoj Abraham

• Information Technology and Prductivity: Evidence from India's Manufacturing Sector. September 2007: WP389. Download

M. Parameswaran

• International Trade, R&D Spillovers and Productivity: Evidence from Indian Manufacturing Industry. June 2007: WP385 Download

K.J. Joseph, Govindan Parayil

• Trade Liberalization and Digital Divide: An Analysis of the Information Technology Agreement of WTO. July 2006: WP381. Download

CDS-IIFT-RIS National Seminar on ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement & Way Forward

CDS-IIFT-RIS National Seminar on ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement & Way Forward

5-6 February 2010

Venue: Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India

Call for Papers

The recently signed ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) has had mixed responses. While it has been hailed as the beginning of the end of India’s isolation from major trading blocs and a firm step towards Pan Asian economic integration, the Agreement has been opposed in some regions and by a few sectoral interests in India which feel threatened because imports from the ASEAN would be promoted. Given the sensitivities of the issues involved, there is a need for systematic analysis of the implications of ASEAN-India FTA for India.

Against this background, the National Research Programme on Plantation Development (NRPPD) at CDS jointly with the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) and Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS), propose to organize a national seminar with a view to promote discussion based on theoretically informed empirical analysis. The objective is to identify the real threats, highlight the opportunities and facilitate policy making.

We invite research papers on the macro and micro aspects of ASEAN India FTA. Contributions on sector-specific (e.g. Plantations and Fisheries) and region-specific (e.g.North East Region, Kerala) issues are especially welcome. The Scholars selected will be paid lowest economy class to and fro air fare to participate at the Seminar.

Important dates:

• Detailed abstracts (500 words): 15 December 2009.
• Final Papers: 30 January 2010.
• Email: nrppd[at]cds.ac.in OR kjjoseph[at]cds.ac.in

Further Details

Call for Research Pre-Proposals - Economics of Climate Change

Call for Research Pre-Proposals - Economics of Climate Change

Deadline: 30 January 2010

The South Asian Network for Development and Environmental Economics (SANDEE) is a regional network that brings together and strengthens South Asian researchers and institutions interested in the inter-connections between development and the environment. SANDEE is currently inviting research pre-proposals on the Economics of Climate Change. Pre-proposals, if accepted, will lead to an invitation to submit a full research proposal.

Human activity is altering the earth’s climate with serious implications for food security, health, biodiversity and natural disasters. South Asian countries will need to respond with strategies to both mitigate green house gases and adapt to climate change. SANDEE would like to increase its support for research on the economics of climate change.

We are soliciting concept notes on the following topics:

• a) The benefits, costs and distributional impacts of specific adaptation or mitigation strategies.
• b) Economy wide impacts of climate change policies through the use of macro-economic models.
• c) Incentives related to international climate mitigation/adaptation instruments and climate negotiations.
• d) Economic analyses of local and regional climate problems such as haze and black carbon and strategies to mitigate these.
• e) Extreme events and the economic viability of ‘adaptation instruments’ such as insurance, improved natural barriers or institutional responses.

SANDEE supports economics research related to environmental problems. Pre-proposals that do not have a strong economics component will not be considered. However, multi-disciplinary projects are encouraged. Institutional affiliation is required for receiving support. Pre-proposals will be evaluated on their academic merit and policy significance.

SANDEE will collect proposals throughout the next 12 months. However, in order to be considered for our next research competition, please send concept notes by January 30th, 2010. Grant budgets for the last few cycles have been around 15,000 USD for one to two year grants. Larger budgets are considered if a multidisciplinary research team of natural and social scientists are involved with a clear definition of roles and tasks. Concept notes can be uploaded on the SANDEE website at http://www.sandeeonline.com. Please contact us at application[at]sandeeonline.org, if you have additional queries.

Further Details