Shoestring budgets are here to stay for Indian research institutions

With the recent landing of Philae on the comet Rosetta, it is worth our while to go back to September 24 of this year, when the Indian Mars orbiter mission (MOM) successfully went where no other space mission has gone at the first attempt. The fact that the budget for the entire mission is less than the budget for the Sci-fi blockbuster Gravity is been touted as a proof of our ingenuity and thriftiness. It is indeed quite remarkable that Real Madrid FC transacted more money to sign Gareth Bale last year than ISRO allocated to the entire logistics and manpower of the Mars orbiter mission. And at the end of the day, this is how it is going to remain for the foreseeable future.

The reasons for the meagre allotment of the national GDP to institutional research can be clubbed into two separate categories: Practical and Emotional. The Indian economy at the moment gets it lion's share from the service and the IT sector, while manufacturing and agriculture have both tapered off their share in the recent years. Therefore, the two sectors that would typically demand innovation and greater scientific input are both minor contributors to the economic engine. Besides, a fair share of public and private investment is being diverted towards meeting the nation's infrastructure deficit, be it public toilets (Swacch Bharat Abhiyan) or the recent proposal to increase the average speed of India's crumbling railways. With only so much money to go around, India's research expenditure has suffered, and is currently at no more than 0.9% of the GDP. 

The emotional reasons are far more obvious to anybody interested in peering below the surface. Our society's priorities when it comes to education have swung diagonally in the last 20 years. More and more school kids are studying science in the 11th and 12th grade, but with the sole objective of attaining eligibility for engineering or medical entrance examinations. And this is due to no fault of their own. How many Indian parents encourage their kids to pursue a career in science? A very small fraction, and that too in the bigger cities. The vast underbelly of school kids are either not motivated enough to look upon science as a career option, or are hardly handed the tools to excel in one during their schooling.  The pittance to science education is even more clear when it comes to the elite undergraduate institutions like the IITs. Myself and numerous other IITians have chosen their campus or their department solely on the basis of its employability. Without a through introduction to career opportunities at the school level, you can hardly expect young 17 and 18 year olds to make a life-altering college choice without being swayed by the intelligent words of the cousin or the neighbor who-knows-somebody-who-graduated-from-an-IIT. Once there, the necessary exposure to scientific research is a formality for most students and faculty, coming during the final year through mandatory projects that amount to little in most cases. Even those who go on to pursue graduate studies are often looked upon with skepticism, or in some cases, with five troubling words-"Campus placement nahi hua kya?". We as a nation have been undervaluing our contribution to global scientific and technological advancements for a while now, and hence fail to anticipate the limitless opportunities that lie ahead in a more technologically challenging 21st century. 

There is some hope! For those who haven't being in the loop, the central government has established five Indian Institutes of Science Education & Research (IISERs) since 2006, with the sole objective of improving the quality of science education and increase the quality of research at an undergraduate level. Operating under the aegis of cutting edge research facilities, one could hope that with some increase in awareness, they will attract more applicants from the top pool of students passing the 12th grade. More recently, the attempts from the PM to highlight the achievements of ISRO has had a welcome effect, and honestly, we could do so much more to create interest and admiration for the Indian scientific community, which toils on under limited budgets and scarce public recognition, which adversely affects their morale. More importantly, we need to bridge the gap between the scientific community and the common man, who seem to inhabit two different islands in India. Historically, one feeds the other, as has been the case in countries like the US (the Apollo missions), Japan (consumer devices) an Europe (automobiles), and leads to a bette quality of life of the citizens. Here's one suggestion- Make short films that highlight the achievements of Indian scientists that are still active (there are quite a few), and broadcast them of national television and in schools. At the very least, this will educate the parents and inculcate a sense of national pride towards our scientific community. Here's another- Remove barriers to commercialization of a scientist's research, and give her/him full ownership pf the idea. This will foster competition and creativity, which are often ignored in the Indian diaspora. With this small foundation, one could then build towards a more holistic integration of science and society.

PS: Here's a fun video about sustainability, involving candy and the government. 

Passions run high in a high-voltage election season

             It would be an understatement to say that social media has been hijacked by posts related to the upcoming general election in India. Every day and every passing minute, keyboard warriors take to their devices and plop out another in a long list of 'allegations' and 'expose' against a politician of their choice (usually a name starting with an A or a N). Somewhere in this huddle to defame the other camp, we are losing track of the bigger picture -This is the first real election a whole generation of millenials is looking forward to, and to make decisions solely based on rhetoric does not benefit our country as a whole.

            Let's look at some of the bigger issues that should be dominating this electoral contest. Economy would be the highest on anybody's list, especially since in the last 10 years, the Indian middle class has tasted the extravagance of air travel and leisure shopping, and we are in no mood to give it up. With slumping GDP growth and job creation, coupled with anemic inflation, these luxuries face the risk of falling off the accounting book of an urban household. Social equality would also be a important question, especially in the areas of women security and female foeticide. India's polity is sharply biased in the favor of continuing with the policy of caste-based (and now religion-based!) reservation in education and jobs, so that's a topic of concern for the educated voters. And finally, there is the issue of national security and maintaining the sovereignty of India in a hostile geography. With the Indian navy in dire straits after the recent unfortunate incidents, and the deal for the MMRCA fighter planes stuck in the limbo, we most certainly require an assertive government that goes beyond lip-service and meek surrender. 

          The two principle parties, the Congress and the BJP, have nuanced differences on most of these issues, such that you need a much deeper analysis of their positions to really identify a difference (it certainly doesn't help that voters in India don't like to be given contrasting choices, and almost every election in the past five years has been won or lost on the image of the party's leader). It all then comes down to the next in line to replace Dr. Manmohan Singh come June. Rahul Gandhi has had a series of unfortunates gaffes in the public sphere that have transformed him into an object of derision and ridicule on the social media. Moreover, his apparent lack of public pull and popularity has to be hurting the Congress party (look the electoral drubbing the party received under his command in Bihar, UP and Madhya Pradesh to name a few). With the lack of intestinal fortitude among other able leaders becoming more glaring, it seems like the Congress is saddled with his leadership until their numbers dwindle to obsolescence. 

         The BJP has finally been able to acquiesce its ever-growing band of prime ministerial candidates to come up with a clear number one in Narendra Modi. The three term chief minister of Gujarat has a battle going on at two fronts, against the opposition comprised of the Congress and other 'secular' parties, and a larger battle within the BJP's camp. If there ever was a problem of having too much intra-party democracy, the BJP is a fine example of it. To give credit to Modi, he has managed to put a curtain on the party's inner rumblings and has managed to set clear terms for his ascension to the chair of India's next leader. Moreover, he has a clear influence among urban and rural voters alike (something I managed to experience on my trip to India last month, when rural voters in UP were speaking enthusiastically of not voting based on the candidate's last name, but in the name of their children's future), which will help the BJP in expanding its influence beyond the urban constituencies it so dearly depended on for a long time. However, there are still problems within the party for the reasons stated above, and the BJP campaign has therefore amped up its message of development and opportunity in order to hide its inner deficiencies and fighting, often at the expense of exaggerating numbers and planting half-truths in the media.

         While the conclusion of this election is still pretty clear, in that the UPA is going out of power after 10 years at the center, the recent entry of the novice Aam Aadmi Party into the electoral battle has raised the pitch of allegation and counter-allegations to whole another level. Sadly, this election has now turned into a shouting match between BJP and AAP supporters for all the wrong reasons. While the AAP incited hope among young voters like myself when they launched their campaign for the Delhi assembly elections, it is at least clear to me that they really have no clue as to how they are going to run a government and what their priorities are going to be (not that their infamous 49-day rule in Delhi was especially reassuring). What then explains the poor choices made by Arvind Kejriwal when it came to incidents like this or this? No harm would have been done had Kejriwal not alleged that corporations are providing electoral benefits to leaders of other parties or that the current political crop is self-serving, if only he had the restraint to not do it himself. These are really non-issues when it comes to this election. Kejriwal over-staying in his official bungalow or cozying up to a particular Maulwi in UP is not going to change the destiny of this country. Unfortunately, nobody has really received a clarification from the AAP regarding its economic policies (although their withdrawal of support to the FDI in retail agreement when in power in Delhi provides some indication) or where it stands on the issue of national security (Prashant Bhushan and Arundhati Roy say 'plebiscite' everyone!). Maybe the AAP doesn't know either, and hence the constant throwback to its demands of the Jan Lokpal Bill and Swaraj (anarchic and archaic in this day and age). 

        Everybody, whether she supports the AAP or the BJP, can agree that the Congress is not going to be doing any good for the country in the next five years. With both parties jostling to occupy the anti-Congress space, the BJP has expectedly stolen a march over the AAP on the strength of a pre-existing organization and record. The AAP on the other hand is moving away from its simple messaging that proved to be so effective in the run-up to the Delhi elections, and is becoming the party that dominates the prime time news for all the not-so-good reasons (I agree that the media is biased, but the media has always been biased and opportunistic). Perhaps it is time to give the keyboard warriors, like this one, more to think about policy positions and less about which AAP candidate is going to be parachuted to take on another existing political heavyweight or where is Arvind Kejriwal going to show up next (if I may, there is a street circle in the heart of my home town that has seen no development over the last twenty years). In the same token, maybe Narendra Modi will conduct a few public interviews to clarify his stand on FDI in retail and sustainable economic growth, and shut up the critics who think they know more than the courts and are the last authority on conviction and sentencing. 

PS: I agree Arnub, the nation does want to know!

Protecting your turf, (and goodbye Jacques Kallis!)

So here it goes- 2014 is going to be a make-or-break year for a number of teams, and it could all hinge on who gets to play at home the most.

Many were expecting the Aussie leg of the 2013 Ashes to be a watershed moment for the English cricket team. They had just beaten Australia at home 3-0, not to mention having beaten India IN INDIA 2-1. Somewhere along the way, they had also thrashed New Zealand 2-0 at home through some brilliant bowling on their part and insipid batting on the Kiwis'. Could they go to Australia and leave with their heads held high? Sadly, the Aussies, who looked so woefully out-of-form in India and are still struggling with getting the combination right for the three major forms of the game, gave them a sound beating, and more importantly, raised questions about the lack of resilience in the English batting display. The Aussies eked out wins where it seems the game could be tied, and marauded the English when it came to their bowling. Could this be the new dominating squad from Australia? We will have to wait till February, when Australia attempts to beat South Africa away from home. Meanwhile, the English have an away series in West Indies, and then one at home against India. No predictions about either, because both opposition teams are unpredictably inconsistent!

The South Africans should be concerned about the apparent fightback they received from India in the just concluded test series. If it wasn't for the stupid concept of two games test series (and there are a few of those this year), we would have come to know who the clear victor was. For now, Philander & Co must be salivating at the prospect of showing Clarke and his men that their lack of form away from home is here to stay. The series of this year in my opinion!

Speaking of India, we will be playing away from home throughout this year, first in New Zealand starting this 19th, and then another English summer awaits us after the World T20 championship. New Zealand is not quite the resilient force it once was, thanks to the game of musical chairs at the top of their batting order, but they have some promising fast bowlers in Boult and Southee. While Pujara and Kohli looked to be in sublime touch against the Proteas, the chilly climes of Dunedin and Christchurch will be our real test, since the ODI World Cup is a year away  from now, and will be played in similar conditions. Expect Shikhar Dhawan to answer some of his critics, and Rohit Sharma to relapse to his miserable inconsistency. As far as our bowling goes, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar might have better luck in the swinging conditions of New Zealand than he did in South Africa. But Ishant Sharma deserves to go, and Mohammed Shami is clearly ready to take the reigns of our bowling attack from Zaheer Khan. As far as the tour of England goes, the scoreline would depend on how well our new batting lineup fares, but our performance in the Champions trophy 2013 should be a positive sign in the eyes of many fans.

Last but not the least, there is the T20 world cup. Now that the IPL eats into two months of international cricket every year, it is hard to take the putative T20 WC seriously. Very few casual viewers even know about the T20 WC this year, which says something about how strong of a brand the IPL has become over the years (On a personal note, I still believe that Brandon McCullum's 158 in the opening IPL game is the best century in IPL's history, because he really showed that there are no limits as to how much punishment can be meted out in this format). Anyhow, the slow pitches of Bangladesh again suggest a run fest, so whoever can hit the ball the hardest, and  keep Chris Gayle in his current form, should have a better chance. I think it is time the trophy comes back to the subcontinent, and it could be Sri Lanka's turn to win it this time around. Sangakkara and Jayawardene deserve a world cup of some form to cement their legacy, and both are in the dusk of their respective international careers. After Sachin and Saurav, this is one batting partnership for the ages!

Last but not the least, a fond farewell to Jacques Kallis, the greatest all-rounder this game has every seen, with a record for the ages, and an unsung hero of the South African cricketing triumph all these years. It is an overlooked fact, but this guy has seen the Cronje era as well as the Smith era of the Proteas, and has been a vital cog in both. Who would have thought that the man with the old school batting stance and bowling action will outlive a generation of South Africans in today's flash-in-the-pan nature of the game! You will be missed Kallis, and I will no longer hold my breath when SA lose their first wicket against India.

PS: Here's the ICC 2014 calendar from Cricinfo http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/match/fixtures/calendar.html
And here's a highlight of Corey Anderson's magnificent ODI century.