New science policy brings in PPP

Let’s talk money

The 80th session of the Indian Science Congress ended in the first week of January in Goa without adding to anyone’s knowledge or wisdom. The importance of the theme of the conference, Science and the Quality of Life, did not get the attention it deserves in a country that has made large investments in science, but still has the world’s largest population of illiterates and the poverty-stricken.

Indian scientists: missing in action

I suspect Indian scientists have retired hurt to the pavilion. They were exposed to nasty public scrutiny on a deal made by a premier science research establishment, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), with Devas, a private company, on the allocation of spectrum. The public’s verdict was that the arrangement was a scandal; public resources had been given away for a song.

In wait for revamp

THE Nobel Prize-winning research by C V Raman on scattering of photons can be used to produce scanners to study matter. But even after 80 years, India has failed to put this research to use. Reason: the country does not have the infrastructure to build such sophisticated technologies. Thousands of engineers in the country design semiconductors, but only to meet the needs of global market. India is forced to import them in absence of manufacturing facilities.

The standard is open, finally

Four drafts and three years later, the Policy on Open Standards for e- Governance was finally released on November 15. The policy is a victory for the open source community fighting since 2007 for the use of free and open formats to manage and create digital data of the Centre and the states.

Highlights of the policy

The standard shall be adopted and maintained by a non-profit organisation, wherein all stakeholders can opt to participate in a transparent, collaborative and consensual manner The standard shall remain open “recursively” as far as possible

The scientist as a babu

India may have very competent scientists but they lack scientific temperament

The standard is open, almost

INDIA’s draft policy on the software platform for e-governance has made a concession for proprietary software businesses like Microsoft. Proponents of open-source software called it a major departure from the Union government’s earlier stand, saying allowing proprietary software in the standards will limit people who can e-access the government.

Copyright bill restricts Net access

The government introduced the copyright amendment bill in the Rajya Sabha on April 19. The bill gives independent rights to authors, film directors and musicians and makes it difficult for Internet users to access works protected by copyright.

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