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Union government’s Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) launched ‘Accelerate Vigyan’ (AV) on July 1, 2020. This scheme aims at creating a one single platform for high-end research studies, research internships, training, workshops on a national level.
It aims at boosting the overall research development and educational base across the country. The institution is also planning to launch an app in about two months.
The main objective of the scheme is to provide core importance to high end scientific research leading to research careers and knowledge-based economy as a whole. an Inter-Ministerial Overseeing Committee (IMOC) involving all the scientific ministries/departments and a few others has been constituted for the purpose of supporting SERB in implementing the AV scheme in a successful manner.
Dr. Rajeev Mehajan, an advisor in SERB stated that the vision of this scheme is to expand the research and education base with 3 major goals as to Consolidation/Aggregation of all scientific programmes, initiating high end workshops and creating opportunities for those who do not have access to such resources. He also stated the aim is to provide 1000 high end workshops for certain themes to provide opportunities to about 25,000 postgraduate and doctoral students in the
next five years.
This scheme is an initiation to boost to the research mechanism and overall education base in the economy, developing career paths and career development thereby
Components of Accelerate Vigyan: This scheme includes 2 main components:
Samoohan (Bring Together): It marks the beginning of Accelerate Vigyan. It aims at consolidating scientific interactions under one common roof. It is classified into 2 components. Sayonjika and Sangoshti.
- Sayonjika is an open-ended program to catalogue the capacity building activities in science and technology supported by all government funding agencies in the country.
- Sangoshti is a pre-existing program of SERB.
Abhyaas (Skill Development): Abhyaas is an attempt to boost research and development in the country by enabling and grooming potential post-graduate / PhD students by developing their research skills in select areas. It is further classified into 2 components: Karyashala and Vritika.
- Karyashala conducts high-end workshops.
- Vritika is a research internships programme.
This is especially important for those researchers who have limited opportunities to access such learning capacities/facilities/infrastructure. Accelerate Vigyan has already starting calling applications under its ‘Abhyaas’ component for the winter season (Dec 2020- Jan 2021) Central coordination of internships in these institutions will provide opportunity to another 1,000 potential postgraduate students every year.
The database of skilled manpower developed across different disciplines so generated and the final outcomes captured in the process through all sub-components of the scheme will serve the cause of all stakeholders in respect of capacity building in the country.
The scheme also seeks to garner social responsibility of the scientific community in the country.
Official Website for Accelerate Vigyan: acceleratevigyan.gov.in
