Karnataka launches India's first ever engineering R&D policy

Bengaluru:The country's first ever Engineering Research & Development (E R&D) policy was launched by the government of Karnataka on Tuesday by Deputy Chief Minister Dr C.N. Ashwathnarayana, who also holds the IT/Bt and S&T portfolio. It aims to enable the State to contribute about 45 per cent to India's engineering R&D during the policy period and create an additional 50,000 new jobs Addressing on the occasion, Narayan said, "The ER&D sector in the country is the fastest growing industry with a CAGR of 12.8%.

Meanwhile, the global Engineering R&D industry is expected to reach a spend of $ 2 trillion by 2025. Considering this scenario, this policy aims to prepare the State to make use of the future opportunities emanating from this sector." The five priority sectors of the policy include: Aerospace & defence, auto, auto components & EV, biotechnology, pharma & medical devices,) semiconductors, telecom, ESDM and software products. Department of Electronics, IT, Bt and S&T, Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS), and NASSCOM have been involved in drafting this policy after wider consultations with all the other participating stakeholders including the representatives of the industry.

"Karnataka is currently the leading contributor to the Indian Engineering R&D industry revenue. The State is home to over 400 leading R&D Centers/ GCCs. This policy aims to retain this position, generation of intellectual properties (IPs), and to make this as skilled knowledge capital," Narayana elaborated.

He explained that the state has been at the forefront of technological innovation for a long time and has come out with this visionary policy after studying the industry trends. "This intends to make Karnataka a preferred destination for global MNCs, GCC (global capability centers), engineering service providers (ESPs) and to create a suitable ecosystem all across the State," he asserted.

CM Research Fellowship program is designed to provide a monthly stipend and an annual research grant to students in PhD programs related to Engineering R&D. The State government will provide a monthly stipend of Rs 70,000 for the first two years, a monthly stipend of Rs 75,000 for the third year and monthly stipend of Rs 80,000 for the fourth year and annual research grant of INR 2 lakh for students enrolled in Karnataka and 25% of women candidates will be considered for this offering.

Meanwhile, industry experts described the move as progressive.

"This ER&D policy is progressive and well conceptualized," said Dr Ajay Prabhu, president, Technology Services, QuEST Global.

Sindhu Gangadharan, SVP & MD, SAP Labs India added, "This policy enables to further strengthen the research and deep tech ecosystem of the system."

Rohini Srivathsa, National Technology Officer, Microsoft India, commented, "This nurtures the collaboration between industry, academia, and the government."

"Effective implementation of the policy would help bridge the gap between engineering talent and opportunities," remarked Dr. Keshab Panda, MD & CEO, L&T Technology Services

Kishor Patil, Co-founder, CEO, and MD, KPIT said that the move would facilitate transforming the State to become a vibrant knowledge-based economy.

Objectives

♦ Attract leading Engineering R&D entities to establish and/or expand in Karnataka

♦ Create strong linkages between Industry and Academia

♦ Establish and offer access to advanced testing, prototyping, and other innovation infrastructure

♦ Facilitate Engineering R&D entities to adopt leading practices and gain marketing opportunities

♦ Taking the Engineering R&D industry beyond Bengaluru to spur the growth of regional economies

♦ Promote IP Creation, Registration, and Retention in Karnataka

Potential Benefits 

♦ Enable Karnataka to contribute 45% to India's Engineering R&D during the policy period

♦ Create an additional ~50,000 new jobs (direct & indirect) for skilled manpower

♦ Developing a research-oriented skilled talent pool and foster a knowledge economy

♦ Attract Engineering R&D intensive investment into Karnataka

♦ To augment capacity by bridging the gap between Engineering/ Research Talent and Industry's Technology Needs.

Incentives offered

♦ Rental reimbursement for setting up/ expanding beyond Bengaluru Urban District.

♦ Recruitment assistance for setting up/ expanding beyond Bengaluru Urban District.

♦ Investment subsidy for setting up or expanding beyond Bengaluru Urban District.

♦ Engineering R&D Fund to support technological innovation.

♦ R&D Infrastructure Program to create and strengthen the testing and prototyping infrastructure.

♦ Innovation Labs Program to encourage open innovation

♦ Digital Innovation for Services Challenges to encourage technology interventions that have a social impact.

♦ Applied Research in Academia Program to support the industrial application of Academic Research.

♦ To develop Engineering R&D Future Skills Courses and promote the adaptation of these courses in State Government Engineering Universities/ Affiliated Colleges.

♦ To promote internships to bridge the gap between academic skills and the needs of the Engineering R&D industry, GoK will reimburse 50% of the internship stipend for interns per entity, for a period of 3 months, up to INR 10,000 per month per intern. The entity to offer internships to 33% women candidates and consider 30% of the total interns into full-time employment.