PART-I ASSAM BOOK.pdf - National Innovation Foundation

52 Pages·2009·1.35 MB·English

PPRREEFFAACCEE
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wsinitche t2h0e0 0a cwtiivthe t hseu pacptoivret souf pDpeorpt aorft mDeepnat rtomf eSnct ioefn Sccei eanncde if state and private sector agencies join hands with NIF actively.
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binu iblduinildgi vnagl uvea cluhea inc haaroinu nadro thuenmd .them.
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hweitlhp.out any outside help. SSeelleecctteedd eexxaammpplleess o of fh heerbrbaal tl rtaradditiiotinoanla kl nkonwowleldegdeg ea raer gei vgeivne inn
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cceelleebbrraattiningg c crereaativtiivtyit, yin, ninonvoavtioantiso nasn da tnradd tirtaiodniatilo knnaolw klneodwgele frdogme
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aconvde oraugtree aacnhd. Bouutt rief waceh c. oBuuldt uif nwcoev ceor uslod munacnoyv eexra smop mleas noyf aacchhiieevveedd aa ggrreeaatt ddeeaall.. WWee hhaavvee mmeerreellyy mmaaddee aa ssiimmppllee ppooiinntt..
examples of the ability of local communities and individuals There are a large number of knowledge rich people who
to solve problems on their own without outside help, how may not have been educated much, may in fact be
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ASSAM INNOVATES
GUJAARSASATM IINNNNOOVVAATTEESS
Techoenreo mariec aal llya rpgoeo nr uamlsboe, rb ouft psetiollp hlea vweh oth me aayb niliotyt htoa vseo blveee na uppe oinp tlhee t ofo irmmp orof vceo nthcere qteu aploitlyic yo fa lnifde ionfs ctiotumtimonoanl ipneitoiaptilvee asn ind
efedwu cpartoebdl emmusc hs, om waye linl. fact be economically poor also, but still ethauchs Sptraotme otot ee minpcoluwseivre c rgeraotwiveth p.eople to improve the quality of
have the ability to solve a few problems so well. life of common people and thus promote inclusive growth.
It is my belief that such examples will act as spur for other
The challenge really is to work out a synergy so that no
ISt itsa mtey g boevleierfn tmhaetn stu dcehp eaxratmmepnletss wtoi lll oaockt afos rs cpruera fotivr eo tehfefor Srttsa otef
Tcrheea ctihvael levnogicee r eraelmlya isin tos wuonrhke oaurtd a, saynnde rngoy ssoo tluhatiot nno r cermeaatiinves
gthoeveirr nsmtaeffn ta dnedp aurstemresn atst tgo rloouonk dfo rle cvreeal.t iIv eh eofpfoer ttsh oaft t hNeIiFr s wtaiflfl
vloocicaeli zreemd aainnsd uunnhreeacrodg, nainzde dn.o Bsoyl uatidoanp rteinmga ipnus blolicca lpizoelidc ya nind
ahnadv eu stehres oapt pgorortuunndit lye vtoe lw. Io hrokp celo tshealty N wIFit hw itlhl hea Svtea ttehe g oopvpeornrtmuneintyt
usunprepcoorgt noizf egdra. Bssyr aodoatsp tiinngn opvuabtloicr ps oalincyd intr asdupitipoonrat ol fk gnroawsslerodogtes
tion wfuotrukr ec loasnedl ye wxpitahn tdh ek nSotawtele gdogvee brnamsee,n at dind f uvtauluree a tnod s eexlepcatendd
ihnonldoevrast,o wrse a cnadn t rmaadkiteio encaol nknoomwicle ddegvee lhooplmdeernst, pwreo cceasns mmaokree
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einccolunsoimveic adnedv esloupsmtaeinnat bplreo.cess more inclusive and sustainable.
tnhoenm-c doimffumsee rtchiarol usgohc icaol cmhmanenrceilasl faonr dim nporno cvoinmg mtheer cliivael lsihoocoiadl
cohfa tnhnee lms faojro imritpyr oovfi ntgh eth ep leivoeplilheo.od of the majority of the people.
TThhiiss bbooookk oonn i ninnnoovvaatitoionnss h haass b beeene nc ocmompipleilde da ta tht eth ree qreuqeuset ostf
Dofr VDirja. yV Kijealyk aKr,e Clkhaari,r mCahna, iFrminaann,c eF Cinoamncmei sCsioomn amnids sMioenm abnedr,
GMoevmebrneirn, gG Coovuenrnciinl go f Cthoeu nNcail tioonf atlh eIn nNoavtaiotinoanl FIonunnodvaattiioonn
aFso uan tdriabtuioten toa sth ae tcrriebauttiev ittyo atnhde incnreoavtaivtiiotyn aatn gdr ainsnsroovoattsio. Tnh aist
R. A. Mashelkar, FRS
pgrraesssernotoattsio. nT hisis pparrets oefn taa tsioenri eiss p oafr ti nonf oav saetiroiens coof minpneonvdaituiomn Chairperson, Governing Council
R. A. Mashelkar, FRS
pcoremppaerendd ifuomr e parcehp Satraetde foofr I nedaicah. WStea theo opfe I nthdisia w. Will bee h fooplloew theids National Innovation Foundation, Ahmedabad
Chairperson, Governing Council
will be followed up in the form of concrete policy and
National Innovation Foundation, Ahmedabad
institutional initiatives in each State to empower creative [email protected]
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ASSAM INNOVATES
Building a Bridge with Grassroots Innovators in Informal Sector
To make the Indian development process more inclusive, there Science and Technology, Government of India to scale up the
is no escape from building upon creative and innovative idea of learning from grassroots innovators.
experiments pursued by common people at village or semi-
urban level. Many of these experiments lead to development of Under the inspiring leadership of Dr. R. A. Mashelkar,
innovations, which can improve productivity and generate Chairperson NIF and former Director General, Council of
employment. However, the purpose of a particular innovator Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR ), NIF has taken major
may often be to solve his problem. There is no mechanism initiatives to serve the knowledge-rich, economically poor people
available for him to share the knowledge, innovation or practice of the country. It is committed to make India innovative by
with other people in different regions. Sometimes, ideas and documenting, adding value, protecting the intellectual property
innovations get diffused through word of mouth. But many times, rights of the contemporary unaided technological innovators,
these ideas remain localized. In the process, potential growth as well as of outstanding traditional knowledge holders. It aims
and social development gets constrained. To overcome this at promoting lateral learning among local communities to
constraint, Honey Bee Network with a handful of volunteers generate low cost affordable solutions of the persistent and
triggered a movement, twenty years ago to scout, spawn and emerging problems, and enhance the diffusion of innovations
sustain the unaided innovations and outstanding traditional on a commercial as well as non-commercial basis.
knowledge from the informal sector of our country.
How does NIF work?
Drawing upon this experience, NIF (National Innovation Primarily, NIF has five functions: (a) Scouting and
Foundation) was set up in 2000 with the help of Department of documentation, (b) Value addition and research and
1 The Honeybee collects pollen from the flowers but they are not impoverished, in different sectors. The network acknowledges the innovators, traditional
in the process links one flower to another enabling cross-pollination. Similarly, knowledge producers and communicators so that they do not remain
the Honey Bee Network strengthens people-to-people contacts, learning and anonymous.
networking by pooling the solutions developed by individuals across the world
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ASSAM INNOVATES
ASSAM INNOVATES
development, (c) Business development and Micro Venture, (d) For most innovators, attracting risk capital for converting
Intellectual Property Rights protection and (e) Dissemination, innovations into enterprise is very difficult. They neither can
database development and IT applications. offer much collateral nor are they able to develop business plan
or deal with formal R&D system.
NIF has been entrusted with the responsibility of building a
National Register of Grassroots Innovations and Traditional A Micro Venture Innovation Fund (MVIF) has been set up with
Knowledge. It is not enough to document or disseminate the the help of SIDBI to provide risk capital for technologies at
innovations or outstanding traditional knowledge. Value addition different stages of incubation. Under single signature, innovators
is very important for harnessing the full potential of the idea. are trusted and investments are made to help them commercialise
NIF has entered into MOU with CSIR and Indian Council of their innovations. Most innovators do not make good entrepreneurs.
Medical Research (ICMR) besides other organizations. CSIR For entrepreneurship, one has to make consistent batch by
has allocated funds to support research on grassroots batch production of products. Innovators are often incorrigible
innovations in CSIR labs. Similarly, ICMR supports improvisers. They seldom make two things alike. NIF has helped
research on such herbal healing knowledge, which such innovators to license their technologies to third party
has not been documented in the classical texts and formal entrepreneurs. Most of the licenses have been given to small
institutional literature. NIF also helps in generating a very large entrepreneurs and in a few cases, to medium enterprises.
pool of open source / public domain technologies. A small
number of innovations are also protected by patents and A very elaborate benefit sharing system has been developed,
other IPRs. governed by the Prior Informed Consent (PIC) of the knowledge
The Honey Bee Network strongly believes in sharing knowledge among the share of benefits arising from commercial exploitation of local knowledge and
providers of innovations in their own language, which is achieved by publishing innovations reaches the innovators and knowledge providers.
local language versions of Honey Bee newsletter. It also ensures that a fair
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ASSAM INNOVATES
providers. Attempt is made to share benefits not only with the of technologies have diffused through farmer to farmer social
innovators but also with their communities and for nature network.
conservation. In addition, a small part is kept for contingency
NIF has proved that Indian innovators can match anyone in the
support to needy innovators, for R&D stakeholders, promoting
world when it comes to solving problems creatively. Where they
women’s innovations and meeting overhead costs.
perform better than rest is in generating more affordable
It is remarkable that grassroots innovations are generating global sustainable solutions by using local resources frugally.
demand, as evident from inquiries from around fifty-five countries
Those who see poor only as the consumer of cheap goods, miss
for various technologies, NIF has succeeded in commercializing
the knowledge richness at the grassroots level. The Poor can be
products across countries in six continents apart from being
the Providers also.
successful in materialising thirty cases of technology licensing
with the help of partner agencies. The Grassroots to Global (G2G) model that NIF is propagating is
all set to change the way the world looks at the creativity and
What has it done?
innovations at grassroots.
With major contribution from the Honey Bee Network, NIF has
How can state government join hands with NIF?
been able to build up a database of more than 1,00,000 ideas,
a. NIF has no field extension unit nor does it want to have
innovations and traditional knowledge practices from over 507
one. However, state government has several field
districts of the country.
functionaries in the field of agriculture, education, industry,
NIF has filed 182 patents in India and seven in US and one PCT rural development, women and child care, forestry, etc.
application. Out of these, 33 patents have been granted to There can be a very fruitful partnership between NIF as a
grassroots innovations in India and four in US. NIF has funded source of innovative ideas and technologies and state
113 projects under MVIF to the extent of Rs.1.3 crores. Hundreds government as partner in dissemination, value addition and
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ASSAM INNOVATES
ASSAM INNOVATES
even commercialization through incentives, promotion, g. Some of the innovative people identified by NIF and/or
subsidies, etc. state government could be awarded at district and state
b. State government can join the national campaign for level besides giving them support for further work.
scouting innovations and traditional knowledge and motivate h. A nodal officer could be appointed to keep a dynamic
its grassroots functionaries to join hands with NIF in touch with NIF to ensure that all the areas of possible
uncovering the talent at the community level. cooperation are explored.
c. Students in schools and colleges can be motivated to scout
I hope that NIF would be able to develop a functional, fruitful and
creative and innovative people in their neighbourhoods
fulfilling relationship with the Government of Assam state.
and send the entries to NIF (Post Box No.15051, Ambavadi,
Tremendously rich knowledge of biodiversity, minerals and
Ahmedabad 380 015, [email protected]). Examples
environment can be leveraged through the proposed association.
of innovations can also be included in the curriculum of
We need to discover far more innovations and traditional
the school children.
knowledge from Assam where our record has been good . This
d. Demonstrations and trials can be organized at various
has been possible largely because of the generous support of
regional research stations, KVKs (Krishi Vigyan Kendras)
IIT Guwahati. We hope that this cooperation will grow in times to
so as to create awareness about the creative potential of
come.
common people.
e. The research institutions can be mandated to add value to
the knowledge of innovative people and help in protecting
Anil K Gupta
their knowledge rights.
Executive Vice Chairperson, NIF, Ahmedabad
f. On the state’s website, link to NIF can be given and the
Professor, Indian Institute of Management,
innovations from the region can be displayed to put forward
Ahmedabad
the creative face of the state before the people. [email protected]
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ASSAM INNOVATES
“Innovation opens up new vistas of knowledge and new
dimensions to our imagination to make everyday life more
meaningful and richer in depth and content”.
- Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
“By adapting public policy in support of grassroots innovators
and traditional knowledge holders, we can make economic
development process more inclusive and sustainable”.
- Dr. R.A. Mashelkar