DailyPost 128
Collaborative Research- A Necessity
One guide one researcher model is the mainstay of the Indian basic research. Small teams working on a one research project is a rarity and bigger teams working on a pathbreaking research project is the rarest. The lab to field transfer remains at the lowest ebb. The humungous resources allotted for the purpose does not deliver the cumulative impact.
To make a radical difference to the outcome, impact and finally the country to get a feel that research is happening, the current model has to change to a collaborative model . This model would help us transform to research projects of relevance, of a scale which can make a substantial difference to society. The problem statements are floating all over the place and can be crowdsourced in today’s time and age. A symposium solely for the purpose of listing the topics of relevance would certainly not be out of place.
The resources available in the country; human, technical & financial, can be also be listed for the purpose. The resources can then be put to proper use depending on the research project at hand. Needless to say, the resources placed at the disposal of a project should be commensurate to the problem at hand. The comfort level of the guides and the team would decide the final outcome.
A research authority at the national level, can decide the nitty gritty of the details of all projects of monumental value . It can also decide on the standards, supervision and the validation process. The collaborative mechanism between institutions should also be very neatly worked upon. The collaborative support is the key to a successful collaborative research project. Over a period of time through the interactive process, it would for sure become seamless, would become the order of the day. That would be the new normal, fit to match the best in the world. Collaborative research can only be initiated with a collaborative mindset which is not very easy to come by.
COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH IS THE WAY FORWARD IN AN AILING RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT ECOSYSTEM
Sanjay Sahay