Former Prime Minister of India - Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee

Prime Minister gives away DRDO Awards

~I am happy to be among you on National Technology Day. Only a week ago, in Bangalore, I had the joy of celebrating with many of you the demonstration of Tejas, our indigenous Light Combat Aircraft. It was a major technological feat, after years of trials, disappointments and doubts.

Today, I have the pleasure to congratulate the many awardees of DRDO, its associated laboratories, industrial units and other collaborators for their outstanding scientific and technological work in the service of the nation.

We celebrate May 11 as National Technology Day to mark the day, five years ago, when we conducted our nuclear tests. It was a difficult political decision, in response to the hard realities of our security environment. Our tests were also a major technological achievement, in the face of stringent sanctions and technology import restrictions.

People sometimes forget that sanctions against our country did not begin with our nuclear tests in 1998. They were first imposed after our test in 1974, even though we were not party to the discriminatory Non-Proliferation Treaty. A few years later, other sanctions were added on, under equally discriminatory missile technology control regimes. Many of the sanctions of the seventies and eighties remain in place even today.

In our near and extended neighbourhood, we can see many examples of double standards in this. Countries guilty of missile and nuclear proliferation have not attracted sanctions. Some even continue to receive liberal economic assistance. In sharp contrast, India has strictly exercised a self-imposed restraint on transfer of nuclear, missile and dual-use technologies and materials. We have denied ourselves many lucrative contracts and joint ventures. We have never received any recognition for this.

So, until a more equitable and free technology regime is adopted by the world, we will have to depend on indigenous technology development for major defence and dual-use items.

On this day, therefore, we salute the dedication, talent and innovative skills of our scientists and engineers, which have enabled our nation to achieve a significant autonomy of technological development. We also honour those who have helped to create the scientific environment, which has nurtured these achievements.

Our Light Combat Aircraft, the Advanced Light Helicopter, Prithvi, Agni, Akash and other missile systems – these are only some in the long list of achievements for which DRDO can justifiably be proud. They have enhanced our confidence in the defence of our country.

But there can be no respite. War fighting technologies are constantly being upgraded. Recent military conflicts in our neighbourhood have graphically demonstrated this. They underline the importance of overwhelming technological superiority over an adversary. Technological innovation is a continuing imperative.

Combating terrorism effectively requires specialized technical means. I have said in the past that development of technologies for countering terrorism should be a priority of our defence research and development establishments.

Military technologies have to be closely intermeshed with military strategies. They exert a determining influence on each other. There has to be intensive coordination between the technology developers and the user agencies of the Armed Forces to ensure that every product fulfils the technical parameters and meets the exact battlefield requirements.

It is important for our economic growth that every new technology is optimally exploited in all sectors of our economy. Technologies developed for defence hardware should be fully tapped for civilian applications. DRDO has initiated some moves in this direction. This includes ‘Saras’, which will be India’s first passenger aircraft, and ‘Sanjivini’, a portable life-detecting device for rescue missions. I would urge a wider dissemination of information on technologies and products to Indian industry. Equally, DRDO research laboratories could benefit more from civilian institutions. This cross-pollination of ideas would mutually enrich the civilian and defence technology development processes.

On National Technology Day, it would be appropriate for us to also recognise the sterling successes of our scientists and engineers in various civilian fields. It is a matter of pride for all Indians that we are among the few space-faring nations in the world. We can manufacture advanced satellites with sophisticated payloads. As we proved just three days ago, we are heading towards self-reliance in launching geo-synchronous satellites. In GSLV, we have the product of a highly complex multi-disciplinary system, incorporating diverse specializations. Our imagery techniques compare with the best in the world. Our skills in information technology do not need elaboration. We can confidently say today that we are at the vanguard of the Knowledge Revolution, which is powering globalisation.

While rejoicing in these successes, we have to realise that any technological advantage is short-lived, because technology enters a new generation every few years. Unless newer capacities are constantly developed in cutting edge technologies, it is very easy to fall behind. Our technological advances have accelerated our economic growth and enabled us to compress the various stages on our developmental path. We have to sustain the momentum of this process if we are to constantly narrow the gap separating us from the developed world.

It is, therefore, crucially important for us to constantly upgrade the scientific talent and technological skills in our country. We have to ensure that our best students pursue the study of science and engineering. Science teaching and professional training has to keep abreast of best practices around the world. Research and development laboratories need to be adequately funded so that they can have state-of-the-art equipment and can attract the best talent.

This is an effort that should not be left entirely to the Government. The Government offers a number of scholarships to promising young students to study science in universities. I would suggest that private sector industry in our country also institute such schemes to provide more bright students the incentive and the means to take up science education. Similarly, private companies in a number of developed countries fund research laboratories, sponsor Chairs of various scientific disciplines in universities and even establish specialised research institutions in pure and applied sciences.

This is not entirely charity. It is also enlightened self-interest. A strong cadre of scientific and technological manpower can generate defence, developmental and commercial technologies which can benefit all sectors of our nation’s economy. Public institutions and private sector industry in our country should, therefore, have an equal stake in development of such a resource base.

We are proud of the fact that millions of Indian scientists and engineers around the world are making valuable contributions to the economies of their countries of domicile. President Bush of USA has often declared his admiration for the brainpower of Indians. Their abilities have also been widely appreciated elsewhere. But we should still ask ourselves why they had to go abroad to realise their full creative potential. If we had created the learning, teaching and working environment to motivate them, their path-breaking discoveries and inventions could have been achieved in our country.

I am not suggesting that the mobility of our scientists and engineers should be restricted. Free interaction of scientific personnel promotes exchanges of experiences and enhances the scientific knowledge of mankind. What I am suggesting is that our country should create an infrastructure for science education and technological research, which can match the best in the world. This should be the goal to which we dedicate ourselves on National Technology Day.

Jai Hind.~