As a measure of critical rigour, quality education and overall capacity, the research in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) plays a vital role in a country’s R&D ecosystem. For several decades now, the Indian government has been aiming to increase India’s R&D expenditure to 2% of the GDP and a part of this investment includes the expenditure on the R&D performed at the HEIs. The upcoming National Research Foundation (NRF) also highlights the intent of the government to enhance funding for research and facilitate capacity-building for R&D across the country.

One of the biggest regrets of the Indian STEM research ecosystem has been the lack of alignment or vision for linking the research and the education sectors as part of the country’s initial post-independence policies. The consequence of this continues to be visible in the subscale role that the education sector plays in the country’s R&D performance and expenditure.