NRF Bill Analysis
Anusandhan National Research Foundation Bill, 2023 in comparison with Science and Engineering Research Board Act, 2008.

Basis	SERB Act, 2008	NRF Bill 2023
Funds	Loans and grants provided by Central Government after due appropriation made by law.	Seeks funding from both Government and private sources.
Governed By	Governing board: Chaired by the secretary to the Government of India in the department of Science and Technology.	Governing board: PM will be ex-officio President and Vice President- Union Minister of S&T and Union Minister of Education.
Significance	Promoting basic research in Science and Engineering and to provide financial assistance to scientists, academic institutions, R&D laboratories, industrial concerns and other agencies for such research.	Aims for growth and to promote funding on R&D. Fund and promote not only in natural Science but also in mathematical sciences, environmental and earth sciences, health and agriculture, humanities, social sciences, and art.
Participation	Hard for private research organisations to contribute to NRF funding body. As well as less percentage of universities and colleges involved in scientific research and their participation and contribution.	Aims to involve Government institutions, colleges, Universities, higher educational institutions and private sector organisations in scientific research and their contribution and participation.
National priorities	The scale and scope of the Science and Engineering Research Board which was constituted through the Science Act are limited and it has not been able to bring decisive changes in the science and technology ecosystem of the country.	Seeks to identify priority areas where science and technology interventions helps to achieve national goals (clean energy, climate change, improved transportation, sustainable infrastructure).

Research supported by the NRF will provide new opportunities for corporations to hire merchants of doubt to discredit publicly sponsored science. The corporates would use the NRF to their advantage to take control of reason. The NRF initiatives will lend credibility to the gathering of data for the development of markets for their daring technology responses to the issues of sustainability and poverty in India.

The Science and Engineering Board (SERB) Act, 2008, a publicly funded mechanism of research assistance for the scientific community, is to be replaced by the NRF Bill, 2023, with a mechanism that is anticipated to be mostly guided by the funds available through business sector and charitable foundations.

The Union administration does not want to increase public financing for research support. Similar to the SERB Act of 2008, this bill has a number of goals. Not only are the suggested decision-making structures incorrect, but they also run the risk of destroying the transparency of publicly financed research.

The NRF wants to create research projects with private business support that address societal demands and isolate important scientific questions in both their fundamental and applied forms. According to the NRF's detailed project report (DPR), the state institutions will get a sizable portion of the funding from the NRF.

Increased public funding for scientific support is not something that the Union government wants. This legislation has several objectives, just like the SERB Act of 2008. The proposed decision-making processes are not only flawed, but they also carry the risk of compromising the openness of publicly funded research.

The NRF seeks to establish research initiatives supported by private industry that respond to societal demands and identify crucial scientific topics in both their fundamental and applied forms. The NRF will give the state institutions a sizeable chunk of the funding, according to the NRF's detailed project report (DPR).

Award Winning Article Is Written By: Ms.Rhythm Dahiya

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