Industry-University Linkage Index | 23 Oct 2019

Recently, the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry in association with the Ministry of Science and Technology has released the Industry-University Index assessing input-output relations between the education sector (Universities) and industries.

  • Industry linkages are found moderate in India with an overall score of 4.7 on a scale of 10.
  • Karnataka, Kerala, and Gujarat have topped in University-Industry Linkages (UILs) and have scored 7.8, 7.3 and 6.7 respectively.
  • Most of the northeastern states are at the bottom of the stack, while larger states such as West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar are poor performers.
  • The survey identifies 10 sectors for improving industry linkage through capacity building, research and development activity, including agro and food processing, textiles, information technology (IT) and IT-enabled services, energy, cement, pharmaceuticals, and automotive sectors.
  • The index highlighted that the Bayh Dole Act of US of the 1980s has been proven the best model in strengthening university-industry linkages.
    • This act has been implemented by many countries world over.
    • India is at a very nascent stage of developing strong linkages between universities and industries.
  • One of the key bottle-neck in the country has been the absence of a clear policy for strengthening linkages between the university and industry.
  • The index emphasized revival of the Protection and Utilization of Public-Funded Intellectual Property (PUPFIP) Bill which was tabled in 2008 but later withdrawn from Parliament.
    • The PUPFIP bill was prepared on the lines of the Bayh Dole Act.

Bayh Dole Act

  • The Bayh-Dole Act, formally known as the Patent and Trademark Act Amendments of 1980, added a new official policy for the granting of patents in the United States.
  • The Act created a viable route by which new insights and valuable research results from universities and other institutions can make their way efficiently to start-ups and established firms.
    • This law settled a longstanding issue about the patenting of federally-funded projects.

Protection and Utilization of Public-Funded Intellectual Property (PUPFIP) Bill, 2008

  • It seeks to provide incentives for creating and commercializing intellectual property from public-funded research.
  • The Bill requires the scientist who creates an intellectual property to immediately inform the research institution.
    • The institution shall disclose this information to the government within 60 days.
  • The scientist shall be paid a minimum of 30%of net royalties received from the PUPFIP.
  • Failure of the scientist to intimate the institution, and of the institution to inform the government carries penalties, which include fines and recovery of the grant funds.

Source:Mint