A scholarship scheme managed by the Centre’s Department of Science and Technology (DST) to help young, talented scientists embark on independent research careers at Indian labs is drawing flak with complaints of harassment, tardy fund disbursal and concerns that the scheme hasn’t catalysed enough jobs.
The INSPIRE (Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research) Faculty scheme, as it’s called, selects promising research scholars under 32 and offers them a salary of ₹80,000 a month as well as an annual research grant worth ₹7 lakh to work at a university of their choice for five years.
It was conceived in 2008 amid concerns that not enough talented students were opting for research careers in basic sciences and were being lured away by higher salaries in banking, information technology and management.
Positioned as an “Assured Opportunity for Research Career,” the INSPIRE Faculty scheme envisioned that given 5 years of financial security and academic freedom these researchers would prove their mettle at these universities and, at their discretion, be eventually recruited as full-time faculty.
The candidates are selected via a three-stage interview by the Indian National Science Academy, and of the 10,919 applications since the scheme’s inception in 2011, only 1,234 or about 11%, have been offered the fellowship, as per INSPIRE’s latest figures. Of these 951 joined and as of December only 394 or about 40% have landed permanent faculty positions. These encompass a range of institutions from the Indian Institutes of Technology, CSIR labs as well as State and Centrally-funded universities.
‘Denied opportunities’
Of the 557 jobless, Vimal Bharadwaj, 38, is particularly miffed. He was among the first batch of scientists selected in 2011 after a doctorate in Chemistry from the Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar. He opted to continue at the same institute on the fellowship in the Chemistry department. However, he alleged, he was never treated “on par” with peers, denied opportunities to compete for faculty positions and was repeatedly ask to clear out his work-station by senior department members.
In a letter to the DST’s Joint Secretary, Renu Jain, he complained about having to “struggle for his rights” including “…recruiting a Ph.D. student, project student, accessing lab space and common research facilities, consideration for permanent position and most important the congenial environment to work.”
According to the letter seen by The Hindu , he also accused the DST of being “non-serious about implementation of the scheme” because it released the salary and research funds so late every year, that it became impossible to spend the money before the close of the financial year. “It’s like being given a year’s quota of rice all at once and being asked to consume it in 3 months,” Mr. Bharadwaj told The Hindu in a phone conversation.
He claimed that this was in spite of his performancebeing marked ‘Very Good’ in evaluations by the DST.
The Hindu spoke to several other recipients of the scholarship who are dissatisfied with how things have unfolded for them. A person who didn’t want his name and institution disclosed as he was still a recipient of the fellowship said he quit pursuing a fellowship in Germany and “was led to believe” that he’d land a job with the INSPIRE scheme. “As an INSPIRE fellow, I was even given an award by the President of India and now, am jobless and don’t know how I will survive the next year,” he said. “The contract between DST and host institutes explicitly states that a congenial environment and consideration for faculty positions be provided. That hasn’t been my experience.”
The DST claimed the programme is a success. Of the 238 fellows selected in 2011 and 2012 or those who’ve reached the end of the fellowship, 143 or about 60% have got full-time jobs. “Globally, 5%-10% of the doctoral researchers get permanent positions… this is by comparison an excellent turnout,” said Ashutosh Sharma, Secretary, DST. “However we cannot force universities to recruit students.” A “combination of circumstances” — the Fellow’s ability to gel with the institute’s functioning, their performance and luck played a role in a candidate’s success.
“I’m aware that some faculty are unhappy but ultimately 100% placement is impossible and it has always been explicitly made clear that the fellowship isn’t a guarantee of employment,” he added. That said, the DST, in a letter in August to institutes who host INSPIRE faculty, expressed “serious concern” that some hadn’t been recruited.
A. Mukopadhyay, a senior DST administrator, who wrote that letter, told The Hindu there were meetings called with administrators at several universities to be more sensitive to the concerns of these researchers. Also changes had been made to ensure that all pending financial dues were cleared by January.
According to the latest available statistics from the government, the number of science Ph.Ds is on the rise. In 2010-2011 5,271 doctoral degrees in science were awarded and this rose to 7,617 in 2014-2015. Relative to doctoral degrees awarded in all fields, however, there was a dip to 50% from 63.5% in the same period partly due to a rise in engineering-and-technology Ph.Ds to 28% from 20% in the same period.
‘Systemic problem’
This, even as several vacancies abound in colleges. As per the University Grants Commission, of the 9,878 Assistant Professor positions, 2,457 are vacant. Gautam Desiraju, a professor of chemistry, at the Indian Institute of Science, said there was a “systemic problem” in how the scheme had unfolded over the years. Universities frequently had opaque hiring procedures and “corruption” was rife at several State universities. Moreover, many leading institutions — including the IITs — didn’t recruit entry-level professors over 35, further queering the pitch for a new INSPIRE faculty member.
