India’s Ranking in Global Innovation Index

India’s Ranking in Global Innovation Index

            “The Global Innovation Index” (GII) is a publication brought out by Cornell University, INSEAD, and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) as co-publishers, and their Knowledge Partners. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) was their knowledge partner from India for the year 2015. India’s position in the GII rankings during current year and last three years is as under:

Year	2015	2014	2013	2012
India’s Ranking	81	76	66	64

           

The Global Innovation Index (GII) 2015 covers 141 economies around the world and uses 79 indicators across a range of themes. The rankings are based on data collected during earlier years and thus do not truly reflect the status in the country in 2015. For example, the data for India’s overall R&D spending pertains to the year 2010, and the significant amount of spending done by Industry and Government on R&D in last 5 years has not been captured and does not get reflected in the ranking. The GII Report itself states that there are certain areas where data could not be captured because of the non-availability of standard international indicators, and even if some of these areas have produced good innovation advantage for a country like India, it does not translate into ranking.  At the same time, the Report states that India still needs to implement substantial reforms in its innovation policy in order to further improve its innovation performance.

            Though India’s ranking for the year 2015 stands at 81 as against 76 in 2014, this is not a true reflection of the status in the country in 2015. The Report itself identifies India as the top economy in GII rankings in Central and Southern Asia and also as one of the middle income group countries which is narrowing the gap in the innovation quality due to improved quality in higher education institutions. The GII 2015 report states that over the years, India has developed a stable foundation for scientific, technological, and business education by setting up centers of excellence such as the Indian Institutes of Science (IISC), the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), and the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs). The Report further notes that the strength of scholarly publications from India has been a key proponent for driving innovation capacity. The Report acknowledges that India has leapfrogged, leaving others in its category behind, in areas like mobile networks, information technology, and broadband. This revolution in communications has affected a pace of knowledge creation and dissemination in the economy that is unprecedented in Indian history. It has helped to transform innovation-driven entrepreneurship from the point of aspiration to the point of reality for the people of India.

                        The Government has taken various measures for promotion and growth of scientific research in the country. These measures include successive increase in plan allocations for Scientific Departments, setting up of new institutions for science education and research, creation of centres of excellence for research and facilities in emerging and frontline S&T areas in academic and national institutes, establishment of new and attractive fellowships for both research students and scientists, recent substantial revision of fellowships for research students, strengthening infrastructure for Research and Development (R&D) in universities, encouraging public-private R&D partnerships, recognition of R&D units and national awards for outstanding R&D for industries and setting up of Technology Business Incubators and Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Centers.

The GII: 2015 also recognizes the strides being made by India in this regard. The report states, inter alia, that Government of India has “established an aligned Ministry for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. This is a step forward. With the intervention of the government and the private sector, the level of innovation in Indian industry is also growing and more and more Indian SMEs are coming forward to invest in collaborative R&D.” Citing an example, the report further states that public-private partnership platforms such as the Global Innovation and Technology Alliance, a not-for-profit organization, are opening up opportunities for Indian companies to join with their foreign counterparts and develop products and technology through joint R&D programmes. The report also acknowledges that “In India’s most recent Union budget presented in February 2015, the government placed considerable emphasis on rapid development in the SME sector by addressing the funding issue. It has created a fund of Rs. 20,000 crore with a credit guarantee of Rs. 3,000 crore for entrepreneurs in this sector. In addition, it set aside Rs. 1,000 crore for a Techno-Financial, Incubation and Facilitation Programme to support all aspects of start-up businesses, and other self-employment activities, particularly in technology-driven areas. The Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises has launched Intellectual Property Facilitation Centres in different parts of the country with the aim of creating an intellectual property culture within SMEs by looking at protection, capacity building, information services, and counselling and advisory services regarding IPR.”