Woman scientists allege raw deal

Monday, 20 December 2004, 20:30 IST
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NEW DELHI: Bureaucratic delays are undermining a much-touted programme to encourage woman scientists in the country, say those long awaiting research funds under the scheme. A Department of Science and Technology scheme to empower women is facing a setback at a time when the country has a scientist president, an economist prime minister and a woman heading the coalition, they said. "Because it (releasing funds) takes so long, the programme's very purpose is defeated. Some scientists whose programmes were approved in 2003 got the funds almost a year later. This is ridiculous," said a scientist waiting for funds although her project getting the nod long back. "A friend applied for this particular scheme (discipline physics) in December 2002. The interview was held in May 2003. The award was notified in September. She still has not got the funds," the woman told IANS, seeking anonymity. At a time when frontiers of science and technology are being pushed back rapidly, the business-as-usual scenario in the department could prove fatal for many projects, pointed out another scientist attached to an institution affiliated to apex research body Council of Scientific and Industrial Research. Admitting that the Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC) implementing the programme has been "very cautious" as the programme is a new one, V.S. Ramamurthy, secretary for science and technology, said it could not be said the scheme was becoming ineffective. "We thought it would be better to be cautious than rush in with the scheme and get into problems later," Ramamurthy said. He said processing under the scheme, which was first introduced in 2002, could pick up speed once the procedures became streamlined. Ramamurthy, who is also chairman of SERC, said without elaborating that there was no problem of shortage of funds. However, few of the nearly 150 woman scientists chosen for funding in 2003 have begun receiving the funds, according to a scientist. The scheme aims to bring woman scientists, especially those who had to take a break in service, back to the mainstream by providing them opportunities "for pursuing research in frontier areas of science and engineering". The selected scientists get a grant of up to 1.5 million for a three-year period including the fellowship and cost of small equipment, contingencies, travel and consumables.
Source: IANS
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