India’s Higher Education Research Ecosystem: Strategic Reforms Needed for Global Competitiveness EY-Parthenon and FICCI report

New Delhi : India’s higher education institutions are at a critical juncture, with research emerging as a key driver of progress. Despite the vastness of India’s research ecosystem, there is a noticeable fragmentation, with various constituents operating in isolation coupled with underinvestment in the research sector. According to the EY-Parthenon and FICCI report titled, ‘Research ecosystem within the Indian higher-education sector: strategic pillars of reform across academic and industry research’, India’s R&D expenditure —primarily government-driven—stands at just 0.65% of GDP, significantly lower than the 2% average in developed nations. This underfunding is exacerbated by limited corporate investment, which constitutes only 41% of India’s total R&D expenditure.

India struggles with quality indicators such as the H-index and citation rates, indicating that while quantity is high, impact remains limited. Emerging fields like artificial intelligence (AI) and data science show promise, reflecting India’s potential for leadership in targeted research areas. However, for the country to realize its ambitions, a multifaceted approach is required to address systemic issues and foster an environment conducive to innovation and collaboration.

Reflecting on the report findings, Dr Avantika Tomar, Sector, EY-Parthenon India said, “To unlock India’s true research potential, we must address systemic barriers and build a cohesive framework that integrates the efforts of academia, industry, and government. This collaboration is not just a necessity but a strategic imperative to foster innovation and elevate research quality. While the report delves into multiple recommendations for the stakeholders, our key recommendations are as follows: (i) Integrate interdisciplinary research into the curriculum, (ii) Develop National Research Infrastructure Clusters for resource sharing, (iii) Streamline the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and patenting processes, and (iv) Create a co-financed fund where corporations contribute to research aligned with industry needs, supported by tax incentives. We believe that these recommendations, alongside others given in detail in the report, will play a pivotal role in enabling India to realize it’s aspiration of becoming a global leader in research and innovation”.

Strategic Pillar

A five-pillar strategic framework—Monetary, Operational, Policy, Personnel, and Innovation—has been proposed to tackle the challenges facing India’s research ecosystem:

• Monetary: Increase funding from both government and corporate sectors to enhance research infrastructure and quality.
• Operational: Restructure academic curricula to motivate faculty and students to engage in impactful research and incentivize interdisciplinary projects.
• Policy: Streamline the regulatory framework, including intellectual property rights (IPR) laws, to promote robust research collaboration.
• Personnel: Encourage industry to invest more in R&D through corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, fostering stronger links with higher education institutions.
• Innovation: Promote industry-academia partnerships to ensure that research outcomes meet real-world needs and create practical applications.

Conclusion

As India aims to elevate its research sector, addressing these challenges and implementing the recommended reforms is crucial. By fostering collaboration between academia, industry, and government, India can transform its research ecosystem into a dynamic and globally competitive entity. This transformation is essential for contributing significantly to the global knowledge economy and innovation landscape.

***

About EY-Parthenon

EY-Parthenon teams work with clients to navigate complexity by helping them to reimagine their eco-systems, reshape their portfolios and reinvent themselves for a better future. With global connectivity and scale, EY-Parthenon teams focus on Strategy Realized — helping CEOs design and deliver strategies to better manage challenges while maximizing opportunities as they look to transform their businesses. From idea to implementation, EY-Parthenon teams help organizations to build a better working world by fostering long-term value. EY-Parthenon is a brand under which a number of EY member firms across the globe provide strategy consulting services. For more information, please visit ey.com/Parthenon.