Context: Recently, the provisions of the Anusandhan Research Foundation (ANRF) Act have been brought into force in line with the commitment of the Government to boost Research and Innovation as the fulcrum of growth and development of the country.

About Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF)

• The ANRF was brought into effect to strategically fund research, innovation, and entrepreneurship across various fields.

• It is aimed at providing strategic direction for research and innovation in natural sciences, engineering, technology, health, agriculture, and interfaces of humanities with science and technology.

Objective

• Strategic funding for research, innovation, and entrepreneurship.

• Provide strategic direction in various fields including natural sciences, engineering, technology, health, and agriculture.

• Democratize research funding and encourage private-public partnerships.

• Encourages a team-driven approach to problem-solving and product development, emphasizing collaboration between public and private sectors.

Structure

• Secretary of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), has been appointed as the interim CEO.

• Prime Minister will be the ex-officio President of the Board and the Union Minister of Science & Technology & Union Minister of Education will be the ex-officio Vice-Presidents.

• Department of Science and Technology will oversee the ANRF, with a Governing Board of eminent researchers and an Executive Council led by the Principal Scientific Adviser.

Function

• Starts with a corpus of Rs 50,000 crore, with nearly Rs 36,000 crore expected from the private sector.

• The ANRF Act was passed by Parliament in 2023, with rules notified for implementation 30 days after public announcement.

• It seeks to subsume the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), expanding its mandate to cover broader research activities.