India’s R&D dreams meet reality

India’s innovation landscape is entering one of its most decisive phases. For years, policymakers and industry leaders have spoken about the need to move from being a consumer of global technologies to becoming a producer of cutting-edge ideas. With the launch of the Rs 1 lakh crore Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) Scheme, alongside a widening set of national missions, institutional reforms, and digital infrastructure, that ambition is gathering the institutional heft it long lacked. If India sustains this momentum, it could emerge as a serious innovation economy by 2047.

Progress over the past decade has been steady. Gross Expenditure on Research and Development has more than doubled since 2010–11, rising from about Rs 60,000 crore to over Rs 1.27 lakh crore in 2020–21. India now ranks third globally in science and engineering doctorates, indicating a growing talent base across disciplines. Patent filings have tripled in four years, suggesting that Indian researchers and start-ups are not only absorbing global technologies but increasingly creating intellectual property of their own.

These are encouraging trends, but they also expose familiar gaps. Public expenditure continues to shoulder nearly two-thirds of total R&D spending. In economies where innovation drives national competitiveness, the private sector plays the leading role in research investment. Indian industry has the talent, capacity, and market depth to support more research-intensive growth, yet long gestation periods, uncertain returns, and a historically cautious risk culture have limited private commitment to high-technology research.

The RDI Scheme is designed as a corrective. With Rs 1 lakh crore earmarked for long-term, low-cost financing for private-led R&D, the scheme aims to address the funding deficit that has long held back Indian industry’s technological ambitions. Extended loan tenors and low or even nil interest rates create space for firms to undertake projects that may take years to mature. Sectors such as advanced materials, critical technologies, biotechnology, and quantum research often require patient capital. By including growth and risk capital, the RDI Scheme acknowledges what India’s innovation ecosystem has lacked: financial instruments that encourage industry to look beyond immediate commercial outcomes.

Its launch at ESTIC 2025 added momentum. The conclave brought together researchers, start-ups, Nobel Laureates, incubators, and policymakers. The message was clear: India wants to shift from incremental reform to systemic transformation. But the success of the RDI Scheme will hinge on more than budgetary outlays. Execution, transparency, industry response, and sustained political attention will determine whether the scheme becomes a watershed moment or merely another ambitious announcement.

Parallel to financial reform, India has built an institutional framework that spans research, regulation, and commercialisation. The Anusandhan National Research Foundation aims to link academic research more directly with industry and attract philanthropic funding for high-impact projects. Policies such as the National Geospatial Policy and the Indian Space Policy have opened sectors once heavily restricted. Start-ups and private enterprises now have more freedom to innovate in geospatial intelligence, satellite services, and space-based communications. This shift from tight control to regulated openness is a notable departure from the past.

India’s ambitions in frontier technologies are anchored in a set of national missions covering quantum computing, cyber-physical systems, high-performance computing, semiconductors, ocean science, and artificial intelligence. These missions complement each other and collectively support the broader goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047. Early progress is visible. India is positioning itself as a semiconductor manufacturing destination. Supercomputing capacity has expanded across universities and research institutions. AI and cyber-physical innovation hubs are producing start-ups with global potential. The Deep Ocean Mission has made India an active participant in the emerging blue economy.

Underlying much of this momentum is India’s Digital Public Infrastructure. DPI has moved from being a tool of governance to becoming an engine of innovation. UPI’s scale has reshaped digital payments and has begun expanding globally. DigiLocker has eased access to education, welfare, employment, and research by simplifying documentation. Aadhaar and e-KYC have reduced friction in authentication processes. Co-WIN demonstrated India’s ability to operate complex digital systems at a national scale. The Direct Benefit Transfer architecture has improved transparency and saved the exchequer significant sums by reducing leakages. Together, these platforms offer a strong foundation for innovators to test and scale ideas quickly and cost-effectively.

But India’s rise as a global research leader is far from assured. Several challenges require sustained attention. The most pressing is the need for higher private sector investment. Countries such as South Korea and Israel transformed themselves through strong private R&D spending supported by predictable regulatory systems and incentives. India needs a similar industrial long-termism.

Another priority is strengthening the link between academia and industry. Universities generate ideas and talent, but industry provides the scale and commercial focus necessary to turn research into viable products. The ANRF offers a promising bridge, but its effectiveness will depend on governance, partnership models, and willingness across institutions to break long-standing silos.

India must also avoid concentrating innovation within a handful of large metros. A genuinely inclusive research ecosystem requires strong incubators, research institutes, and skill programmes in Tier-II and Tier-III cities. The Atal Innovation Mission’s tinkering labs and incubation centres are a solid foundation, but scaling them in a sustainable manner will be critical. Innovation cannot become another axis of regional inequality.

Finally, India must balance speed with responsibility. As AI, biotechnology, and space technologies evolve, regulatory and ethical frameworks will need to keep pace. Public trust will be essential for technologies that increasingly intersect with personal data, health, privacy, and national security.

India stands at an inflection point. With clear policy direction, expanding digital capacity, rising research expenditure, and a growing innovation culture, the country has laid the groundwork for a knowledge-driven economy. The RDI Scheme could become the catalyst that brings the private sector more firmly into this journey.

Whether India reaches its 2047 ambition will depend not on the scale of announcements but on the consistency of execution and the extent to which industry, academia, and government can build trust and collaborate. If these efforts hold steady, India’s push towards Viksit Bharat will not remain an aspiration. It will rest on ideas, innovation, and a national confidence that the future can be shaped through sustained investment in knowledge.