Achilles Heels of India’s R&D: Import Dependency of Scientific Instruments
Innovation is the key to India’s civilizational well-being and economic growth, as underscored by the pandemic, and most recently, by the Russia-Ukraine War.
The Russia-Ukraine War of 2022 has exposed several fault lines within the global comity of nations. The war is a calamity on the lives of commoners who suffer the blow directly affecting their lives and probably leaving marks for generations to come. However, it is dangerous to be simplistic in assuming that such calamities arise solely from kinetic military actions. There is far less understanding about ‘Wars by Other Means’ and how they keep bringing calamities occasionally. There is a lack of understanding about such non-military acts because the collective mindset is often numb and refuses to fathom the vast spectrum of warfare that is possible. Such a numb mindset is unable to take necessary actions to counter this warfare. This numbness needs to be thwarted for national security reasons, especially when attempts to weaponise nearly all possible social and economic pursuits are being made.
India is an ancient civilisation, but a new country. Today’s India strives to emerge from the shadows of imperial colonisation and reclaim the rightful place it once enjoyed in antiquity. Since Independence, and as evident from various socio-economic indices, India has grown from being an underdeveloped economy to a newly industrialised economy touted to be the second largest on the planet in the next 10 years. For various reasons, not many countries have been able to possess a growth trajectory like India, and therefore, India has no models to follow but many to offer. This can be the closest interpretation of the freely used term ‘Vishwa Guru’. In such a scenario, we Indians are unaware of several dangers ahead. However, what we accomplish may prove to be a model for many developing nations worldwide.
In the coming years of Amrit Kaal, the one kind of human activity that will be vital for India’s progress and warding off any threats will be scientific research and development (R&D). From developing agricultural technologies to the digitisation of urban governance, from preparing for contagious diseases to creating robust financial technologies, taking Indian vyomanauts to the Moon and Mars, and developing next-generation directed energy weapon systems, these and more will depend on R&D activities and the fidelity of these activities.
India’s Dire Dependency on the Import of Scientific Instruments
Apart from having good scientists and finance, which India has in abundance, the foundation of cutting-edge science lies in scientific instruments. Spectroscopy, spectrometry, microscopy, chromatography, thermal analysis, tribometers, electrochemical analysis, DNA sequencers, magnetometers, accelerometers, and calorimeters are among the most widely used instruments in various scientific laboratories. These instrument types are necessary to characterise samples, materials, and analytes. They are essential for measuring, quantifying, detecting, analysing matter and materials, and generating vast scientific data. Modern science cannot be carried out without these scientific instruments, and their centrality to research and development (R&D) makes the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) of these instruments indispensable to economic security.
The trade of scientific instruments is easily decipherable on the import-export database, managed by the Ministry of Commerce. These instruments are classified under the Harmonic Systems Code 9018 to 9034. India’s import statistics of these instruments exceed its exports tremendously, indicating that India’s industry has yet to reach a stage where it can manufacture these extremely high-tech, precision-driven instruments domestically. The imported instruments are used in hospitals, medical research centres, chemical/ biological/ physical/ atomic/ space industries, as well as in pharmaceuticals, health diagnostic laboratories, and more. They are imported across India’s commercial, civilian, and military research and development laboratories. It is estimated that 80-90% of India’s analytical instruments are imported.
Over the past eight years, India has steadily reduced its overseas dependency on its top 10 imports. The government’s emphasis on supporting cleaner passenger transportation with renewable energy and clean fuels reduces the high imports of petroleum products. Likewise, to minimise the import dependency on consumer electronics, India has recently begun working on Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes for semiconductors, electronics, and mobile phones. The Indian government’s National Steel Policy aims to domestically meet all the demands of high-grade automotive steel, special steel, electrical steel, and alloys for strategic applications. The policy aims to increase India’s steel manufacturing capacity from the current ~140 million tonnes (MT) to 300 million tonnes by 2030. Having taken steadfast reforms to reduce overseas dependencies on petroleum, electronics, and steel imports, India has somehow missed formulating strategies to lessen the massive imports of analytical instruments.
Since independence, India has imported scientific instruments from OEMs based in Japan, the United States, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. These instruments were imported through licensed dealers, and the majority of the customer base consisted of public and private research and development institutions, as well as universities. These instruments form the bulk of capital expenditure, for which publicly funded institutions can avail themselves of waivers for paying import duties; private entities, however, do not have a similar respite when procuring them. The OEMs have created domestic employment, especially in sales, maintenance, repair, and overhaul services; however, none have established manufacturing units on Indian soil. Such units could have reduced the cost of imports, but no thought has been given to this dire dependency.
Import dependency in a world fraught with wars
The fecund financial sanctions and business cancellations from the Russia-Ukraine War are dangerous and short-sighted reactions. The myopic, abuse-friendly steps taken by big-technology social media companies have created immense turbulence in the global economy and eroded confidence in the worldview presented by these companies. Although few countries are prepared to engage in kinetic warfare, many are ready to wage economic, digital, and information wars. The readiness for such conflicts is a significant threat to import-dependent R&D ecosystems.
Nations home to scientific instrument OEMs with adversarial sentiments may target import-dependent ecosystems by implementing stringent export controls or tariff escalations as a method of conflict escalation. Such export control may amount to a prohibition on international sales of scientific instruments. In another scenario, such OEMs might also be asked by their home country's government to cease providing MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul) services to customers in the targeted ecosystem. Both of these scenarios are likely to cripple R&D activities of all kinds, thereby halting scientific progress across domains and leading to economic losses and even political instability.
Over the past two years, we have learned how conflicts and pandemic-related lockdowns in manufacturing hubs can disrupt the global technology supply chains, causing economic turbulence. Turbulence may not significantly affect developed economies; however, developing economies could be more vulnerable. And their vulnerability can also rupture the already fragile global peace.
How can India reduce import dependency?
India must strategise to reduce its import dependency on scientific instruments to prepare for such ominous scenarios. We must formulate strategies to accommodate scientific instrument OEMs in setting up manufacturing plants in India, making it the base for further sales to South, South-East, West Asia, Africa, and the Indian Ocean Region. Secondly, India must begin to support domestic OEM players in this domain and help them bring their product portfolios up to par with those of the dominant OEMs in the market. Thirdly, India must formulate intelligent policies that make manufacturing in India a more attractive proposition than exporting to other countries. The Indian government is already encouraging R&D institutions to increasingly use Make in India products in their laboratories. Additionally, they must provide more encouraging benefits to institutions actively collaborating with Indian scientific instrument OEMs in their product development. These benefits can include providing closer accessibility to research grants, additional personal fellowships, and flexible royalty sharing with the innovator.
India has often looked to science to achieve global harmony and peace. However, in the increasingly multipolar world, weaponisation of all aspects of human aptitude is fast becoming a reality. The weaponisation of science is no longer fiction. Therefore, India needs to protect its ability to conduct science uninhibitedly. To that end, a sound strategy to prevent the import dependency on scientific instruments from becoming India’s Achilles' Heel is a must. Innovation is key to India’s civilizational well-being, economic growth, and environmental sustainability practices. Any attempt to disrupt India’s innovation capabilities must be neutralised preemptively.
The original piece was published in the March 2022 edition of Science India.
