91. INNOVATION IN SCIENCE PURSUIT FOR INSPIRED RESEARCH (INSPIRE)

♤ INSPIRE is an innovative programme sponsored and managed by the Department of Science & Technology for attraction of talent to Science.

♤ The basic objective of INSPIRE is to communicate to the youth of the country:

o the excitements of creative pursuit of science,

o attract talent to the study of science at an early age

o build the required critical human resource pool for strengthening and expanding the Science & Technology system and R&D base.

♤ INSPIRE Scheme has included three components.

Component	Schemes	Details
a) Scheme for Early Attraction of Talents for Science (SEATS),	INSPIRE Award INSPIRE Internship	Scheme for Early Attraction of Talent (SEATS) aims at attracting talented youth to study science by providing INSPIRE Award, to experience the joy of innovations, of Rs.5,000/- to one million young learners in the age group 10-15 years. There shall be annual Summer/Winter Camps for about 50,000 youth at more than 100 locations, for toppers in Class X board examinations for exposure with global leaders in Science, through INSPIRE Internship.
b) Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE) and	INSPIRE Scholarship	Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE) aims at attracting talented youth into undertaking higher education in science intensive programmes, by providing scholarships and mentoring through 'summer attachment' to performing researchers. The scheme offers 10,000 scholarships every year @ Rs 0.80 lakh per year to talented youth in the age group 17-22 years, for undertaking Bachelor and Masters level education in Natural and Basic sciences.
c) Assured Opportunity for Research Careers (AORC).	INSPIRE Fellowship INSPIRE Faculty Scheme	Assured Opportunity for Research Careers (AORC) aims at attracting, attaching, retaining and nourishing talented young scientific Human Resource to strengthened the R&D foundation and base by offering doctoral INSPIRE

Fellowship in the age group 22-27 years, in both Basic and Applied sciences (including engineering and medicine). It also aims at assuring opportunities for post-doctoral researchers through a scheme (similar to the New Blood programme of the Royal Society of UK) through contractual and tenure track positions for five years in both Basic and

Applied sciences areas through an INSPIRE Faculty Scheme.

♤ A striking feature of the programme is that it does not believe in conducting competitive exams for identification of talent at any level. It believes in and relies on the efficacy of the existing educational structure for identification of talent.