PRABHASS (Pravasi Bharatiya Academic and Scientific Sampark - Integrating Indian Diaspora with the Mother Land) Portal (www.prabhass.gov.in) is an interactive digital platform accessible to Indian as well as Diaspora Science and Technology (S&T) experts for networking, collaborating and browsing through scientific profiles.
The vision of the portal is to serve as a National Digital Platform to effectively collaborate with Global Indian S&T Community for collectively promoting inclusive growth in India, strengthening the Indian innovation ecosystem and contributing towards nation building. The specific objectives include encouraging Indian Diaspora to help solve challenges being faced by India, thereby making an impact on society at large, not just within India but also in a wider context globally.
This portal is a novel database that acts as an Indian Scientific Connecting/Networking Platform. The need was articulated during the STIP 2020 deliberations of the Technical Group on International S&T Engagement & STI Diplomacy, and the VAIBHAV Summit, wherein MEA had been a participant as well. Under the directive of Hon’ble Prime Minister, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) initiated efforts to develop this virtual platform to bring on board the Global Indian S&T Community to address the Indian societal challenges / problems.
PRABHASS was developed through collaborative efforts of all major central scientific ministries/ departments [DST, DBT, MoES, ICMR, ICAR, DRDO, DAE, DOS, CSIR] and MEA.
An Inter-Ministerial Working Group was constituted by DG CSIR towards development of the PRABHASS Portal for effectively engaging with the scientific community. This working group is under the chairmanship of Dr Dnyaneshwar Mulay, Member, National Human Rights Commission, and comprises of senior representatives each from DST, DBT, CSIR, ICMR, ICAR, DAE, DOS, MoES and MEA. [List of Working Group Members is also attached]
PRABHASS 1.0 was launched jointly by Prof. K. VijayRaghavan, Principal Scientific Advisor and Dr V.K. Saraswat, Member NITI Aayog, on 31st October 2020 during the VAIBHAV Summit.
The portal presents the following database and engagement mechanisms
- Database of S&T Structures
- India S&T landscape with relevant governmental agencies
- Categorization of the R&D institutes of major central scientific Ministries/Departments in organized S&T domains, aligned to national missions and priorities (Quantum Technologies, Environmental Sciences, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AIML), Advanced Manufacturing Technologies, Electronics and Semiconductor Technologies, Earth Sciences, Communication Technologies, Health, Medical Sciences and Biomedical Devices, Computational Sciences, Pharmaceuticals and Bio Technology, Data Sciences, Agro Economy & food Security, Photonics, Social Sciences, Aerospace Technologies, Management, Materials and Processing Technologies, Civil Engineering and Infrastructure, Energy, and Astronomy and Astrophysics)
- Links to National R&D missions
- Links to Collaborative mechanisms
- Collaborative funding mechanism categorised by governmental agencies
- Diaspora specific schemes
- Database of India S&T diaspora categorised by research area and countries
- Database of registered S&T Indian Experts
- Engagement portal for:
- Societal Challenges: Allows individuals/entities to post a problem/challenge to society and seek solutions
- Collaborative R&D schemes: Allows individuals/entities to post opportunities for R&D collaboration
- Listed Lectures and Webinars
- Training Opportunities
- Hosting Researchers: Allows individuals/entities to post opportunities to host researchers
- Videos
- Blog space: Allows individuals/entities to post blog posts
- Vacancies, Recent announcements and Success Stories
- PRABHASS also has an in built analytical tool that allows users to view country wise, profession wise and subject wise Indian and Diaspora S&T experts
- In addition, PRABHASS portal puts forth calls for international cooperation proposals announced by the bi-national centres of India with France (Indo-French Centre for Promotion of Advanced Research - IFCPAR/CEFIPRA), USA (Indo-US Science & Technology Forum - IUSSTF), Germany (Indo-German Science & Technology Centre - IGSTC) and GITA, etc.
PRABHASS has connected the diaspora with different S&T departments for scientific discussions in specific areas for preparing and recommending a road map and way ahead for Indian R&D and societally relevant interventions such as:
- Vaishvik Bhartiya Vaigyanik (VAIBHAV) Summit - October 2020
- Global Indian Scientist and Technocrats (GIST) Meet - December 2020
- CSIR Brainstorming Session Meetings - 2020
- Structural Health Monitoring (31.07.2020)
- Atma Nirbhar Bharat: Personal Care, Flavour and Fragrance (31.08.2020
- Energy Management and Energy Storage Devices (16.09.2020)
- Utilisation of Agro/Biomass Waste: Roadmap & Strategy' scheduled (28.10.2020)
- Liquid Waste Management (27.11.2020)
- Specific programs for school children, teachers and parents on Health and Nutrition
Some Analytics on PRABHASS portal include:
- India S&T Diaspora 6412 (47 Countries)
- S&T Diaspora (258)
- Indian R&D institutions (267)
- S&T Personnel based in India (138) - These will be continuously evolving.
