Is India's Rs 1 trillion RDI scheme inspired by China's Thousand Talents Plan? Not quite

India Today

18 hours ago

In order to revitalise India's R&D ecosystem, the government has cleared the Rs 1 lakh crore Research Development and Innovation (RDI) Scheme. The policy aims to inject much-needed capital into deep-tech sectors and strategic industries, primarily by offering startups and private players long-tenure, low-interest loans and equity support.As details of the initiative emerged, comparisons began to surface. Most notably with China's controversial Thousand Talents Plan (TTP) (launched in 2008). That programme was Beijing's ambitious bid to bring home its brightest minds from across the globe. So, is India now trying to emulate China's Plan?advertisementNot quite. And the difference is more than cosmetic.
'The Rs. 1-trillion RDI scheme is a welcome move, but it's not cut from the same cloth as China's Thousand Talents Plan,' says Srinath Sridharan, Corporate Advisor & Independent Director on Corporate Boards. 'It's a financial intervention, not a people strategy.'China's TTP was designed with the aim of reversing brain drain. It dangled lucrative incentives, including research autonomy, leadership posts, lab funding, and generous salaries, to draw back Chinese-origin scientists, engineers, and tech entrepreneurs from elite institutions abroad.The programme placed many of them directly into leadership roles in high-tech firms, especially in fields like AI, genomics, and quantum computing.India's new scheme, by contrast, takes a different tack. There's no direct outreach to diaspora talent. No talk of any central mechanism to attract returning scientists. No coordinated effort is being made to fast-track them into institutions or give them decision-making authority in national R&D projects.advertisement'It's not about repatriating talent,' Sridharan argues. It's about unlocking capital to stimulate innovation at home. That's a fundamentally different design.'TWO MODELS, TWO MINDSETSWhere China's approach was centrally planned and state-directed, India's RDI scheme is built around market forces. The expectation is that funding will enable private players to take more risks in R&D-heavy companies (aka the sunrise sectors) — health tech, semiconductors, green energy — areas where returns are uncertain and long-term.But therein lies the rub.'Innovation doesn't emerge from capital alone,' Sridharan cautions. 'It needs minds... motivated, skilled, and empowered minds.'For India to consider shifting from brain drain to brain gain, we need more than just a funding mechanism. What's missing (and much-needed) is a long-term vision that connects all three: talent, infrastructure, and ambition.How does one get there? First, by creating globally competitive research institutions with operational autonomy; second, ensuring urban ecosystems that can support the lifestyle, career, and educational expectations of those returning scientists; third, cutting the red tape that may end up slowing down or stifling scientific exploration; and above all, articulating a clear national innovation agenda with teeth.TTP'S SUCCESS AND FALLOUTIt is true that China's TTP came with serious baggage. On the one hand, the Plan succeeded in attracting thousands of top-tier researchers and repositioned Beijing as a serious tech player. But it also triggered geopolitical concerns, especially in the U.S., where several scientists who were affiliated with the programme were accused of failing to disclose Chinese ties or funding. The Plan even led to investigations, terminations, and, in some cases, even criminal proceedings.advertisementBy 2022, under international pressure and domestic recalibration, Beijing hurriedly retired the original TTP. Although some elements of it live on in other initiatives.Sridharan points out that India doesn't need to replicate the Chinese model as it were. But there's a lesson there for us: 'China got it right that talent follows purpose. If your system signals seriousness, autonomy, and ambition, top talent will pay attention.'THE ROAD AHEADIndia's RDI scheme has laid the financial groundwork. But unless there's an equally compelling plan to mobilise human capital both domestically and globally, the country could end up with capital-rich labs and boardrooms but a scarcity of scientific leadership.It's like building a space rocket and forgetting to train the astronauts. You can get off the ground, but not go far.If India hopes to lead in frontier innovation by 2047, it must think beyond money. It must craft a story bold enough to bring its brightest minds home not just to participate, but to lead.- Ends
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