Budget 2021-22: Science & Tech

Budget 2021-22: Science & Tech

Part of: GS Prelims and GS- III – Sci & Tech

In news 

• To strengthen the overall research ecosystem of the country, the Union Budget FY 2021-22 announced a slew of new initiatives to boost innovation and R&D in the country.

Key takeaways

• The Finance Minister proposed an outlay of Rs 50,000 crore, spread over five years, for the National Research Foundation.
• Rs 1,500 crore has been proposed for a scheme that will provide financial incentives to promote digital modes of payment and further boost digital transactions.
• A new initiative called National Language Translation Mission (NTLM) has been proposed that will digitize the wealth of governance-and-policy-related knowledge on the Internet and be made available in major Indian languages.
• New Space India Limited (NSIL), a PSU under the Department of Space, will execute the PSLV-CS51 launch, carrying the Amazonia Satellite from Brazil, along with a few smaller Indian satellites.
• Four Indian astronauts are also being trained on Generic Space Flight aspects, in Russia for the Gaganyaan Mission, slated to be launched in December 2021.
• To better understand the realm of Oceans, Finance Minister proposed to launch a Deep Ocean Mission with a budget outlay of more than Rs 4,000 crores, over five years.