Office of Principal Scientific Adviser to the GoI

Prof. @AjaySoodIISc, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India and Dr (Mrs.) Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary, Office of the PSA have joined the Indian Delegation led by Hon'ble Minister of External Affairs @DrSJaishankar, Hon'ble Minister of Commerce and Industry Shri @PiyushGoyal, and Hon’ble Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Electronics and Information Technology Shri @JitinPrasada to participate in the 3rd India-EU-Trade and Technology Council Ministerial Meeting scheduled during 14 to 16 July 2026 in Brussels. The India-EU TTC is a high-level strategic forum established to deepen collaboration on trade, trusted technology, and security. TTC comprises of three working groups viz 1. Strategic Technologies, Digital Governance, and Digital Connectivity 2. Green and Clean Energy Technologies 3. Trade, Investment, and Resilient Value Chains The Office of PSA leads the efforts on Working Group 2 on Green and Clean Energy Technologies wherein active cooperation is under way under three thematic areas: Waste to Green Hydrogen, Marine Plastic Litter, and EV Battery Recycling Technologies. Over the last few years, the TTC has emerged as an effective instrument of mutual cooperation and collaboration for both the sides. This ministerial meeting provides an opportunity to take stock of the progress made under various workstreams of the TTC. @asim_ifs | @EUCouncil | @MEAIndia

The TAG under the ETG deliberated on creating a dedicated task force to drive telecom R&D in the country. communicationstoday.co.in/govt-proposes-…

Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India Prof. @AjaySoodIISc delivered the convocation address at IIIT Hyderabad on 11 July 2026. In his address, Prof. Sood congratulated the graduating students and urged them to become agents of inclusive growth by effectively integrating technology into people's lives. He also highlighted the growing influence of technologies such as artificial intelligence in shaping the nation’s future and strategic autonomy, stressing the importance of responsible innovation, fairness, and accountability. Prof. Sood highlighted the need to democratise innovation through initiatives such as RuTAG and RSVC that has promoted grassroots technology development, commercialization, scaling, and deeper integration of technology into India’s socioeconomic fabric. He underscored that true technological progress must be inclusive, ethical, and nationally transformative. Watch the full address: youtube.com/watch?v=MR3q8W…

𝐕𝐢𝐠𝐲𝐚𝐧 𝐃𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚: 𝐒𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐚𝐬𝐲𝐚 𝐀𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐲𝐚𝐦 – 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 2026 𝐄𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 | 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐎𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 The Sarvasya Aarogyam edition of Vigyan Dhara highlights the importance of strengthening One Health Surveillance to protect human, animal, and environmental health through an integrated approach. This article focuses on how fragmented surveillance systems can evolve into a unified, technology-enabled framework by fostering cross-sector collaboration, improving data integration, and enhancing institutional coordination. It explores how India can strengthen disease surveillance by integrating data and harnessing technologies such as AI and predictive analytics. Building systems that can detect and respond to emerging threats more effectively will lead to a resilient surveillance ecosystem. Explore more in this insightful article written by Prof. NK Arora, Dr NK Dhamija, and Dr Shikha Dixit, featured in the June 2026 edition of Vigyan Dhara – Sarvasya Aarogyam: psa.gov.in/CMS/web/sites/…

The Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India is championing science and diplomacy through initiatives such as: ➡️ Raisina Dialogue - Science Diplomacy Initiative: Launched in collaboration with Observer Research Foundation and Ministry of External Affairs, the initiative examined the impact of emerging technologies on strategic autonomy, economic competitiveness, national security, and governance. ➡️ Technology Dialogue 2025: The Dialogue brought together international stakeholders to discuss AI, quantum, semiconductors, space technologies, and bioeconomy that will shape the coming decade and help build global partnerships. ➡️ International S&T Clusters Conference: India's eight S&T Clusters and representatives from 30+ countries exchanged ideas and showcased scalable innovations to strengthen partnerships across healthcare, agriculture, sustainability, and advanced manufacturing. ➡️ Chief Science Advisers’ Roundtable: Initiated during India’s G20 presidency (2023), and then followed up in collaboration with UNESCO and G20 South Africa focused on equitable S&T, responsible AI, capacity building, and democratising access to scientific knowledge. ➡️ Emerging Science, Technology and Innovation Conclave: Led by DST in 2025, ESTIC brought together stakeholders to explore the future of scientific and technological advancement. ESTIC 2026 will advance the vision through 12 frontier themes such as Advanced Manufacturing, Energy Technologies, Preventive Medicine, and others. Through such initiatives, the Office connects science with society, policy with progress, and nations with opportunity to advance the vision of science as a force for diplomacy. @MEAIndia | @IndiaDST | @UNESCO | @G20_CSAR | @moesgoi | @EduMinOfIndia | @GoI_MeitY | @MOFPI_GOI | @moayush | @DAEIndia | @DBTIndia | @isro | @DoT_India | @iiscbangalore | @CSIR_IND | @DRDO_India | @icarindia | @ICMRDELHI | @AP_MedTechZone | @BeSTCluster | @BCKIC | @driiv_delhi | @jckic_jodhpur | @PI_RAHI | @ClusterPuner | @RICH_Hyd

The Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India extends its heartfelt congratulations to all five Indian students for winning Gold Medals at the 56th International Physics Olympiad (IPhO) 2026, held in Bucaramanga, Colombia. The Indian team: Kanishk Jain, Riddhesh Anant Bendale, Rishit Garg, Shresth Suraiy, and Svarit Joshi, secured a Joint World Rank 1, alongside China, Kazakhstan, Russia, South Korea, and Taiwan, among 381 participants from 87 countries. The team was guided by Prof. Anwesh Mazumdar (@HBCSE_TIFR) and Dr. Leena Joshi (St. Xavier's College, Mumbai) as team leaders, with Prof. Ananda Dasgupta (@iiserkol) and Ms. Nisha Kelkar (Gogate-Joglekar College) serving as scientific observers. This marks India's 27th participation at the International Physics Olympiad (IPhO), and the nation's legacy of excellence continues to grow. Over the past 10 years, every Indian participant has returned with either a Gold or Silver Medal, reflecting the country's sustained commitment to nurturing world-class scientific talent. @EduMinOfIndia @DAEIndia @IndiaDST

Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood chaired the 4th Technology Advisory Group (TAG) meeting of the Empowered Technology Group (ETG), convened on 10 July 2026 to deliberate on a strategic roadmap for strengthening India's telecom innovation ecosystem and the establishment of a dedicated “Communication Technology Task Force”. In his opening remarks, Prof. Sood highlighted telecom technologies as the foundation of India's digital economy and emphasised the need to strengthen indigenous capabilities across research, standards, intellectual property, manufacturing, and commercialisation to build technological leadership, accelerate innovation, and reduce critical dependencies. In her concluding remarks, Dr (Mrs) Parvinder Maini highlighted the need to build capabilities in strategic layers of the telecom technology stack and emphasised the importance of a whole-of-ecosystem approach. She also underscored the need for a dedicated “Communication Technology Task Force” to provide strategic direction, strengthen ecosystem-wide coordination, and accelerate India's leadership in next-generation communication technologies. The meeting focused on identifying priority technology domains in the telecom ecosystem and designing dedicated interventions to enhance India's capabilities in next-generation communication technologies, telecom semiconductors, standards development, intellectual property, advanced manufacturing, and commercialisation. The deliberations brought together TAG and ETG members, senior government officials, leading academicians, industry leaders, startups, and standards organisations to define a coordinated strategy for building a future-ready and globally competitive telecom ecosystem. The meeting also featured expert presentations on key priority areas, including 6G, AI-native networks, telecom semiconductors, Non-Terrestrial Networks, standards and Standard Essential Patents, indigenous product development, and commercialisation. Read the full press release: pib.gov.in/PressReleasePa…

@guptaakhilesh63, Former Senior Adviser, @IndiaDST called upon Prof. @AjaySoodIISc, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India to present his book titled "Unbroken". The book is Dr Gupta's memoir that chronicles his battle with cancer and presents his journey of resilience.

Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, Vice Chief of Air Staff had a meeting with Prof. @AjaySoodIISc, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India to discuss the overall science and technology ecosystem and the role of technological advancements in strengthening the defence forces.

Prof. @AjaySoodIISc, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, and Mr @lemaitre_eu, Director-General for Research & Innovation at the @EU_Commission, co-chaired the stocktaking meeting of Working Group 2 (Clean and Green Technologies) under the India–EU Trade and Technology Council, ahead of the third India–EU TTC Ministerial Meeting scheduled to be held in Brussels on 15 July 2026. Dr Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary, Office of the PSA, offered remarks on the way forward. Ms Nienke Buisman, European Commission and Dr Rakesh Kaur, Adviser/Scientist G, OPSA made a joint presentation on the achievements and deliverables under Working Group 2. They reviewed progress across collaborative research and innovation initiatives while outlining priorities for the next phase of engagement. Discussions focused on advancing implementation through pilot projects and testing, promoting standards convergence, strengthening institutional partnerships, enhancing industry participation, and developing a focused agenda capable of delivering tangible outcomes. Dr Hafsa Ahmad, Scientist D, OPSA; Mr Antonio Marquez-Camacho, Policy Officer, DG Research & Innovation, European Commission; and Dr Vivek Dham, Adviser, Delegation of the European Union to India also joined the discussions. Mr Kinchit Bihani | Mr Asim Anwar | Dibojit Pathak

The Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India is enabling strategic coordination across India's frontier technology landscape by shaping national missions in quantum technology, artificial intelligence, electric mobility, and sustainable technologies. ➡️Quantum: From secure quantum communication across hundreds of kilometres to indigenous quantum devices, the National Quantum Mission is advancing indigenous capabilities in computing, communication, sensing, and advanced materials. ➡️Artificial Intelligence: The IndiaAI Mission is building a trusted public AI ecosystem that will power healthcare, agriculture, education, manufacturing, and governance. ➡️Electric Vehicles: Guided by the EV mission and other complementary initiatives, electric mobility is redefining transport as India scales EV manufacturing, battery production, and charging infrastructure for a cleaner, smarter, and energy-secure future. ➡️Sustainable technologies: Produced using renewables, green hydrogen can decarbonise heavy industry and transport. The National Green Hydrogen Mission is creating hubs, scaling electrolysers, and enabling large-scale industrial pilots, thus laying the foundation of a resilient, low-carbon economy. Working with ministries, academia, startups, and industry, the Office is enabling mission-driven roadmaps, technology translation, and global partnerships. As we move towards Viksit Bharat 2047, frontier technologies are becoming the pillars of economic growth, strategic resilience, sustainability, and global leadership. @MHI_GoI | @mnreindia | @GoI_MeitY | @IndiaDST | @AjaySoodIISc

Vigyan Dhara: Sarvasya Aarogyam – June 2026 Edition | Advisory & Review Committee on Medical Countermeasures: One Health Approach for a Healthy Planet – The Imperatives of a Technology Push Preparing for the next pandemic begins long before the next outbreak. The article, "Advisory & Review Committee on Medical Countermeasures," highlights how India's One Health vision can strengthen national preparedness through science, technology, and collaboration. It explores the critical role of advanced diagnostics, rapid vaccine development, AI-powered surveillance, indigenous innovation, and integrated medical countermeasures in building an effective health ecosystem. Research, public-private partnerships, domestic manufacturing, and cross-sector collaboration are imperative for faster detection, stronger response, and better protection against any future health threats. A healthier future depends on investing in innovation today. Read the full article, written by Dr @RenuSwarup, Former Secretary to the Government of India, @DBTIndia, and featured in Vigyan Dhara: Sarvasya Aarogyam – June 2026 Edition: lnkd.in/gjmGTXzb #OneHealth #Medical #PublicHealth #HealthSecurity #PandemicPreparedness

The Raisina Science & Diplomacy Initiative Special Report is now live. Developed in partnership with @PrinSciAdvGoI (@PrinSciAdvOff) the report brings together the key ideas, discussions, and outcomes from the inaugural Science & Diplomacy Initiative at #RaisinaDialogue2026. Explore insights on science diplomacy, strategic autonomy, emerging technologies, and global governance. Read the report: or-f.org/39466 #RaisinaDialogue #science #diplomacy

Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, Prof. @AjaySoodIISc will be serving the Guest Editorial Board of @aaas Science & Diplomacy for the period of 2026-2027. In this capacity, Prof Sood will be contributing his insights on the nexus of science and diplomacy. Read More at sciencediplomacy.org/science-diplom…

Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood welcomed Prof. @waghmare16 as the new Secretary of the @IndiaDST. They discussed the vision for further strengthening India's scientific and innovation ecosystem.