This article is part of the UPSC Daily Editorial Analysis, covering The Hindu editorial – " The issue is about the ‘quality’ of India’s publications," published on 27th March, by the best UPSC coaching in Kolkata.
Syllabus: UPSC GS Paper III – Science & Technology, specifically Research & Development, Scientific Innovations, and Investment in Science & Technology in India.
Union Minister for Science and Technology claimed that India will surpass the U.S. in scientific publications by 2029. China leads with 8,98,949 publications and it is followed by the U.S. (4,57,335) and then India (2,07,390). However, China's research output is distinguished not only by quantity but also by quality. And China's research papers are backed by significant investments in education and scientific research.
India's research expenditure as a percentage of civilian spending is at 0.67% of GDP, which is very much behind the world leaders, such as Israel (6.3%), South Korea (4.9%) and Japan (3.3%), signifying the huge issue in promoting innovation and technological growth. Even large economies, such as the United States (3.46%), Germany (3.13%) and China (2.4%), spend much higher percentages of GDP on research.
This gap highlights India's necessity to increase investment in scientific research, intensify industry-academia partnership and develop a strong innovation ecosystem to stay competitive in the world knowledge economy.
With such low investment, the ambitious goal of Viksit Bharat 2047 remains questionable. While documents like “India Rankings 2024” and “Expanding Quality Higher Education through States and State Public Universities” aim to highlight progress, they lack tangible impact on research quality and global competitiveness.
India’s total scholarly output for 2024 stood at 1,91,703 publications, while the U.S. recorded 6,48,905 (Clarivate, February 2025). Quality indicators such as the Category Normalized Citation Impact (CNCI) place India at 0.879, compared to 1.12 for China and 1.25 for the U.S.. Among 30 ranked countries, India is placed at 28, signifying its struggle with quality research.
Even though 5,351 Indian scientists featured in the top 2% globally (2023) their ranking ranged from 163 to 68,55,948. Japan’s 5,608 scientists had ranks between 79 and 26,24,763. Germany’s 10,420 scientists were ranked between 6 and 10,80,081. Al these show superior research quality.
Quantity alone does not ensure quality. International benchmarks such as the Hirsch Index (H-Index) and Impact Factor (IF) of journals indicate the influence of research as well. Bradford’s Law (1934) states that high-impact scientific articles concentrate in a small number of top journals.
A study of chemistry publications (2017–2024) in leading journals reveals:
The trend shows that India's research output increases in lower-impact journals, indicating a lack of high-quality contributions.
A deeper analysis of JACS publications (2017–2024) highlights:
China’s strong university system which is backed by heavy funding has enabled consistent high-quality research output. Unfortunately India lags behind in this race.
Despite statistical evidence, misleading statements about India’s scientific progress continue. For example, the Principal Scientific Adviser claimed that “India is rapidly becoming a global research powerhouse.” However, without quality-driven research investments, such assertions remain self-delusional.
India’s scientific ecosystem suffers from questionable ethics and this leads to fake publications and research fraud as well in the country. Retractions, paid publications and plagiarized research have severely damaged India’s credibility on the other hand.
Key instances include:
With 10% of India’s total research output being fake the focus must shift from increasing numbers to ensuring credibility.
If India truly wants to become a global research leader, the government must prioritize the following:
India's ambition to overtake the U.S. in research output by 2029 needs fundamental changes. Quantity does not equate to quality and without substantial investments in education, research infrastructure and ethics, India will continue to lag behind nations with a stronger scientific ecosystem. The focus should be on credible, high-impact research rather than chasing inflated publication numbers.
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PRACTICE QUESTION Q.Assess India's research output and quality against global leaders. Highlight key challenges and suggest measures to enhance research competitiveness. |
1. Where does India stand in global research output?
India ranks third with 2,07,390 publications, behind China (8,98,949) and the U.S. (4,57,335), but lags in quality.
2. How much does India invest in research?
India spends 0.67% of GDP, far behind Israel (6.3%), South Korea (4.9%) and U.S. (3.46%).
3. Why is India's research quality low?
India ranks 28th in research quality, with most publications in low-impact journals and a low CNCI (0.879).
4. What challenges hinder India’s research progress?
Low R&D funding, poor infrastructure, weak industry-academia ties and research fraud.
5. How can India improve research quality?
Increase R&D funding (2% of GDP), upgrade infrastructure, enforce regulations and boost industry collaboration.
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