Karnataka and Kerala lead industry-university linkage index

New Delhi: Karnataka and Kerala have topped the university-industry linkage index, though overall Indian education sector lags in this parameter, a new survey has found, underlining the need for reviving the Protection and Utilization of Public-Funded Intellectual Property (PUPFIP) Bill which was tabled in 2008 but later withdrawn from Parliament.

The survey, conducted by PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry in association with the Ministry of Science and Technology, said industry linkages are found moderate in India with an overall score of 4.7 in a scale of 10. Among states, most of the northeastern states are in the bottom of the stack, while larger states such as West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar are poor performers.

Besides Karnataka and Kerala, states like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, and Telengana are the top performers. The survey said it took into account 10 parameters, including joint patents, industry consultations, placements, role of industry in developing curriculum and pedagogy.

The study underlined that an analysis of the international scenario shows that Bayh Dole Act of US, implemented in the 1980s, had been the best model in strengthening university-industry linkages. This act has been implemented by many countries world over. The survey took into account several existing models from the US, Germany, Japan, China, United Kingdom and Australia and said India is at a very nascent stage of developing strong linkages like above countries, though some improvement has been observed of late.

“One of the key bottle-neck in the country has been the absence of clear policy for strengthening linkages between the university and industry. The Protection and Utilization of Public-Funded Intellectual Property (PUPFIP) Bill, which was prepared on the lines of the Bayh Dole Act has been withdrawn from the parliament. An institutionalised framework for industry-academia connect is absent in the country,” the study said.

The survey identifies 10 sectors for improving industry linkage through capacity building, research and development activity, including agro and food processing, textiles, information technology (IT) and IT-enabled services, energy, cement, pharmaceuticals and automotive sectors.

The survey said better industry-university linkage will improve campus hiring, a key headache across higher educational institutions. “The results indicate that industry consultation in setting pedagogy; gaining patents and regular interaction with industry have significant impact on placement level. Hence the universities must ensure more collaboration with industries particularly in pedagogy and gaining patents which will facilitate higher employment level of students.”