Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan urged private sector investment in research, saying 70% ofIndia’s R&D funding comes from the government. He called for a 50-50 funding model, citing a ₹1 lakh crore corpus and rapid startup growth to over 2.5 lakh firms, along with India’s rise in the Global Innovation Index.

New Delhi, May 5: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday called on the private sector to step up investments in research and innovation, emphasising the need for greater industry participation in the sector.

Inaugurating the IIT Madras Technology Summit 2026 here, Pradhan said that while the government has significantly increased funding for research and development, industry contribution needs to rise.

"About 70 per cent of research investment in India currently comes from government funding. This is not a healthy sign. We need at least a 50-50 contribution between government and industry," he said.

Highlighting the government's push for innovation, Pradhan said a Rs 1 lakh crore corpus has been allocated for research, development and innovation, including support for startups.