Research needs passion: S R Rao-the second Research Day celebrations held at the SRM University recently.

Research needs infrastructure, investment, mentorship and passion, and it can take the country forward, said Dr S R Rao, advisor, department of bio-technology, Government of India. He was speaking at the second Research Day celebrations held at the SRM University recently. Research in Nanotechnology is gaining momentum and lot of research is being undertaken for diagnosis of diseases and treatment using bio-technology, added Rao. He further said, “The country needs over 30 lakhs PhDs and over 1.5 lakh research scholars by 2025. The student community should take up research in a big way so that the country can face the competition in the scientific world.’’ Dr Krishan Lal, president, Indian National Science Academy turned nostalgic and referred to the growth of research by taking instances from the Ramayana and Mahabharata. He explained that a homemaker can find out the weight and the price of diamond in no time compared to a researcher and stressed that research alone can bring a change in the growth and development of the country. D Narayana Rao, Director (Research) elaborated the research activities of the University. C Muthamizhselvan, director, E&T of the University, said that the University has made many inroads in research and that SRM University is the only university that has ABET accreditation in five streams. He also added that the University had an A grade accreditation by NAAC and was placed in the A category by the UGC in its deemed university categorisation. Entry into research alone would help in achieving the same, he said. Students who had presented the best research papers were awarded with Gold and Silver medals.