scientific validation of traditional knowledge

`Powerful MNC lobby behind pushing out WLL technology’ Former Director General of CSIR R A Mashelkar said powerful multinational corporation lobby came in the way of wireless loop technology for affordable cellular phone system in the country. Mashelkar, after his lecture on “Reinventing India as an innovation nation” here at International Management Institute, told Business Line that “powerful MNC” lobby was behind pushing out WLL technology by global system for mobile communication. It was ironical that the WLL technology, which was an innovation of an Indian – Ashok Jhunjhunwalla – first found its usage in Brazil and Madagascar. Talking about innovation, he said over the past few year there has been a paradigm shift approach. “Innovation is not just about quality, but sustainability and affordability,” he said. Scientific validation of traditional knowledge He said the public debate over BT brinjal was largely misplaced and skirted a rational approach. On the other hand, Mashelkar said, scientific validation of traditional knowledge like ayurvedic medicines was the key to reinventing innovations – bringing the past into the future. Mashelkar, who backed creation of a digital library for India traditional knowledge, felt that Global Innovation Index needed to take note of business process innovations as one of the intrinsic elements of the aggregation. “Think about open heart surgery, made 20 times cheaper by Narayana Hrudayalaya through innovation in the processes”, he said. He felt there are many other areas where India excelled in innovating businesses processes, which increased their affordability many fold. India would not have slipped in the global innovation scale from the 64th place in 2012 to 76th in 2014 had there been cognition of the business process innovation element. Mashelkar said for corporation investment in R&D and innovation was an opportunity to stay competitive.​