President Patil urges scientists to priorities research on food and energy security

Kolkata, Dec 7 (ANI): President Pratibha Patil today urged the scientific community to take the initiative in meeting the requirement of food, water, energy and housing.

Addressing the concluding function of the Platinum Jubilee celebration of the Indian National Science Academy at Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics here, Patil said that the role of scientists to deal with issues of water, food security, energy security, prevention of diseases and medical discoveries is enormous.

"Science and tchnology has a vital role in finding solutions for a wide range of human activity. Its contribution to deal with the issues of the day namely water and food security, energy security, prevention of disease and medical discoveries is enormous," she added.

She also stressed the need for taking the benefits of sciences to villages and cities for betterment of humanity.

"For a force multiplier effect, benefits must accrue to our people in our villages and in our cities. A store of scientific knowledge can only be useful when it is used for the betterment of the life of the people in their daily life," she said.

Patil further said that the importance of nations in the 21st century would be judged not by economic strength alone, but the power to conceptualise scientific inventions and bring benefits to the people.

"A store of scientific knowledge can only be useful when it is used for the betterment of the life of the people," she added.

"The quest for knowledge, however, is unending and research for new discoveries must continue as we cope up with change and new challenges which the world is facing today," Patil said.

Stating that the world was moving forward rapidly and decisively into an era where societies and economies were incrementally based on knowledge, she said this emphasised the need for an education system, which encouraged the study of science among the younger generation. (ANI)