| abstract: | The 21st Century has been acknowledged worldwide as the 'Knowledge Century'. Every nation now finds itself operating in an increasingly competitive and globalised international environment where the information infrastructure, research and innovation systems, education and lifelong learning, and regulatory frameworks are crucial variables.
In the next few decades India will probably have the largest set of young people in the world. Given this demographic advantage over the countries of the West and even China, we are optimally positioned, in the words of our Prime Minister, to "leapfrog in the race for social and economic development" by establishing a knowledge-oriented paradigm of development.
It is with this broad task in mind that the National Knowledge Commission (NKC) was established on 13th June 2005 and given a timeframe of three years from 2nd October 2005 to 2nd October 2008 to achieve its objectives.
The overall task before the National Knowledge Commission is to take steps that will give India the ‘knowledge edge’ in the coming decades, i.e. to ensure that our country becomes a leader in the creation, application and dissemination of knowledge.
Creation of new knowledge principally depends on strengthening the education system, promoting domestic research and innovation in laboratories as well as at the grassroots level, and tapping foreign sources of knowledge through more open trading regimes, foreign investment and technology licensing.
Application of knowledge will primarily target the sectors of health, agriculture, government and industry. This involves diverse priorities like using traditional knowledge in agriculture, encouraging innovation in industry and agriculture, and building a strong e-governance framework for public services.
Dissemination of knowledge focuses on ensuring universal elementary education, especially for girls and other traditionally disadvantaged groups; creating a culture of lifelong learning, especially for skilled workers; taking steps to boost literacy levels; and using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to enhance standards in education and widely disseminate easily accessible knowledge that is useful to the public. |