New Delhi, Oct 6: Greater scrutiny and subjectivity in the selection process have delayed the announcement of the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar, Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said here on Monday.
The Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar, billed as the top national honours in the field of science and technology, were unveiled in 2023, and the first awards were given away on August 22, on the eve of the National Space Day, last year.
Modelled on the lines of Padma awards, the Vigyan Ratna, Vigyan Shri, Vigyan Yuva-Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award and Vigyan Team Awards were to be announced on May 11 on National Technology Day and conferred on August 23.
“They will be announced anytime. Some of us have got used to announcements made in haste. There is less subjectivity now. There is more scrutiny and more objectivity,” Singh told reporters here.
Last year, the RVP had kicked off a row after it was claimed that three scientists, who were known to be critical of the government, were dropped from the list of awardees.
“A wide interaction and a wider scrutiny have been put in place, which was possibly not happening earlier,” Singh said, referring to the selection process.
He said the awards have also been rationalised into different categories.
The RVPs were instituted after scrapping more than 300 awards given by different institutions, and comprise a medal and a citation, but no cash component.
All nominations received for the RVP are placed before the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar Committee (RVPC), which recommends the names to the Science and Technology Minister. (Agencies)
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