New 21-member committee set up to advise Narendra Modi on science and technology

A 21-member committee has been set up to advise **Prime Minister Narendra Modi** on science, technology and innovations, a top official said on Wednesday. The Prime Minister’s Science Technology and Innovation Council (PM-STIAC) includes noted mathematician and Princeton University professor Manjul Bharghava and Major General Madhuri Kanitkar, the first woman dean of Army Forces Medical College, Pune, said K VijayRaghavan, the principal scientific adviser to the Government of India. [caption id=“attachment_4299757” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”] Representational image. Image courtesy: ISRO[/caption] Headed by Raghvan, the committee also comprises AS Kiran Kumar, former ISRO chief, Ajay Sood, professor at the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru, Subhash Kak, professor at the Oklahoma State University and industrialist Baba Kalyani. Secretaries of at least 10 central ministries, related to science, technology, energy and education, are special invitees to the panel. The panel also has provision to include an additional member, decision of which has to be taken by the chairman of the committee. The committee’s main task is to advise the prime minister on science, technology and innovations.