The writer explains how the long-term benefits of a research college to the business economy make IIT Goa an attractive proposition for local businesses
The Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) are a group of twenty-three public engineering and management institutions located across India. They are considered among the most prestigious institutions in India for engineering and technology education and research. With post-graduate and Ph.D. funding for research, the IITs are the epicenter of emerging research in India.
In 2014, a center-funded IIT was allocated to Goa and began operating from a temporary campus in Farmagudi. Yet, eight years later, Goa struggles with creating a permanent campus, which would allow the IIT to begin operations in earnest and start flourishing. Having a permanent campus will allow IIT Goa to start its permanent research labs and can also begin attracting world-class talent to work and research in these labs.
One of the struggles that Goa seems to be having with the IIT is a lack of understanding of what a top research college brings to a state’s economy. While a Center-funded research college would be welcomed with open arms anywhere in the world, some Goan interests seem to question the value of an IIT to Goa.
With that in mind, let us look at some of the long-term and short-term effects of an IIT on the state economy – with a special emphasis on local businesses and how they can take advantage of a Center-funded research college.
This analysis is based on not just other colleges in India (like IIT Madras or IIT Delhi) but also, the effect top colleges in the US have on the State economy (having seen this effect firsthand in Boston while interacting with colleges like Harvard, MIT, and University Of Massachusetts).
Long-Term Benefits
The biggest long-term benefits are the effects a top college can have on the knowledge ecosystem of a state. To understand this, let’s break this down into two parts:
1. Macro Economy
Currently, Goa is mostly a tourism economy. With mining halted, it is safe to say Goa is ‘all-in’ on tourism. If Goa hopes to have a chance to transform into a knowledge-based economy in the future (rather than a manufacturing-based one), a top research college is its best bet. The next 30 years are expected to be the ‘Age of Biotech’. If Goa is to have any Biotech presence in the technology world, does Goa have the knowledge systems in place to be competitive in this field?
For example, IIT Delhi has started investing in Quantum Computing. As this field takes off, will Delhi and the surrounding ecosystem benefit from it? It absolutely will! There is no doubt that startups and companies in the field of Quantum Computing will gravitate toward IIT Delhi and want to be within that ecosystem.
Similar examples are emerging in other IITs, including the newer ones like IIT Guwahati. This IIT has recently started a ‘drone tech’ center and it’s quite likely that it might become the ‘Drone Hub’ for India as investments in drone technology continue to grow.
Which leads to the million-dollar question: What are Goa’s investments in the technologies of the future? As Goa tries to compete with the other states in knowledge-economy fields, what will Goa be best at? Recent developments in Goa have shown a hint of excellence emerging in Goa in the field of Pharma and Biotech. Will Goa capitalize on this and invest in this upcoming ‘Age of Biotech’?
2. Magnet for Companies
One of the greatest benefits of a research college is the collaboration that can (potentially) happen between the college and local businesses and startups.
The simplest form of collaboration would be Goan businesses working with the professors and students (both post-graduate and Ph.D.) in tackling various industry problems. This is a win-win for both; local businesses and researchers.
For example, a pharma company operating in Goa could easily work with the students via internships to tackle specific industry-oriented problems. This creates excellent opportunities for not just the local businesses, but also for students. These young students can bring energy and an innovative vibe to local companies.
The dream scenario of course, would be to have startups sprout around the IIT. Such startups usually happen when post-graduates and PhDs emerge from the research labs to form their own companies. To stay connected to the college and the labs, they usually set up shop in close proximity to the college.
For example, this is why Boston is the Biotech capital of the world – because most bright ideas emerge out of the MIT/Harvard ecosystems and begin life around the college area.
Goa just created its first Biotech unicorn (Molbio Diagnostics). If Goa is to create and attract more such unicorns, could they be off-shoots of the research labs from IIT Goa?
Short-Term Benefits
While I understand it is difficult for most people (especially politicians!) to ‘see the forest for the trees’, here are some short-term immediate benefits. These short-term benefits can be immediately activated as soon as construction for the permanent campus begins.
1. Job Opportunities
Initially, it might be jobs and opportunities related to the construction of the permanent campus (e.g. supplying material, labour, etc). This is not a major opportunity – but more a one-time construction-related opportunity.
Over the longer term, An IIT with its 5,000+ students and staff creates Center-funded job opportunities for locals. While these are mostly admin jobs, it is nonetheless an opportunity that locals can compete for. In other IITs like IIT Madras, almost 60% of the admin staff comprises of locals. If Goans compete for these jobs, similar numbers can be expected.
Side note: Opportunity does not equal reservation. These are Central-government jobs that Goans have a unique advantage for – but there will be heavy competition for these jobs (since all Indians are eligible).
2. Slight increase in Goan students
Anytime a top college comes up in an area, it results in inspiration for locals. While there is no reservation for locals in IIT, it certainly inspires students (especially girl students) to strive for entrance. This was clearly demonstrated in BITS Goa where the presence of Goan students in BITS increased dramatically after BITS started an Institute in Goa. Goa used to send one student to BITS Pilani every two years in the 1990s. More recently, Goa sends over 20+ students per year to the BITS system. That level of increase is unprecedented for a small State comprising just 0.13% of the Indian population.
3. Increased Economic Activity
One can expect increased economic activity around the campus as 5,000+ students/staff will need goods and services from the local economy (e.g. fish, vegetables, repairmen, plumbers, etc). The college becomes a major driver of economic activity around the campus and can sometimes create the concept of ‘college towns’ (aka: the entire economy of the town is driven by the presence of the college). A good example of this is Pilani in Rajashthan whose entire economy is driven by the BITS.
Conclusion: With mining coming to an abrupt halt, Goans should take this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to invest in a knowledge-based economy. Why now? Because if not now, then there is a real risk that Goa will transform into a manufacturing-based economy and all the side-effects that entail (think: coal power plants, chemical factories, etc).
