ICAR Challenge Award 2017 : Indian Council of Agricultural Research

Organisation : Indian Council of Agricultural Research
Competition Name : ICAR Challenge Award 2017
Applicable For : All agricultural scientists of any age
Contest Last Date : December 31 2017
Website : https://icar.org.in/

ICAR Challenge Award :

To find a solution for any immediate or long-standing problem, or limitation in agriculture, which is coming in the way of agricultural development and/ or enhancing productivity in any major agricultural, horticultural or animal/fish product, ICAR has instituted a Challenge Award.

Related : SGRF Spark Award Competition 2018 – 30th Science Congress : www.contest.net.in/28822.html

Nature of the Award and its administration :
ICAR will identify a maximum of 10 major challenges (problems/limitations) in agricultural production, characterized by the following :
i. Either a long-standing problem which has defied solution over the years, or;

ii. An emerging problem which has potential of widespread damage and adverse impact on productivity. The list will be hosted on the website of the ICAR as well as circulated amongst scientific community through science academies, science departments and universities. Depending on the priority, the list of challenges will be subject to revision.

** Any scientist or group of scientists may, at any time, file a claim of having solved any one of these “challenges”.
** Claims will be filed in a format devised by the ICAR and available on website.

** The filed claims will be reviewed by a judging committee of 3-5 members chaired by the DG, ICAR, and having as member a scientist who has been a National Professor or an eminent scientist.
** The committee may ask for expert advice or evaluation.
** This committee would decide whether the claim made has any prima facie merit.

At the end of each six-month period, the claims identified as having prima-facie merit would be presented before the judging committee by the scientist(s) who have made the claim. In the presentation the scientist(s) who have made the claim will be asked to cover the following technical parameters :
** Review of the problem/challenge to develop the concept and objective of the research project and quantification of the adverse impact, and explanation of technology itself

** Methods adopted/experiments carried out and reasons thereof
** Outcome of the experiments

** Demonstrations to farmers/end users
** Adoption/commercialization of technology

** Quantification in terms of improvement, i.e., per cent increase in productivity; saving expenditure/labour/time, increasing shelf life of the product, increasing potential of natural resources, e.g., soil fertility, irrigation, improving waste land, disease resistance, drought resistance, etc.

** From amongst the presentations made, the judging committee will make a list of those which have theoretically established the possibility of a solution having been found. Thereafter, a DG-nominated specialist team of the ICAR scientists and others from within NARS or outside, if necessary, will determine, in consultation with the scientist(s) having made the claim, the experiments/demonstrations/tests.

** If the ICAR is satisfied, after the above series of experiments/demonstrations/tests, etc. that the technology is indeed capable of solving the identified challenge; the ICAR shall immediately get the technology patented and begin efforts, in collaboration with the scientist(s) concerned, to commercialize the technology.

** Once the technology is commercialized, the award shall be announced and given to the scientist(s) who has/have solved the challenge, and the challenge would be removed from the list of challenges hosted on ICAR’s website.

** The award shall consist of `10.00 lakh in cash, a citation, and a share in the income to ICAR from the commercialization as per ICAR guidelines. The solving of the challenge will be announced in a press conference to be held by the ICAR and the scientist(s), jointly.

** The ICAR may consider naming one of their national professorship/fellowship in the name of the scientist(s) who has/have solved the challenge.

6. Frequency :
** As often as a challenge is solved.

7. Eligibility Criteria :
** All agricultural scientists of any age are eligible.
** Claims made by any non-scientist(s) may also be considered by ICAR at its discretion.

8. Evaluation Criteria :
** ICAR’s satisfaction whether or not the challenge has been solved.

9. Procedure :
** By the nature of the award, claims will have to be filed. However, ICAR may, at its discretion, also entertain nominations, subject to the scientist(s) who has/have carried out the research, agreeing to fill out the ICAR’s prescribed proforma for filing claim, once ICAR makes request to him/them for the same on the basis of the nomination received.

10. General :
** The scientist(s) will be required to give at least 5 presentations of the work done by them in five different regions of the country. TA/DA and organisational expenses on the visits/lectures would be borne by the ICAR. The number of presentations can be increased appropriately, if desired by the competent authority in ICAR.