The Executive Vice President, KSCSTE Chairman (Ex-Officio) The Secretary to Government Science and Technology Department Government of India Member (Ex-Officio) The Secretary Planning and Economic Affairs Department, Government of Kerala Member (Ex-Officio) The Secretary to Government Finance Department, Government of Kerala Member (Ex-Officio) The Director KFRI ,Peechi, Thrissur – 680 653. Member (Non-Ex-Officio) The Executive Director CWRDM, Kunnamangalam, Kozhikode -673 571. Member (Non-Ex-Officio) Dr. M. Chandra Dhathan Former Director, VSSC Member (Non-Ex-Officio) Prof. V. K. Damodaran Former Director, Energy Management Centre Member (Non-Ex-Officio) The Member Secretary, KSCSTE Member Secretary
The Hon’ble Chief Minister Government of Kerala President The Hon’ble Minister for Industries Government of Kerala Vice President The Hon’ble Minister for Finance Government of Kerala Vice President The Hon’ble Minister for Agriculture Government of Kerala Vice President The Hon’ble Minister for Health & Family Welfare Government of Kerala Vice President The Hon’ble Minister for Education Government of Kerala Vice President The Hon’ble Minister for Forest Government of Kerala. Vice President The Hon’ble Minister for Water Resources Government of Kerala Vice President The Vice Chairman State Planning Board Pattom, Thiruvananthapuram Vice President The Chief Secretary to Government Government of Kerala Thiruvananthapuram Vice President The Executive Vice President, KSCSTE Member The Secretary to Government Department of Science and Technology Government of India Member The Secretary to Government Finance Department Government of Kerala Member The Secretary Planning and Economic Affairs Department, Government of Kerala Member The Vice Chancellor CUSAT Thrikkakara, South Kalamasseri, Kochi – 682 022. Member The Vice Chancellor Kerala Agricultural University KAU P. O.,Vellanikkara Thrissur – 680 656. Member Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, Chairperson, MS Swaminathan Research Foundation, Tharamani, Chennai Member Dr. C. Bhaskaran Former Director, RRL Thiruvananthapuram Member Sri. M. Chandra Dathan Former Director, VSSC Member Prof. V. K. Damodaran Former Director, E nergy Management Centre Member The Director VSSC Thumba Thiruvananthapuram – 695 022. Member The Director Regional Research Laboratory (NIIST), Industrial Estate P. O. Thiruvananthapuram – 695 019. Member The Director Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Science and Technology Medical College P. O. Thiruvananthapuram – 695 011. Member The Director JNTBGRI, Palode, Thiruvananthapuram Member The Executive Director NATPAC, Thiruvananthapuram Member The Member Secretary, KSCSTE Member Secretary
Vision To promote excellence in science and technology through learning, research and development with the participation of academia, industry and research organizations. To benefit the society through science and technology interventions with the involvement of user agencies and beneficiaries for the improvement of infrastructure, livelihood, amenities and environment, thereby realizing sustainable development and better quality of life. Mission – Science for Humanity With a view to identify and implement programmes to achieve excellence in S&T within the state and to provide service to the society at large, KSCSTE has the following mission. Capacity building within the academic and research institutions in the state with a view to undertake major research projects and generate innovative products, processes and to protect the intellectual property rights. Enabling the R&D Centres of the Council financially and to carry out research and development in their respective areas of expertise. Identification and facilitation of projects and programmes in the biotechnology sector. Creation of State Biodiversity Board for the conservation and sustainable use of biological resources. Providing funds as grant-in-aid to select institutions as programme support for S&T activities. Creating Centres of Excellence in priority areas of research in research and academic institutions within the state. Augmentation of laboratory and scientific infrastructure in colleges, university departments and other research centres. Nurturing young talents and promoting them to take up projects, activities, research and development in the field of S&T. Promoting innovation at the grass root level and development of rural technology for the benefit of the masses. Developing Incubators for translational research, technology transfer and pilot scale development of industrial application and high priority areas of research. Developing Societal applications for S&T in the areas of S&T communication application of technology and S&T based entrepreneurship development. Focussing on Conservation, protection and management of physical environment and ecosystems, through R&D and management action plan.
The idea of utilizing science & technology with a wider reach to achieve faster development in the country necessitated the establishment of S&T institutions at the State level. Kerala is the first State in the country which created a State Committee on Science & Technology headed by a scientist/technologist, as Chairman. The first State Committee on Science and Technology (STEC) in India was constituted by Government of Kerala on 29th May 1972 and first Science and Technology Policy resolution in the India was unveiled in 1977 by the Government of Kerala. The Electronic Research and Development Center (ER&DC) was established under STEC in 1974. In 1975 The Kerala Forest Research Institute was established. The Srichitra tirunal Institute for Medical sciences Technology (SCTIMST) and National Transportation Planning and Research Institute (NATPAC) was established in 1976. The Centre for Water Resource Development and Management and Center for Earth Sciences were established in 1978. Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanical Garden and Research Institute were established in 1979. In 1993 the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for biotechnology was brought under the STEC. The Separate Department for Science, Technology and Environment was created in 1987. A technical secretariat was also established. With the creation of the department and technical secretariat, the State Committee on Science Technology and Environment (STEC) could expand its activities in diverse fields and impart S&T inputs to line departments for solving their problems. Over the years, the R&D centers under STEC umbrella have built up an impressive record of achievements to create a suitable research environment in Kerala. The Advancement in Science and Technology coupled with liberalization of the economy and progressive globalization has brought in new challenges to the Science & Technology sector. To cope with the emerging scenario, the Government of Kerala took a timely and pro-active step by restructuring State Committee on Science Technology and Environment to Kerala State Council for Science Technology and Environment. The council came in to existence on 21st November 2002 as a registered society under the Travancore – Cochin Literary scientific and Charitable Societies Registration Act 1955. The R&D Institutes namely Centre for Earth Science Studies, Rajiv Gandhi Centre of Biotechnology, Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanical Garden and Research Institute, Centre for Water Resource Development and Management, National Transport Planning and Research Centre and Kerala Forest Research Institute were amalgamated fully with KSCSTE for their integrated development.
The Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment (KSCSTE) is an autonomous body under Science and Technology Department, Government of Kerala, constituted in November 2002 vide GO(P) No. 76/2002/STED to be an agency for change and development through Science and Technology. Formerly it was the Science, Technology and Environment Committee (STEC), established in 1972 in concurrence with the Science Policy of Government of India. The council promotes and activates programmes for increasing the stock of knowledge in science, and fine tunes policies which are significant and for the sustained development of humanity. The council prepares the road map for development through scientific research and innovation in technologies. Achieving excellence in basic research, academia-industry interactions, strengthening indigenous initiatives, and building strong infrastructure and developing a high quality science education system in the state are our targeted goals. This has been achieved through various schemes and programs and by the R &D organisations established by the council. KSCSTE has a State Council headed by the Chief Minister of Kerala and an Executive council chaired by the Executive Vice President (EVP). Objectives To identify thrust areas in Science and Technology for speeding up the socioeconomic development and enhancing the quality of life and environment in Kerala; To advise the Government on the formulation of policies and strategies and suggest measures for implementation, which will promote the application of Science and Technology to meet the perceived needs of the society, and manage natural resources; To assist in the preparation of the Science and Technology Development Plan of the State and in its implementation; To promote effective coordination between Centres of Scientific and Technological research, Government agencies, farms and industries including the private sector so that know-how generated by scientific research is fruitfully deployed by transfer of technology; To support and coordinate research programmes in the universities and institutes of the Government, Research and Development laboratories of the private sector with a view to optimizing the scientific output. To consider and advise the Government on all such matters as are relevant to the application of Science and Technology to the economic, industrial, educational and social development of Kerala. To advise local government on use of Science & Technology for local application and local development To network the Science and Technology agencies within and outside the country To make the Science, Technology and Environment plans responsive to the developmental needs of Kerala and to dovetail them with the programmes of the economic, scientific and service departments of the Government such as agriculture, industries, power, water, energy, education and IT. Main functions of the State Council Plan, formulate and implement Science and Technology Promotion and other related research and development programmes. Provide overall guidance to the programmes and the developments of R&D centres of the Council. Withdraw and disburse the grant-in-aid funds from the Government and sponsoring agencies to R&D Centres and other grant-in-aid institutions. KSCSTE Headquarters, Thiruvananthapuram The decisions of the State Council and Executive Committee are implemented by the Council Headquarters (CHQ) based in Thiruvananthapuram. The functions of CHQ are carried out under the overall guidance of Executive Vice President who is also the ex-officio Principal Secretary of Science & Technology Department (S&TD). The executive functions are administered by the Member Secretary. The Science and Technology programmes are managed by Scientists and other staff members, both technical as well as administrative. There are seven institutions under the ambit of KSCSTE which undertakes research work in specific identified domains. Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (CWRDM) – catering to the R&D needs in the field of water management. Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI) -to undertake research in areas like forestry, biodiversity etc., that are vital to the development of the Kerala State. National Transportation Planning and Research Centre (NATPAC) – research and consultancy works in the fields of traffic engineering and transportation planning, highway engineering, public transport system, inland water transport, tourism planning, rural roads, environmental impact assessment and transport energy. Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute (JNTBGRI)- conservation and sustainable utilization of the plant biodiversity of India, particularly of Kerala for the well-being of her people. Malabar Botanical Garden & Institute for Plant Sciences (MBGIPS) – conservation and research on aquatic plant diversity, lower group plants, endangered plants of the erstwhile Malabar Region, as well as disseminating knowledge on various facet of plant sciences. Institute for Climate Change Studies (ICCS)- focuses on research related to State specific impacts of climate change and develops systems for providing timely and improved climate change information and climate services to the state. Srinivasa Ramanujan Institute for Basic Sciences (SRIBS)- fosters fundamental research across disciplines including chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics, and computer science.
