A new report produced by Evidence, a Thomson Reuters business, on behalf of Research
Councils UK (RCUK) shows collaboration between UK and Indian researchers is growing
and suggests that India will become increasingly important to the global research
community.
The advantages of building strong research partnerships between the two countries
are clear. Both countries are in a strong position to maximise opportunities arising
from the sharing of expertise.
RCUK opened an Office in India in 2008 with the aim of bringing about a step
change in research partnerships between the two countries. It also makes it easier
for the best researchers in the UK and India to develop high-quality and lasting
partnerships that drive growth and prosperity.
The report Bibliometric study of India’s research output and international
collaboration uses bibliometric indicators to measure the number of citations
a research paper receives world-wide. The findings show that collaboration with
the UK results in Indian research papers being more highly cited than Indian research
in general.
Minister for Universities and Science, David Willetts welcomed the findings and
said: “This report clearly shows that it is vital to collaborate with international
partners in the pursuit of research excellence. Our relationship with India has
gone from strength to strength, resulting in recent commitments of up to £60 million
of joint funded research. As the Indian economy continues to grow, the UK must work
with India to share expertise and maximise the opportunities for growth for both
countries.”
Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, RCUK International Champion said: “The RCUK Office in
India has been extremely effective in developing strong relationships between UK
and Indian researchers. The UK already has a reputation for excellent research and
working in collaboration with countries around the world allows us to expand our
knowledge base bringing benefits to the UK and wider.”
Key findings of the report include:
- UK collaboration with India is strong compared to other nations and takes
place in a diverse range of UK institutions across a variety of subject areas.
- The most highly cited India-UK collaborative research occurs across a range
of subject areas including biological and medical sciences, business, social
sciences, humanities, and is particularly strong in the physical sciences.
- The UK research base is in a position of strength, both in terms of volume
of activity and the impact that UK research has.
- The strength of the UK research base could be leveraged to take advantage
of opportunities for further collaboration.
Naomi Beaumont, Acting Director of RCUK India Office commented: “This report
highlights just how important it is to collaborate with the best researchers from
around the world. We are in a unique position to foster links between the UK and
India which will ultimately enhance the value and impact of joint research.”
A full copy of the report including more subject specific details can be found
here.
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Further information
Contact:
Jane Wakefield
RCUK Press and Communications Manager
Tel: 01793 444592
Notes for editors
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Research Councils UK (RCUK) is the strategic partnership of the UK's
seven Research Councils. We invest annually around £3 billion in research. Our
focus is on excellence with impact. We nurture the highest quality research,
as judged by international peer review providing the UK with a competitive advantage.
Global research requires we sustain a diversity of funding approaches, fostering
international collaborations, and providing access to the best facilities and
infrastructure, and locating skilled researchers in stimulating environments.
Our research achieves impact – the demonstrable contribution to society and
the economy made by knowledge and skilled people. To deliver impact, researchers
and businesses need to engage and collaborate with the public, business, government
and charitable organisations.
www.rcuk.ac.uk
The seven UK Research Councils are:
- Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC);
- Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC);
- Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC);
- Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC);
- Medical Research Council (MRC);
- Natural Environment Research Council (NERC);
- Science & Technology Facilities Council (STFC).
-
Evidence, a Thomson Reuters business, specialises in research
performance analysis and interpretation. The company was founded in 2000 and
acquired by Thomson Reuters in January 2009. We have an extensive track record
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to enable improved management and decision making at institutional and system
level. We use Thomson Reuters citation data covering over 11,000 of the highest
impact journals worldwide, including Open Access journals and over 110,000 conference
proceedings with coverage available back to 1900. Our past clients include HE
institutions, funding bodies, and government departments and agencies both in
the UK and globally.
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